UK’s FTSE 100 ‌closes higher

The blue-chip FTSE 100 closed up at 0.1%, coming off a three-day losing streak

London’s FTSE 100 ‌closed higher on Wednesday, recovering from losses earlier in the day as investors took heart from U.S. President Donald Trump ruling out military action to take control of Greenland.

Mining shares offered the biggest boost with Rio Tinto climbing 5.2% after the Anglo-Australian miner beat expectations ‌for quarterly iron ore and copper production.

Higher copper prices also helped Glencore ​rise 3.7% and Anglo American gain 4.9%.

The blue-chip FTSE 100 closed up at 0.1%, coming off a three-day losing streak.

Trump’s increasing threats to Europe over ‍his plans to take control of Greenland have sent transatlantic markets into a tailspin earlier this week.

But, in a speech to the World Economic Forum in Davos ⁠on Wednesday, the president played down the issue as a “small ask” over a “piece of ice”.

The FTSE 250 midcap index meanwhile rose 0.5%, with Currys adding 7.7% after the electricals retailer raised its profit forecast after strong demand for iPhones, coffee machines and children’s storytelling boxes boosted Christmas sales.

Among other stocks, Burberry jumped 5% after the luxury brand beat ⁠expectations for sales ⁠growth in the key ​holiday quarter, lifting the index of personal goods up 4%.

JD Wetherspoon plunged 6.7% after the pub chain warned that fiscal 2026 profit could drop, sending the pub group down to the bottom of the midcap index.

Meanwhile, ‍data showed British inflation rose by more than expected in December, though investors held steady on their bets on the Bank of England cutting interest rates later this year.

We continue to expect headline inflation ​to drop significantly in 2026, and remain of the ‍view that the BoE will cut three times in March, June and September, Goldman Sachs analysts said ​in a note.