Business
FTSE 100 dips as Unilever falls amid Magnum split
The FTSE 100 started the week on the back foot, weighed by falls in Marmite owner Unilever, while in the US the battle for control of Warner Bros Discovery took another turn.
The FTSE 100 index closed down 21.92 points, 0.2%, at 9,645.09. The FTSE 250 ended 142.67 points lower, 0.7%, at 21,921.28, and the AIM All-Share ended down 2.78 points, 0.4%, at 748.52.
In London, trading was muted ahead of Wednesday’s US interest rate decision.
The US central bank is widely expected to deliver a third consecutive 25 basis points interest rate cut, taking the Federal Reserve’s target range for the federal funds rate to 3.5%-3.75% at what could be a contentious meeting.
Goldman Sachs says the case for a cut is “solid”.
“Job growth remains too low to keep up with labour supply growth, the unemployment rate has risen for three months in a row to 4.4%, other measures of labour market tightness have weakened more on average and some alternative data measures of layoffs have begun to rise recently, presenting a new and potentially more serious downside risk,” the investment bank said.
Barclays expects a “hawkish” cut.
“At the press conference, we expect (Fed) chairman Powell to reinforce the message that a pause is likely at the January meeting, provided the labour market does not suddenly deteriorate, and to mention that the (Federal Open Market Committee) remains very divided about the future course of policy,” the bank said.
The pound was quoted lower at 1.3319 dollars at the time of the London equities close on Monday, compared to 1.3326 dollars on Friday.
The euro stood at 1.1624 dollars, down against 1.1635 dollars. Against the yen, the dollar was trading higher at 155.88 yen compared to 155.42 yen.
In European equities on Monday, the CAC 40 in Paris closed down 0.2%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt ended up 0.1%.
Stocks in New York were lower at the time of the London equity close.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 index were down 0.3%, while the Nasdaq Composite was 0.2% lower.
In New York, Paramount Skydance launched an all-cash offer to acquire Warner Bros Discovery for 30 dollars per share, trumping a previous bid from streamer Netflix.
The hostile offer sets up a battle between Paramount – whose owner, Larry Ellison, is an ally of US President Donald Trump – and streaming behemoth Netflix to buy one of Hollywood’s most storied studios.
Netflix shocked the industry last week by announcing it had sealed an agreement to buy the Warner Bros studio, drawing bitter reactions from voices in Hollywood worried about the future of their industry.
Mr Trump weighed in on Sunday, saying Netflix’s effort to acquire Warner Bros “could be a problem” as it would be left with a huge market share of the film and TV industry.
“We’re really here to finish what we started,” David Ellison, chairman and chief executive of Paramount, told CNBC as his company made a sixth offer for Warner Bros since the bidding war began.
Netflix fell 4.5%, Warner Bros rose 5% and Paramount Skydance surged 7.3%.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.19%, widened from 4.14%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was at 4.83%, stretched from 4.80%.
On the FTSE 100, Unilever fell 6.6% as Magnum Ice Cream started trading in Amsterdam, London and New York.
Shares in the Ben & Jerry’s and Magnum owner, which has been split from Unilever, rose 1.3% in Amsterdam compared to the 12.80 euro reference price, implying a market value of around 7.94 billion euros, below some market forecasts.
Diana Radu, Morningstar equity analyst, said initial valuations are “lower than earlier estimates”, while she noted technical factors could also weigh on Magnum shares in the short-term.
She said: “Magnum is headquartered in the Netherlands and has its primary listing on Euronext Amsterdam, so unlike Unilever, it does not qualify for inclusion in the FTSE UK index series.
“As a result, UK index-tracking funds that receive Magnum shares in the spin-off but benchmark against FTSE UK indices are required to sell, which creates some short-term downward pressure on the share price after listing.
“Still, we remain optimistic on the longer-term outlook. As a standalone company, the ice-cream business gains a refreshed management team and a more focused, category-specific strategy.”
Housebuilders were also another weak feature as UK bond yields pushed higher, with Barratt Redrow down 4% and Persimmon down 3.5%.
Nonetheless, Ami Galla, equity analyst at Citi, believes a spring bounce is likely to drive a sector re-rating, saying: “We continue to have a positive sector view into 2026 for volume housebuilders, which should benefit from a favourable rate outlook as well as a gradual improvement to the planning backdrop.”
Heading upwards, defence stocks rallied on continued geopolitical uncertainty.
Defence contractor Babcock International led the blue-chip risers, up 2.6%, with BAE Systems, up 1.1%.
Aerospace manufacturer Rolls-Royce was in demand, up 2.1%, after receiving an order from defence company KNDS for more than 300 engines for Leopard 2 battle tanks.
On the FTSE 250, Kainos surged 6.6% as Bank of America double-upgraded to “buy” from “underperform”, while Baltic Classifieds, up 5.9%, recouped some of last week’s heavy falls, which followed a downbeat trading update.
Brent oil was quoted at 62.79 dollars a barrel at the time of the London equities close on Monday, down from 63.60 dollars late on Friday.
Gold was quoted at 4,192.10 dollars an ounce on Monday, lower against 4,208.77 dollars.
The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Babcock International, up 30p at 1,176p; Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust, up 25p at 1,094.5p; Polar Capital Technology Trust, up 10.5p at 475p; Rolls-Royce, up 22.5p at 1,107p; and Prudential, up 19.5p at 1,097.5p.
The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Unilever, down 296p at 4,160p; Barratt Redrow, down 15p at 363.2p; JD Sports Fashion, down 3.1p at 79.6p; Persimmon, down 46.5p at 1,298.5p; and Entain, down 24p at 735.2p.
Tuesday’s economic calendar has an interest rate decision in Australia overnight and BRC retail sales data in the UK. The two-day FOMC meeting starts in the US.
