London open: FTSE gains as oil prices ease; Wetherspoons tumbles

20th Mar 2026 07:56

(Sharecast News) - London stocks rose in early trade on Friday as oil prices eased back, after Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said the war with Iran could end sooner than people think.

At 0830 GMT, the FTSE 100 was up 0.4% at 10,102.28. At the same time, Brent crude was down 1.6% at $106.96 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate was 2.1% lower at $94.16.

At a press conference on Thursday, Netanyahu said: "We are winning and Iran is being decimated."

He said, without providing a timeframe, that he sees the "war ending a lot faster than people think".

Netanyahu also said he would refrain from any further attacks on Iran's South Pars gas field at Donald Trump's request.

Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management, said: "Netanyahu's remarks have poured a layer of soothing balm over sentiment, with talk of securing the Strait and claims that Iran's nuclear and missile capabilities have been neutralised, feeding the idea that this conflict could burn out faster than feared.

"That narrative matters because it shortens the perceived life of the supply shock. But even if the geopolitical chapter closes sooner than expected, the energy system does not reset on command. You do not rebuild liquefaction trains, repair export terminals, or restore confidence in global shipping lanes with a press conference. So with Brent still holding above $105, the tape may be calmer, but you can still smell the smoke."

On home shores, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed the government borrowed more than expected in February.

Borrowing rose to £14.3bn, up £2.2bn from a year earlier and marking the second highest level for that month since records began. It was also well above the £8.5bn expected by economists.

Borrowing in the financial year to February was £125.9bn, down 8.7% on the same 11-month period a year ago, but still the fourth-highest April to February borrowing on record.

ONS senior statistician Tom Davies said: "Borrowing was higher than the same month last year and was the second-highest February figure on record. While receipts were up on last year, that was outweighed by a rise in spending, including the later timing of some debt interest payments.

"However, across the first eleven months of this financial year as a whole, borrowing was down, as receipts increased by more than spending."

In equity markets, airlines flew higher, with easyJet and BA and Iberia owner IAG both up sharply.

Unilever was also in the black as it confirmed it was in talks to separate its food business and combine it with spice maker McCormick. If successful, the deal would see brands such as Unilever's Hellmann's mayonnaise and US-based McCormick's Cholula hot sauce brought together.

On the downside, JD Wetherspoons tumbled as it posted a steep drop in interim profits and warned that full-year numbers would likely disappoint, as it battled a spike in costs.

The British pub chain saw revenues rise 5.7% in the 26 weeks to 25 January, to £1.09bn, while like-for-like sales were 4.8% stronger.

However, operating profits tumbled 18.4% to £52.9m, missing forecasts for a more modest drop to £60m.

Smiths Group also lost ground as the diversified engineer's half-year organic revenue growth missed expectations.