U.K. Stocks Turning In Mixed Performance

(RTTNews) - U.K. stocks turned in a mixed performance Monday morning with investors largely making cautious moves despite easing geopolitical tensions and a sharp drop in oil prices.

Oil prices fell amid hopes about reopening of the Strait of Hormuz following U.S. President Donald Trump cancelling fresh military strikes and saying there is a 'good chance' of progress in talks aimed at ending months of fighting.

Brent crude futures tumbled to $81.55 a barrel before recovering to $83.60, but still remained sharply lower, losing nearly 5% from previous close.

The FTSE 100 was down 2.70 points or 0.02% at 10,865.35 a few minutes before noon. The index moved in a tight range between 10,842.75 and 10,889.50.

AstraZeneca dropped 5.2% amid reports the company had held discussions with US drugmaker Bristol Myers Squibb about a possible merger.

IG Group Holdings fell 5.6%. British American Tobacco, Imperial Brands, Airtel Africa, Glencore, Centrica, Coca-Cola HBC, BP, Rio Tinto and Sainsbury (J) lost 1%-2.5%.

Persimmon climbed nearly 3.5%. Howden Joiner Group, Smith & Nephew, Kingfisher, St. James's Place and Burberry Group moved up 3%-3.2%.

ICG, Barratt Redrow, Rolls-Royce Holdings, Natwest Group, Melrose Industries, The Sage Group, JD Sports Fashion, Convatec Group, Pershing Square Holdings, Whitbread and 3i Group gained 2%-3%.

Clarkson, a provider of shipping services, jumped nearly 7% after reporting record first-half profits.

In economic news, the S&P Global UK Manufacturing PMI eased to 51.9 in July, a four-month low, from 52.5 in June and below the preliminary estimate of 52.8. Despite the decline, the index remained above the 50 mark for a ninth consecutive month, signaling continued expansion in the sector.