05.02.202613:06:33UTC+00FTSE 100 Trades Lower

The FTSE 100 experienced a decline on Thursday following its previous session's record high, due to an unexpected dovish division within the Bank of England's rate decision. The Bank of England maintained the Bank Rate at 3.75% through a closely contested 5-4 vote, leading traders to anticipate a greater probability of further rate cuts by 2026. The banking sector lagged behind, with Lloyds seeing a 4% drop, NatWest almost 3% down, and HSBC and Barclays both declining by over 1%. The mining sector also faced setbacks as prices of gold, silver, and copper fell—Fresnillo dropped by 5%, Endeavour decreased by 2.7%, Antofagasta fell by 2.5%, Anglo American declined around 2% after lowering its 2026 copper production forecast, and both Glencore and Rio Tinto saw decreases of 3% and 2%, respectively. Oil giants Shell and BP experienced drops of 1.3% and 0.6%, as crude oil prices waned. Shell's quarterly profits fell slightly short of expectations despite a $3.5 billion share buyback. Vodafone stood out with significant losses, plummeting almost 9% due to slower-than-anticipated growth in service revenue.