London shares reversed an intraday decline on Thursday as cautious optimism from central bank officials at the Sintra forum outweighed the drag from weaker oil prices linked to reported advances in US-Iran negotiations.
By 03:23 ET (07:23 GMT) the FTSE 100 had inched higher by 0.14%. European peers also rose, with Germany's DAX up 0.09% and France's CAC 40 gaining 0.50%. Sterling strengthened to 1.3314, up 0.28% on the session.
Central bank messaging steadies markets
A panel discussion at Sintra, featuring Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde and Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, delivered a distinctly dovish tone that calmed investors' rate expectations. Jefferies strategist Mohit Kumar described Bailey as "probably the most clear," characterising the UK as experiencing a "soft patch" in which higher mortgage rates have "effectively tightened" policy without the need for further rate rises.
Lagarde observed that oil "was at $120 a few weeks ago and is now close to $70." Jefferies said the tenor of the panel "supports our view of no (further) hikes this year from the Fed, ECB or BoE."
Commodities and market flows
Energy prices continued to moderate amid reports of indirect discussions between US and Iranian negotiators. Brent crude fell to $70.69 a barrel, down 1.23%, while WTI dropped 1.3% to $67.69. The move lower in oil weighed on energy-related sentiment.
Precious metals displayed mixed behaviour. Gold futures were quoted down 0.20% at $4,074.67, while spot gold rose 0.76% to $4,062.08.
Technology and equity flows
Jefferies also highlighted a separate market driver: Meta's plan to monetise excess AI compute capacity through a cloud offering prompted selling pressure in semiconductor-related names. The knock-on effect was visible in Asia, where the KOSPI fell sharply overnight.
Geopolitical developments remain in focus
Regional diplomatic and security developments complicated the backdrop. Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi criticised a U.S.-led regional security summit in Bahrain on X, writing that "Hormuz is defined under Iran's command, not CENTCOM" and that a military summit "cannot establish legal order and security for the Persian Gulf."
The summit, led by CENTCOM commander Admiral Brad Cooper, convened military officials from a dozen nations, including Syria and Lebanon - the first time those two countries' militaries had joined a US-led regional defence conference, according to CENTCOM.
Separately, Qatar and Pakistan issued a joint statement saying "positive progress was made" in indirect Doha talks between US and Iranian negotiators on issues tied to the Islamabad memorandum of understanding, and that both sides had agreed to continue discussions after the funeral processions for Iran's former Supreme Leader.
U.S. President Donald Trump told reporters that "the denuclearization of Iran is moving along well" and described the Doha meetings as "very good." Vice President JD Vance told CNN that "talks are going well," while noting that discussions on the nuclear issue were only just set to begin.
UK corporate updates
In corporate news affecting domestic markets, Currys reported an 18% rise in annual profit and said trading at the start of the new financial year had been "very solid," with sales growth in both the UK and Nordics. Sodexo upgraded its full-year organic revenue growth forecast after third-quarter revenue came in stronger than expected, exceeding market expectations.
Market takeaway
Markets reacted to a combination of central bank rhetoric, commodity price moves and evolving geopolitics. The dovish signals from senior central bankers reduced near-term expectations for further rate hikes by major central banks, while easing oil prices and regional diplomatic activity supported risk sentiment despite localized political criticism around the Gulf security summit. Technology-related volatility, particularly in chips after Meta's announcement, also influenced equity flows internationally.
Investors are likely to remain attentive to further developments from central banks, updates on the US-Iran discussions, and company-level news that could drive sector-specific volatility.