LONDON MARKET CLOSE: Stocks climb but BP knocked by sudden Chair exit

Tue, 26th May 2026 17:00

(Alliance News) - The FTSE 100 closed higher on Tuesday although a fall in oil major BP following the unexpected departure of Chair Albert Manifold limited gains.

The FTSE 100 closed up 25.13 points, 0.2%, at 10,491.39. The FTSE 250 ended up 160.02 points, 0.7%, at 23,327.49, and the AIM All-Share rose 12.23 points, 1.5%, at 812.46.

The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.3% at 1,044.62, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.7% at 20,249.45, and the Cboe Small Companies Index ended up 0.4% at 18,801.91.

The unexpected exit of BP Chair Albert Manifold saw shares in the oil major drop 4.0%.

The London-based firm said Manifold had been removed as chair and director, citing "serious concerns" that were raised to the board "related to important governance standards, oversight and conduct."

Manifold's ousting is the second major executive replacement at BP for conduct reasons in three years.

Former Chief Executive Bernard Looney was replaced in 2023 due to failings in his personal conduct.

"At this point it's fair to say BP has the most volatile boardroom of the oil supermajors," commented Lindsey Stewart, director of institutional investor content at Morningstar.

Manifold became chair of BP in October, after joining the board in September. Between 2014 and 2024, he served as chief executive of Dublin-based building materials provider CRH.

"The fact that Manifold has left so soon raises genuine concerns about HR policies at BP, and the corporate culture. It also suggests a lack of stability at the firm, which is bad news for shareholders," said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB.

Elsewhere, events in the Middle East continue to dictate market movements, after US military strikes on Iran deflated hopes of an imminent deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

The US and Iran have been working on an agreement to end the Middle East war and reopen the crucial waterway to tanker and cargo traffic since a fragile ceasefire on April 8.

Iran accused the US of breaching their ceasefire and warned it was ready to retaliate after the US strikes.

But despite the strikes, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that a deal remained within reach.

However he remained firm on the Strait of Hormuz, the key oil and gas shipping route which Iran is seeking to control.

"There were some talks going on in Qatar today, so we'll see if we can make progress. I think it's a lot of talking back and forth going on about specific language in the initial document, so it'll take a few days," Rubio told reporters, during a visit to India.

He said the strait was "going to be open one way or the other," adding: "What's happening there is unlawful, it's illegal, it's unsustainable for the world, it's unacceptable."

In European equity markets on Tuesday, the CAC 40 in Paris ended down 1.0%, and the DAX 40 in Frankfurt fell 0.8%.

In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.6%, the S&P 500 was 0.4% higher, and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 0.2%.

Financial markets in the UK and US were closed Monday for public holidays.

"The FTSE 100 was playing catch up to European counterparts on Tuesday after progress on a potential agreement between the US and Iran," said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.

"However, continued doubts about the potential for a deal and an overnight pre-emptive US strike on Iran mean any euphoria is being kept in check. It's telling that other European indices dipped slightly after the gains they enjoyed yesterday when trading in London was suspended for the bank holiday," he added.

Brent crude for July delivery traded lower at USD100.18 a barrel on Tuesday, down from USD104.22 at the time of the equities close in London on Friday.

The pound traded at USD1.3443 on Tuesday afternoon, little changed from USD1.3441 on Friday. Against the euro, sterling eased to EUR1.1567 from EUR1.1584 on Friday.

The yield on the US 10-year Treasury narrowed to 4.51% on Tuesday from 4.58% on Friday. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury ebbed to 5.03% from 5.09%.

The euro traded higher against the greenback, at USD1.1622 on Tuesday against USD1.1603 on Friday. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY159.33, higher than JPY159.12.

Melrose Industries slipped 5.4% as it said the evacuation zone around its facility in California had been downsized, as specialists worked to resolve "a thermal issue" at the site.

Melrose disclosed that an issue was identified on Thursday in a tank storing methyl methacrylate at GKN Aerospace's Garden Grove site.

Autotrader fell 3.4% as analysts continued to adopt a cautious stance after last week's results.

"The aftermath of the disastrous" deal builder rollout has been worse than our expectations," Panmure Liberum said in a research note as it downgraded the firm to 'hold' from 'buy'.

"Deal builder was planned to be a core growth driver, yet it looks unlikely that it will contribute materially in the next few years, and in its absence we are left questioning what Autotrader's next growth driver will be," Panmure Liberum added.

Mining stocks were prominent risers with Metlen Energy & Metals up 6.5%, Antofagasta up 3.7%, Endeavour Mining up 3.5% and Glencore up 2.9%.

Gold traded at USD4,504.21 an ounce on Tuesday, down from USD4,520.92 on Friday.

Kingfisher climbed 1.7% as the London-based home improvement products retailer said like-for-like sales for its first quarter to the end of April declined against a "soft market backdrop" but added it is on track to deliver its full year guidance.

The firm said first quarter sales rose 1.4% to GBP3.30 billion on a reported basis, but fell 0.9% on a like-for-like basis, as it cited a "strong prior year comparator".

British Land shares were up 1.9% after Barclays raised its rating on the stock to 'overweight'.

The broker said British Land's valuation "screens attractively" given increased earnings growth visibility.

The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 were Metlen Energy & Metals, up 2.52p at 41.50p, JD Sports Fashion, up 3.64p at 81.28p, International Consolidated Airlines, up 15.40p at 412.30p, Antofagasta, up 144.00p at 4,075.00p and Endeavour Mining, up 150.00p at 4,438.00p.

The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 were Melrose Industries, down 27.40p at 482.20p, BP, down 22.20p at 529.00p, Autotrader, down 15.20p at 439.20p, Admiral Group, down 112.00p at 3,368.00p, and Rightmove, down 8.80p at 431.80p.

Wednesday's global economic calendar has Australian CPI figures overnight, UK grocery market share data and the Richmond Fed manufacturing index.

Wednesday's local corporate calendar has half-year results from Greencore and Hollywood Bowl.

By Jeremy Cutler, Alliance News reporter

Comments and questions to newsroom@alliancenews.com

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