19.06.202608:04:27UTC+00FTSE 100 Edges Up on Friday, Down for the Week

The FTSE 100 inched higher on Friday, supported by gains in the healthcare, defence and energy sectors. Among drugmakers, AstraZeneca rose about 1.6%, GSK gained 0.9% and Hikma Pharmaceuticals advanced 1.4%. Defence stocks also traded firmly, with BAE Systems up 0.5%, Babcock International climbing nearly 2% and Rolls-Royce posting modest gains. Oil majors benefited from a recovery in crude prices, with BP up 1.5% and Shell 0.7%.

By contrast, banks and miners dragged on the index. Lloyds Banking Group fell 1.8%, while Barclays and NatWest lost between 0.7% and 0.9%. HSBC and Standard Chartered also finished lower. In the mining segment, Rio Tinto, Glencore, Anglo American and Antofagasta declined between 0.3% and 1.1%.

In politics, Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham won the closely watched Makerfield by-election with 54.8% of the vote, strengthening his profile as a potential challenger to Prime Minister Keir Starmer. On the macroeconomic front, UK public sector borrowing rose to £23.3 billion in May, exceeding forecasts, while retail sales rebounded by 1.2%, beating expectations.

Despite Friday’s advance, the FTSE 100 still ended the week more than 0.5% lower.