FTSE 100 Outperforms Europe
2026-06-05 15:51
By
Agna Gabriel
1 min. read
The FTSE 100 edged higher on Friday, outperforming major European markets.
Defensive stocks led gains, with AstraZeneca and GSK rising around 2% each, while Unilever and British American Tobacco advanced roughly 2.5%.
Defence group BAE Systems also gained close to 1%.
In contrast, mining shares came under heavy pressure, with Rio Tinto falling about 2.8%, Glencore down 3.5%, Anglo American losing 5%, Antofagasta dropping 5.3% and Fresnillo retreating 5.7%.
On the data front, Halifax reported that UK house prices slipped 0.1% in May following a similar decline in April, taking the average property price to £298,806.
Annual growth for first-time buyers eased to 0.3%, though Halifax said lending conditions are becoming more flexible and housing market activity remains broadly stable.
Despite Friday’s gains, the FTSE 100 was down 0.3% for the week.