UK stocks tumble with FTSE 250 hitting one-year low

The FTSE 100 slipped below the 7,500 mark in its second day of losses, reversing gains made earlier in the week.

The UK’s top index has tumbled further and London’s FTSE 250 plunged to a one-year low (Yui Mok/PA) (PA Wire)

The UK’s top index has tumbled further and London’s FTSE 250 plunged to a one-year low after weaker trading updates and amid ongoing concerns over the escalating conflict in the Middle East.

The FTSE 100 slipped below the 7,500 mark in its second day of losses, reversing gains made earlier in the week.

It was down by 88.47 points, or 1.17%, to close at 7,499.53 on Thursday.

Pest control group Rentokil was the biggest faller with shares plunging by more than 16% after it warned its performance in North America would be below expectations for the year amid weaker demand in the region.

And packaging and paper giant Mondi told investors its underlying earnings were lower in the latest quarter compared to the three-months before, also attributing the decline to subdued demand. Its share price was down by more than 6%.

The FTSE 250, which is made up of more UK-focused firms, hit a one-year low after seeing more than 190 points shaved off the index.

Global stocks were heading lower on Thursday as investors remain nervous over tensions in the Middle East with the escalation of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Germany’s Dax was down 0.33% and France’s Cac fell by 0.64%.

Across the pond, the US’s S&P 500 and Dow Jones edged lower by about 0.1% by the time European markets closed.

The pound was gaining ground against the US dollar, moving 0.3% higher to 1.218. Sterling was down 0.3% against the euro to 1.1486.

In company news, Rightmove’s shares also suffered heavy losses after CoStar announced it was buying rival property portal OnTheMarket for £99 million.

OnTheMarket said the deal will help speed up its “transformation” of the sector, with the group said to be hoping it will help it take on the might of larger rivals Rightmove and Zoopla.

Shares in Rightmove fell by 14.3% at close, amid wider concerns over waning confidence in the property market as mortgage costs rise.

In better news, Deliveroo said its sales rose over the third quarter thanks to a stronger performance in the UK and Ireland and as order numbers begin to recover.

The company, which has previously been affected by a squeeze in household budgets, said it was making progress in promoting value meals within the food delivery app. Its share price slipped by just 0.1% at close.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Spirax-Sarco, up 196p to 8,384p, Admiral Group, up 58p to 2,489p, London Stock Exchange, up 152p to 8,226p, Halma, up 16.5p to 1,860.5p, and Weir Group, up 12.5p to 1,775p.

The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Rentokil, down 110.9p to 483.9p, Rightmove, down 82.2p to 493.2p, Mondi, down 81p to 1,252p, Hargreaves Lansdown, down 44.6p to 692.2p, and Unite Group, down 35p to 858.5p.