London's FTSE 100 touches new peak, driven by housebuilders, energy stocks

Wed, 11th Feb 2026 17:25

Feb 11 (Reuters) -

Britain's FTSE 100 touched record highs on Wednesday as gains in home builders and ⁠energy shares offset a slump in wealth managers, which came ⁠under pressure from concerns about AI disrupting their business models.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 rose 1.1% at a record close of 10,472.11 points.

The FTSE 350 Index of home builders rose 3.1% after

a report said

the Labour government was weighing plans for ‌a new version of the Help to Buy scheme to support flagging demand for new homes. Shares of Vistry Group, Bellway and Persimmon rose in the range of 4.2%-5.4%.

"The mainstream housebuilders, especially those with high exposure to the South and South East are likely to be the major winners," RBC analysts including Anthony Codling noted.

Energy stocks rose 3.6% as ‌oil climbed on supply worries tied to U.S.–Iran tensions and signs of stronger demand from falling crude inventories. BP and Shell climbed 5.4% ‌and 2.9% respectively.

The FTSE 250 dipped 0.2%, having touched a four-year peak on Tuesday, as sharp declines in

British wealth managers

weighed on the mid-cap index.

Shares of Aberdeen Group, Quilter, IG Group and AJ Bell fell in the range of 2.8% to 7.9%, tracking losses in their U.S. peers after ‌wealth management startup Altruist introduced AI-enabled tax-planning features, fuelling fears over disruption to incumbents.

FTSE 100-listed St. James's Place tumbled 13.4%.

London Stock Exchange Group closed up 0.2% after media reports said activist investor ⁠Elliott ⁠Management has built a stake and is engaging with the financial ‌data and analytics group to improve its performance.

In a busy day for corporate updates, investors were also digesting U.S. payrolls

data showing the economy

began 2026 on firmer footing, with January jobs rising more than ‌expected and the unemployment rate edging down to 4.3%.

A preliminary reading of UK's fourth-quarter GDP is due on Thursday, while December jobs data will be released next week. (Reporting by Tharuniyaa Lakshmi in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed, Aidan Lewis)