Sharecast - Miners were under pressure, with Glencore (LON:GLEN), Rio (LON:RIO), Anglo American (LON:AAL) and Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) all down.
Associated British Foods (LON:ABF) slumped after it reported lower interim profits as the clothing retailer and foods group battled inflationary headwinds and lower consumer spending amid the cost-of-living crisis. It posted adjusted operating profit of £684m, down 3%, for the 24 weeks to March 4. Primark profits fell to £351m, compared with £414m a year earlier.
On a pre-tax basis AB Foods earnings for the period rose 1% at £644m, supported by a 23% rise in profits at its foods and division. The firm expects full-year profits to flat, in line with guidance.
Banks were under the cosh after disappointing results late on Monday from US bank First Republic (NYSE:FRC), which said that deposits had fallen by more than $100bn. Standard Chartered (LON:STAN), NatWest (LON:NWG) and Barclays (LON:BARC) all lost ground.
On the upside, Premier Inn owner Whitbread (LON:WTB) surged after saying that full-year earnings had soared above pre-pandemic levels on the back of strong demand for hotel rooms after the lifting of Covid-19 travel restrictions and unveiled a £300m share buyback.
The company, which also owns the Beefeater steakhouse chain, reported pre-tax profit of £375m, up from £58m a year ago and £218m in 2020 before the pandemic shut down the leisure and hospitality sectors.
Vodafone (LON:VOD) was higher as its biggest shareholder, e&, said it had lifted its stake in the firm and opened talks to push for changes on its board.
FTSE 100 - Risers
Whitbread PLC 3,272.00p +4.67%
Entain (LON:ENT) 1,435.00p +1.63%
Vodafone Group 91.01p +1.48%
GSK (LON:GSK) 1,495.40p +1.45%
Flutter Entertainment (CDI) (LON:FLTRF) 15,995.00p +1.30%
Imperial Brands (LON:IMB) 1,973.00p +1.18%
AstraZeneca (LON:AZN) 12,300.00p +1.12%
St. James’s Place (LON:SJP) 1,238.50p +1.06%
British American Tobacco (LON:BATS) 2,951.50p +1.01%
Halma (LON:HLMA) 2,279.00p +0.75%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Glencore 468.30p -3.71%
Rio Tinto 4,976.00p -3.21%
Centrica (LON:CNA) 110.30p -3.12%
Anglo American 2,435.50p -3.05%
Antofagasta 1,480.50p -2.41%
Associated British Foods 2,023.00p -2.27%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 618.60p -2.18%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (LON:BMEB) 482.70p -1.99%
NatWest Group 268.80p -1.97%
Barclays 151.36p -1.84%