FTSE 100 down as data services stocks drop

The blue-chip index FTSE 100 dropped 0.3% and the GBP/USD rose 0.3% to 1.3700

British stocks dropped on Tuesday, wiping out early gains from a rebound in metal prices and mining shares as data services stocks slid after AI startup Anthropic unveiled a new legal tool.

Stocks considered vulnerable to disruption from artificial intelligence advances took a steep downturn after Anthropic unveiled its latest offering. This marked another setback for companies potentially threatened by expanding AI capabilities.

The blue-chip index FTSE 100 dropped 0.3% and the GBP/USD rose 0.3% to 1.3700. The DAX index in Germany slid 0.1%, and the CAC 40 in France was flat.

Shares of professional services publishers dropped sharply in Europe following Anthropic’s announcement of a new artificial intelligence-powered plugin designed for in-house legal teams.

Anthropic, which has emerged as a major player in high-end AI model development, described the new plugin on its GitHub page. The company indicated that the tool is primarily created for its agentic desktop application, Claude Cowork, though it can also function within Claude Code, Anthropic’s coding assistant.

European banking giants Banco Santander and NatWest Group PLC are considering selling several billion pounds of UK pension assets to an insurance company, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday.

Both banks are exploring the potential sale, though specific details about the exact value of the assets or the timeline for any transaction were not disclosed in the report.

UK grocery inflation eased to 4.0% in the four weeks to January 25, reaching its lowest level since April last year, according to data released Tuesday by market researcher Worldpanel by Numerator.

The latest figure represents a decline from the 4.3% inflation rate reported in Worldpanel’s previous assessment, offering some relief to shoppers facing rising food costs.