The FTSE 100 showed remarkable resilience yesterday in the initial reaction to Donald Trump’s trade tariffs, outperforming most European and US indices.

However, this resilience disappeared on Friday as FTSE 100 banking shares crumbled, sending the index sharply lower. Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, Standard Chartered and NatWest all fell more than 5%.

Standard Chartered is the FTSE 100’s biggest casualty of the tariffs, losing around 17% of its value over the past week.

There were also losses for mining stocks and oil majors on Friday, which culminated in sending London’s leading index down by more than 3%.

Selling picked up after reports that China would implement 34% retaliatory tariffs on US goods and trade restrictions on rare earths. Investors will fear that more countries follow suit and take retaliatory measures. Some European leaders have been vocal in their support for hitting back at Trump.

Meanwhile, Donald Trump has said he’s open to negotiation. Equity bulls will hope the bookmaker-style charts of tariffs revealed on Wednesday were a PR stunt for his core voter base and an extreme negotiating tactic that will spur favourable trade deals.

Whatever the underlying motives are, markets are taking the tariffs on face value after a period of complacency, and the reaction in global equities has been cataclysmic.

Some economists are now predicting a US recession.

“With markets having suffered their worst week in five years, investors were hiding under their duvet on Friday hoping the pain would go away,” said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell. 

“Unfortunately, the relentless selling continued, with markets falling across Asia and Europe and futures prices implying the US will do the same when trading begins later on.

“There are so many moving parts that getting your head around the situation isn’t easy. With countless sectors set to be hit by tariffs, it’s difficult to know where to begin to comprehend the situation.”

US indices had their worst trading since the pandemic yesterday, and the selling showed little sign of easing. S&P 500 futures were 1% weaker in the premarket.

Legendary investor Bill Gross has warned against buying the dip. It appears, for today at least, investors are taking heed.

Cavendish plc, a leading UK investment bank, has reported expected revenues of approximately £55 million for the financial year ended 31 March 2025, in line with the previous year on a like-for-like basis.

The company maintained profitability throughout both halves of the financial year, demonstrating the appeal of its service offering across public and private markets.

Despite challenging market conditions, Cavendish increased its market share in public markets, completing the last UK IPO of 2024 and the first of 2025.

However, the general malaise in UK public markets has seen Cavendish increase their focus on the UK’s private markets where they have ongoing relationships with 150 UK private equity firms.

The firm said its private markets business delivered particularly strong revenue growth, reflecting the strength of its advisory capabilities and continued demand for high-quality execution in this segment.

Cavendish has recently opened offices in Manchester and Birmingham to strengthen their regional presence and better serve their private market clients.

The company enters the new financial year with £21 million in net cash and more active mandates than at the same point last year.

Kodal Minerals shares were unmoved by the latest update on the company’s lithium mining operations.

Despite Kodal Minerals’ Bougouni Lithium Project in Southern Mali reaching the significant production milestone of over 11,000 tonnes of spodumene concentrate, shares in the company were trading marginally lower at the time of writing on Friday.

The company is nearing completion of the Bougouni Lithium mine and is carrying out optimisation of the processing plant, preparing for full production.

“I am pleased to confirm that the ramp-up and optimisation of the Project and DMS processing plant is progressing and, positively, we are seeing ongoing improvements through the modifications and adjustments to the DMS processing plant as advancements continues,” said Bernard Aylward, CEO of Kodal Minerals.

The project, which achieved its first lithium spodumene concentrate in February 2025, has handled 13,400 tonnes of material, yielding 1,920 tonnes of spodumene concentrate with a grade of 5.63% Li₂O.

Despite this progress, export plans to China via the Port of Abidjan in Côte d’Ivoire remain on hold pending the transfer of the Bougouni Mining Licence from Future Minerals SARL to Les Mines de Lithium de Bougouni SA (LMLB). Whilst the necessary company structure updates have been completed and approved by relevant Mali Government ministers, the application awaits final approval from President Assimi Goïta. This is an issue that has now dragged on for months.

The licence transfer delay has prompted Kodal Mining (UK) Ltd, which holds a 49% interest in the project, to formally request an extension for its scheduled US$7.5 million payment to the Mali government, as outlined in the November 2024 Memorandum of Understanding. Government officials have acknowledged receipt of this request, though a formal response is still pending.

Although Kodal is moving towards full commercial production at Bougouni, the Kodal share price still hasn’t managed to build a base above levels seen in 2021.

