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(AWP Alliance News) - Stock prices in London were lower at midday on Tuesday, with losses for mining stocks weighing on the FTSE 100, as investors awaited the outcome of the US midterm elections and monitored developments in the Middle East.
The FTSE 100 index was down 52.69 points, 0.5%, at 10,708.64. The FTSE 250 was down 79.53 points, 0.3%, at 24,716.32, and the AIM All-Share was down 1.67 points, 0.2%, at 756.25.
The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.5% at 1,062.72, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.3% at 21,877.91, and the Cboe Small Companies was down 0.2% at 18,919.48.
In European equities on Tuesday, the CAC 40 in Paris was down 0.2%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt fell 0.6%.
Meanwhile, EU countries have until Friday to nominate candidates to succeed European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde, with eurozone finance ministers set to discuss the nominations on November 9.
Lagarde announced last week that she would step down in February, several months before the scheduled end of her term, triggering a race to lead the central bank.
EU leaders will appoint her successor based on a recommendation from eurozone finance ministers, who meet in a forum known as the Eurogroup.
"The president of the Eurogroup, Kyriakos Pierrakakis, has called on member states to send their nominations by Friday," a spokesman said on Tuesday.
"The eurogroup, at its meeting on 9 November, will take stock of the nominations," he added.
The meeting will take place in Brussels, with former Dutch central bank governor Klaas Knot and Spain's Pablo Hernandez de Cos, currently head of the Bank for International Settlements, seen as frontrunners for the role.
The pound was quoted at USD1.3413 at midday Tuesday, unchanged from the London equities close on Monday. Against the euro, sterling rose to EUR1.1993 from EUR1.1980 a day earlier.
The euro edged down to USD1.1183 from USD1.1200 late Monday. Against the yen, the dollar rose to JPY158.18 from JPY157.82.
In the FTSE 100, Centrica was among the leading gainers, rising 3.6% after Jefferies upgraded the energy company's rating to 'buy' from 'hold' and raised its price target to 200 pence from 190p.
Hiscox advanced 2.4% after reporting higher insurance premiums in the first nine months of 2026, with fewer natural catastrophes helping to offset losses related to shipping in the Middle East.
Mining stocks were among the biggest fallers, with Endeavour Mining declining 3.2%, Anglo American losing 2.8% and Fresnillo falling 2.7%.
Associated British Foods dropped 3.1% after reporting lower annual profit, as a challenging consumer environment weighed on its Primark retail business.
The food and ingredients producer said pretax profit fell 10% to GBP1.28 billion from GBP1.41 billion a year earlier, while adjusted pretax profit declined 14% to GBP1.46 billion from GBP1.70 billion, broadly in line with market consensus of GBP1.45 billion.
Revenue edged up to GBP19.58 billion from GBP19.46 billion.
The company also warned that adjusted operating profit and earnings per share would decline further in its 2027 financial year due to weakness in its Sugar division.
In the FTSE 250, Drax Group jumped 8.6% after announcing a strategic partnership with Brookfield to develop an artificial intelligence data centre at Drax Power Station in Yorkshire.
The project could have more than one gigawatt of potential capacity, with Brookfield estimating total potential investment of more than GBP20 billion, including semiconductor chips.
International Workplace Group climbed 6.1% after saying it expects full-year 2026 adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation to exceed market consensus.
The flexible workspace provider reported a 9.0% increase in third-quarter group revenue to USD1.03 billion from USD947 million a year earlier, while system-wide revenue rose 12% to USD1.26 billion.
Among smaller companies, ACG Metals surged 13% after agreeing to acquire Blue Moon Norway AS from Blue Moon Metals Inc for USD220 million in shares.
The transaction includes a 94.52% stake in the construction-stage Nussir copper mine in Norway, alongside other development assets.
The acquisition will combine Nussir, which is targeting its first copper concentrate production in the first half of 2028, with ACG's Gediktepe mine in Turkey, which is expected to reach full commercial production in the first quarter of 2027.
Stocks in New York were called mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average set to open down 0.6% and the S&P 500 down 0.1%, while the Nasdaq Composite was called up 0.4%.
Americans head to the polls on Tuesday for midterm elections that will determine which party controls Congress during the final two years of President Donald Trump's second term.
All 435 seats in the House of Representatives are up for election, with Republicans defending a narrow majority and Democrats needing a net gain of four seats to take control.
In the Senate, 35 seats are being contested. Republicans currently hold 53 seats against 47 held by Democrats, leaving Democrats needing a net gain of four seats to secure a majority.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.92% at midday Tuesday, widening from 4.89% on Monday. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury widened to 5.30% from 5.25%.
Brent oil was trading at USD105.84 a barrel at midday Tuesday, higher than USD105.09 late Monday, as diplomatic efforts to ease tensions between Washington and Tehran continued despite reports of renewed US military action against Iran.
The Wall Street Journal reported that the US attacked Iran's Qeshm Island on Monday, raising fresh concerns about the fragile situation in the Middle East.
Gold was quoted at USD3,902.77 an ounce at midday Tuesday, lower than USD3,968.02 on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Kremlin confirmed that US-mediated talks between Russia and Ukraine would take place in Abu Dhabi on November 10 and 11, as Washington continues efforts to bring an end to the war.
US President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff had earlier announced the dates for the meeting, following discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last month.
"The Russian delegation will arrive on November 10-11 in Abu Dhabi to take part in trilateral talks," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, including AFP.
Still to come on Tuesday's economic calendar, the US releases September factory orders and job openings figures at 1500 GMT.
Factory orders are expected to rise 1.2% month-on-month, accelerating from 0.1% growth in August.
Meanwhile, US job openings are forecast to increase to 7.13 million in September from 7.08 million in August.
By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News senior economics reporter
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