UK stocks are falling on Friday with bond yields rising amid speculation Chancellor Rachel Reeves may backtrack on budget plans. The possibility of the Bank of England refraining from cutting interest rates due to fiscal concerns has raised concerns about fiscal and economic outlook.
The 10-year gilt yield jumped to 4.56%, while the two-year gilt yield advanced to 3.82% following the reports.
Shares from banking and housing sectors are among the notable losers. Mining stocks are also mostly down with sharp losses.
The benchmark FTSE 100 was down 179.97 points or 1.84% at 9,627.71 a few minutes before noon.
Land Securities is down 4.4% despite reporting strong income growth for the half year ended September 30, 2025.
St. James's Place, Metlen Energy & Metals, Natwest Group, Lloyds Banking Group, Natwest Group, Entain, Antofagasta, IAG, Segro, Standard Chartered, Fresnillo and Scottish Mortgage are down 2.5 to 4.3%.
M&G, Rolls Royce Holdings, 3i Group, Marks & Spencer, Howden Joinery Group, Kingfisher, HSBC Holdings, Glencore, Tesco, EasyJet and Interteck Group are also down sharply.
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December 19, 2025 15:10 ET U.S. inflation data and interest rate decisions by major central banks were the highlights of this busy week for economics news flow. Employment data and survey results on the housing markets also gained attention in the U.S. In Europe, the European Central Bank and Bank of England announced their policy decisions and macroeconomic projections.