Tuesday’s UK corporate calendar has half-year results from equipment hire firm Ashtead Group and greetings card and gift retailer Moonpig.
Contributed by Alliance News.
After the drop in gold price, Bitcoin price also fell.
Bitcoin fell below $77,000 in the global market, Bitcoin price fell by more than 13% in a week.
Bitcoin’s highest price in 6 months fell below $126,000, Bitcoin price has dropped by more than $49,000.
Last Updated:
The BSE Sensex is trading higher by 371 points, or 0.47%, at 81,090.24, while the NSE Nifty rises by 70 points to trade above 24,850 at 24,889.25.
Stock Market Today.
Market Updates Today: A day after the market crash following the Budget’s provision to hike Securities Transaction Tax (STT), the domestic equity market on Monday saw heightened volatility. After opening nearly flat, the NSE Nifty rose to the day’s high, then touched the day’s low before sharply recovering to trade at the day’s high of 25,093.
As of 3:16 pm, the BSE Sensex surged by 932 points, or up 1.13%, to 81,641.87 in the afternoon trade and the NSE Nifty rose by 267 points, or up 1.07%, to trade above 25,000 at 25,093.27. After opening nearly flat, the NSE Nifty rose to the day’s high, then touched the day’s low before sharply recovering to trade at the day’s high of 25,093.27.
Among the 30 Sensex shares, 25 stocks were trading in the green. Among the top gainers were PowerGrid, Adani Ports, BEL, Reliance, Mahindra & Mahindra, Larsen & Toubro, and IndiGo, rising by up to 7.91%. The laggards were Axis Bank, Infosys, Titan, TCS, and Trent, falling by up to 1.97%.
After opening nearly flat, at around 9:30 am, the BSE Sensex jumped by 350 points to 81,112.03 in the opening trade, while the NSE Nifty rose 91 points to trade above the 24,900 level at 24,910.85. However, the benchmarks gave up all gains and declined to day’s low amid heavy volatility.
Aakash Shah, technical research analyst at Choice Equity Broking Private Ltd, said, “Near-term sentiment remains cautious despite some support from domestic technical indicators. The broader market direction will largely be influenced by global equity cues, crude oil price movements, and institutional fund flows.”
On Sunday, the Nifty saw an aggressive sell-off after the Budget 2026 announcement to hike STT, plunging nearly 870 points from 25,440 to an intraday low of 24,571, before staging a partial recovery to close at 24,825.
“A strong bearish candle was formed, with the index closing decisively below the 200-day EMA, indicating a deterioration in trend strength. Immediate resistance is placed at 24,950–25,000, while key support lies in the 24,650-24,700 zone. The RSI slipped to 31, reflecting oversold conditions, while India VIX surged 10.73% to 15.09, highlighting elevated market volatility,” Shah said.
On Sunday, February 1, foreign institutional investors (FIIs) sold equities worth Rs 588 crore, while domestic institutional investors (DIIs) also remained net sellers, offloading shares worth Rs 682 crore, adding to the pressure on the market.
V K Vijayakumar, chief investment strategist at Geojit Investments Ltd, said, “Yesterday’s market selloff resulting in 495 point crash in Nifty was a knee-jerk reaction to the sharp increase in STT on F&O trades. This was not a revenue-raising measure, but a decision to discourage retail traders from complex F&O trading, in which 92% of them were losing money. This decision is in the interest of retail investors. But this decision impacted the market sentiments, which were already impacted by the decision to make no changes in the LTCGs tax, which a section of the market was expecting rather unrealistically.”
It is important to understand that the Budget is a growth-oriented Budget with fiscal prudence. The 10% nominal GDP growth projected in the Budget is achievable and has the potential to deliver around 15% earnings growth in FY27. The market will soon start discounting this positive. But it is possible that FIIs may continue to sell impacting the market. Retail investors should keep their cool and remain invested and continue to invest systematically. A significant upturn in the market may take time; perhaps a retreat from AI trade globally. We don’t know when this will happen. But we know that an earnings rebound is imminent in response to this growth oriented Budget. That is a clear positive, he added.
February 02, 2026, 09:34 IST
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Gold and silver prices have continued to drop sharply in a “brutal” sell-off after hitting record highs in recent weeks.
The precious metals began falling on Friday in response to US President Donald Trump’s nomination for the incoming chairman of the Federal Reserve.
His choice for former Fed governor Kevin Warsh to replace current chairman Jerome Powell when his term ends in May soothed some investor nerves, which boosted the US dollar but saw appetite for safe-haven investments gold and silver slump in response.
Gold and silver suffered their worst trading days for decades on Friday and were down heavily again on Monday, with spot prices off by another 7% and 11% respectively at one stage.
Silver had plunged by nearly 30% on Friday and gold dropped over 9% in its worst one-day drop since 1983.
Gold and silver had been enjoying a record breaking rally as investors sought refuge amid global geopolitical uncertainty, conflict and tariff woes.
Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, said: “The sell-off has been far more brutal than I, and many, expected.”
He added: “For silver, the rally on the way up was faster than gold’s, so the correction on the way down is faster too.”
Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, added: “If the sell off continues, then gold and silver are at risk of eroding their losses for the year so far.
“The historic move lower in silver prices has not stemmed a fall at the start of this week.
“Traders have not yet found a level that they are happy to buy the dips, and the timing of Chinese Lunar New Year in mid-February could accelerate the sell off, as Chinese traders reduce risk ahead of the holiday.”
UK and US stock markets are expected to open in the red on Monday, as the gold and silver rout has a knock on effect on mining giants, while Brent oil was also 5% lower.
Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “Mining stocks are likely to feel the heat as metal prices scramble to find a floor.
“Oil prices are also trending the wrong way for investors in commodity-focused companies.”
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