Investing.com — British stocks traded sharply lower on Tuesday as the Iran conflict entered a dangerous new phase, with Iranian missile and drone strikes on the UAE threatening to widen the war and push oil prices higher.
The fell 1.4%, while sterling was higher against the dollar at 1.3574. Germany’s rose 1.7% and France’s gained 1.1%.
Iran struck the UAE with missiles and drones on Monday, with Abu Dhabi intercepting 15 missiles and four drones before a fire broke out at an oil facility in Fujairah port.
Three Indian nationals were injured. Iran denied responsibility, blaming U.S. “military adventurism.” The UAE called the strikes “treacherous” and reserved the right to retaliate.
The Fujairah strike is seen as particularly significant. The facility houses the Habshan-Fujairah Oil Pipeline, which carries 50-60% of the UAE’s oil exports via the Gulf of Oman, a route specifically designed to bypass the Strait of Hormuz.
At sea, two US Navy destroyers transited the Strait of Hormuz under Iranian fire, protected by Apache and Sea Hawk helicopters. Iran has now attacked commercial vessels nine times, seized two container ships, and struck US forces more than ten times.
CENTCOM has deployed 15,000 service members, 100+ aircraft and the USS George H.W. Bush carrier under “Project Freedom” to escort shipping through the waterway.
However, an alternative Omani coastal route advised by the US has already hit trouble, with Iran’s Fars News Agency reporting two vessels are stuck in waters described as “rocky, shallow and very risky.”
U.S. Defense Secretary Hegseth warned at a Pentagon press conference that Iran would face “overwhelming firepower” if it attacks commercial shipping, while insisting the U.S. is “not looking for a fight.” CENTCOM added that no adversary should “mistake our current restraint with a lack of resolve.”
Iran’s parliament speaker Ghalibaf warned a “new equation of the Strait of Hormuz is being solidified” and that Iran had “not even begun yet,” while Foreign Minister Araghchi said there is “no military solution to a political crisis.” He is due to hold talks with his Chinese counterpart in Beijing.
UK Round Up
posted first-quarter pretax profit of $9.4 billion, narrowly missing estimates after an unexpected $400 million loss tied to a UK fraud case drove expected credit losses up to $1.3 billion. Shares fell 6.16%.
agreed to buy out CK Hutchison’s 49% stake in their VodafoneThree joint venture for £4.3 billion, taking full ownership of the UK’s largest mobile network operator with over 28 million customers. Shares fell 1.41%.
’s New CEO Dave Lewis caught an early break as merger talks between rivals Pernod Ricard and Brown-Forman collapsed, removing the threat of a newly enlarged challenger. Diageo is expected to report a 2.3% decline in third-quarter net sales on Wednesday. Lewis has signalled a sharper focus on cheaper, mass-market spirits and possible price cuts.
said power was swiftly restored and operations normalised at its Whiting, Indiana oil refinery after a brief electrical outage on Sunday. BP is also weighing a sale of some or all of its UK North Sea operations, according to Bloomberg.
Liquefied natural gas exports from Canada’s LNG Canada facility, a joint venture involving , Petronas, PetroChina, Mitsubishi Corp, and KOGAS, exceeded 1 million metric tons in April, marking a record monthly high. Separately, Shell announced a new exploration partnership with INEOS in the Gulf of Mexico.
shares surged after Swedish private equity firm EQT sweetened its takeover proposal for the inspection, product testing and certification group.
shares slumped after the investment trust reported a drop in first-quarter net asset value, pointing to write-downs on Starling and Klarna, and said it was moving to a self-managed structure.
British new car registrations are expected to rise to nearly 2.1 million units in 2026, upgraded from around 2.05 million, though the zero-emission vehicle share forecast was cut to 26.8% from 28.5% on softer first-quarter EV demand. April registrations grew 24% year-on-year to 149,247 units. UK sales rose 62% to 831 units in April.
Britain is in talks to join the European Union’s €90 billion loan to Ukraine to qualify for Kyiv’s defence orders that the loan finances, the European Commission said.
Britain unveiled sanctions against 35 people and entities involved in recruiting vulnerable migrants to fight for Russia in Ukraine and producing drones at a plant in Tatarstan under the Alabuga Start programme.
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