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Investing.com -- British stocks declined during Thursday’s trading session, while the pound strengthened, as investors digested a flurry of corporate earnings and reacted to the Bank of England’s decision to cut the base interest rate.
The blue-chip index FTSE 100 fell 0.7% and the British pound gained 0.6% against the dollar to 1.34.
DAX index in Germany rose 1.2%, the CAC 40 in France gained 1%.
BoE cuts interest rate to 4%
The Bank of England cut its benchmark interest rate to support a struggling jobs market, marking its fifth reduction in 12 months.
The U.K. central bank lowered its Bank Rate by 25 basis points to 4% from 4.25%, a move that was widely anticipated by market participants.
While the central bank implemented this cut to bolster the weakening employment sector, the path for future monetary policy easing remains uncertain.
FTSE 100 movers: Deliveroo (LON:ROO) lifts guidance; Epwin (LON:EPWN) surges on takeover, Harbour Energy (LON:HBR) rallies
Deliveroo raised its full-year core profit guidance, now expecting adjusted EBITDA between £170 million and £190 million ($227 million to $254 million), which represents the upper end of its previous range.
The food delivery company attributed the improved outlook to increased order volumes that lifted transaction values on its platform.
Deliveroo also confirmed that its acquisition by U.S.-based DoorDash (NASDAQ:DASH), agreed to in May, remains on track with completion anticipated in the fourth quarter of 2025.
In other corporate news, Just Group (LON:JUSTJ) reported disappointing first-half 2025 results, with sales declining 13% and profit before tax falling 12%, missing consensus expectations by 16%.
The retirement income specialist, which agreed to a takeover last week, saw sales declines of 13% in both retail annuities and bulk business segments.
Epwin Group PLC (LON:EPWN) shares jumped over 30% after the company’s board agreed to a £167.3 million cash takeover by the UK arm of German construction firm Laumann Group.
The deal values the building products specialist at 120 pence per share, representing a premium to recent trading levels and pricing the company at 6.1 times its 2024 adjusted earnings.
Spectris (LON:SXS) the precision measurement specialist, reported an 8% increase in first-half sales and maintained its full-year profit guidance despite mixed market conditions.
The company, currently the target of a recommended £41.75 per share acquisition offer from KKR, delivered 1% like-for-like sales growth with improved momentum in the second quarter.
Volex Plc (LON:VLX) reported a strong start to its fiscal year 2026, with first quarter organic revenue increasing 10.4% year-on-year at constant currency.
The company’s shares rose 0.8% following the announcement.
InterContinental Hotels Group (LON:IHG) shares rose more than 5% after reporting an 8% earnings beat for the first half of fiscal 2025.
Adjusted basic earnings per share came in at 242.5 cents, ahead of the consensus estimate of 224 cents, while adjusted EBIT, excluding System Fund impact, reached $604 million, beating consensus of $597 million.
Serco Group (LON:SRP) shares rose more than 3% after reporting interim earnings ahead of expectations and announcing a £50 million share buyback.
Diluted earnings per share for the first half came in at 9.6p, about 12% above the consensus estimate of 8.5p, with adjusted operating profit reaching £146 million, ahead of the expected £140.1 million.
Harbour Energy PLC (LON:HBR) shares rose almost 9% after launching a $100 million share buyback and raising its full-year free cash flow guidance.
These moves came despite a wider-than-expected first-half loss of $174 million due to impairment charges.