FTSE 100 Modestly Lower In Cautious Trade

(RTTNews) - The UK stock market's benchmark index FTSE 100 drifted lower on Monday with investors largely making cautious moves while assessing the prospects of the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Amid a lack of corporate earnings new and economic data from the domestic front, trading remained somewhat lackluster since the opening bell.

The FTSE 100, which dropped to 10,859.09, was down 29.21 points or 0.27% at 10,871.80 nearly half an hour past noon.

Fresnillo, Glencore and Endeavour Mining gained 2.1%, 2% and 1%, respectively. Antofagasta advanced 0.7%.

IG Group Holdings moved up 1.7% and Scottish Mortgage climbed 1.3%. Melrose Industries, Croda International, Diageo, Rolls-Royce Holdings, Spirax Group and SSE gained 0.5%-0.8%.

Shares of trading platform Plus500 soared 6.3% after the company posted record first-half results.

Coca-Cola HBC drifted lower by about 3.4%. GSK shed 2.2%, while British American Tobacco, Imperial Brands, Legal & General, Admiral Group, Vodafone Group, 3i Group, Reckitt Benckiser, Bunzl, Smith & Nephew, BT Group and Haleon lost 1%-2%.

Building products maker Marshalls dropped 2% after reporting a marginal decline in first-half revenue.

In economic releases, U.K. permanent staff appointments stabilized in July, ending a 45-month downturn, the KPMG/REC Report on Jobs revealed. Temp billing posted the biggest growth in the last three years as more employers sought flexible workforce solutions.

Data pointed to a fresh increase in demand for temporary workers, and permanent vacancies dropped at a slower pace in July. As a result, overall demand for workers fell at the softest pace in 22 months.

Pay growth improved in July. Starting salary inflation reached the highest in six months and temp wage growth hit a 26-month high. Nonetheless, the upturn in starting salaries remained slower than the long-run trend amid a steep increase in candidate availability.