(Reuters) -London's FTSE 100 was little changed on Tuesday as investors paused after last week's rally, with overall market declines being offset by gains in major energy stocks. The blue-chip index
FTSE 100 Holds Steady as Energy Stocks Rise; B&M Faces Profit Warning
(Reuters) -London's FTSE 100 was little changed on Tuesday as investors paused after last week's rally, with overall market declines being offset by gains in major energy stocks.
The blue-chip index was flat at 9,480.84 as of 1050 GMT, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 slipped 0.2%.
Retailers led declines, slipping 0.8%. B&M fell 5.5% to its lowest level in over five years after the discount retailer warned of a drop in its annual profit amid weak sales.
It experienced the biggest drop on the FTSE 250.
The latest study from Halifax showed the rise in British housing prices was slower than expected at 1.3% in 12 months and were the weakest since April 2024.
Homebuilders, including Vistry and Bellway, declined, bringing down the household goods and construction sector by 0.7%.
On the flip side, energy stocks gained 1.3%. Oil major Shell gained 1.6% after lifting its third-quarter LNG production forecast.
The FTSE 100 had rallied to record highs last week, on a boost from beaten-down healthcare stocks that saw some investor interest after the U.S. government inked a deal with drug giant Pfizer, reducing some uncertainty around the sector.
The benchmark also hit an intraday record high on Monday but retreated after the French prime minister's resignation brought fiscal and political stability concerns to the forefront.
Analysts expect markets to be in a wait-and-watch mode in the absence of major catalysts and the ongoing U.S. government shutdown.
Among other stocks, Imperial Brands gained 2.1% after the Winston cigarette maker announced an additional share buyback of 1.45 billion pounds ($1.95 billion).
Rentokil advanced 2.4% to top the FTSE 100 after Bernstein double-upgraded its rating on the pest control company to "outperform" from "underperform".
(Reporting by Avinash P and Purvi Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore)