Shares in Brighton Pier (LON: PIER) rebounded 114.8% to 14.5p following the announcement of plans to ask shareholders for approval for an exit from AIM. It costs up to £300,000/year to be on the junior market and there is a lack of liquidity. It is difficult to raise significant amounts of money. There are plans to arrange a refinancing with two major shareholders. The leisure group intends to secure a matched bargain facility. The share price was 17.75p before the announcement.

Respiratory drugs developer Synairgen (LON: SNG) says that TFG Asset Management says it will waive its right of refusal on transfers of more than one million shares up until any further fundraising. TFG owns 86.9% of the company. The AIM admission will be cancelled on 9 April. An Asset Match facility has been secured for two years. The share price recovered 17% to 1.1p.

Strategic Minerals (LON: SML) generated revenues of $1.18m in the first quarter of 2025, which is year-on-year growth of 41%, from the Cobre magnetite operation in New Mexico. The group had $530,000 in the bank. The share price increased 6.67% to 0.4p.

Shares in Zinnwald Lithium (LON: ZNWD) continue to rise following yesterday’s announcement that the Saxony state government has recognised the company’s eponymous lithium project as a project of outstanding importance. The company recently published a pre-feasibility study showing a pre-tax NPV of €3.3bn with a mine life of 40 years. The share price rose 5.93% to 6.25p.

Cambridge Cognition (LON: COG) is providing digital cognitive and voice assessments for two phase 3 clinical trials in adolescents with clinical depressive. The combined value of the contracts, which last until 2027 and 2029 respectively, is £1.2m. This will help Cambridge Cognition to meet 2025 revenue expectations of £12.5m, which would return the company to profit. The share price improved 4.17% to 37.5p.

FALLERS

Oracle Power (LON: ORCP) says assay results for five holes from the Northern Zone gold project in Western Australia and four have highlighted results. These confirm and enlarge the shallow gold mineralisation. Samples from four other holes are still be analysed and reported on. The share price declined 11.9% to 0.0185p.

Cancer treatments developer ValiRx (LON: VAL) has terminated its exclusivity agreement with TheoremRx Inc and ValiRx will move the VAL201 prospect to a prostate cancer focused special purpose vehicle. There is interest from a consortium and charities regarding possible support for development. The share price fell 10.5% to 0.425p.

K3 Technology (LON: KBT) intends to return £29m – equivalent to 64.8p/share – to shareholders via tender following a recent disposal and it is consulting with shareholders about whether to remain on AIM. The software company will still have £6m in cash and remaining software businesses that are a Microsoft Dynamics fashion industry partner and a supplier of software to IKEA. The share price slipped 6.32% to 89p.

Ex-dividends

Caledonia Mining Corporation (LON: CMCL) is paying a dividend of 14 cents/share and the share price rose 50p to 925p.

IDOX (LON: IDOX) is paying a final dividend of 0.7p/share and the share price declined 1.8p to 55.8p.

Personal Group Holdings (LON: PGH) is paying a final dividend of 10p/share and the share price fell 16p to 233p.

Quartix Holdings (LON: QTX) is paying a final dividend of 3p/share and the share price slipped 4p to 193p.

Real Estate Investors (LON: RLE) is paying a dividend of 0.4p/share and the share price is unchanged at 30p.

The S&P 500 is firmly in correction territory after the announcement of tariffs on America’s trading partners sent global equities sharply lower.

Indeed, the S&P 500 was one of the most heavily hit indices in the immediate reaction. Some investors may see this as a buying opportunity for some of the world’s leading companies.

Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, has picked out three S&P 500 companies for consideration in the wake of tariff-induced sell-off.

In his own words, Nathan outlines three US shares he has his eye on:

GE Healthcare – imaging a brighter future

“GE Healthcare is a top-tier provider of medical technology. It has a leading position in imaging equipment like X-ray machines and MRI scanners. This is the biggest part of the business and leaves it well-placed to address the ageing global population and the demand for early detection of cancer and other illnesses. 

It’s not all about lumpy, expensive hardware sales though. There are a host of consumables and software add-ons that help smooth the revenue profile.  The huge volumes of data generated by medical imaging tests mean there’s plenty of scope for artificial intelligence (AI) to improve patient outcomes and efficiency within healthcare systems. It’s an opportunity the company is pursuing aggressively, and GE is already generating commercial traction. 

GE closed out 2024 with a quarter of modest revenue growth and margins expanding quicker than guided. Headwinds in China weren’t enough to offset growth elsewhere, but it’s something to keep an eye on especially as trade tensions mount.  However, China’s a relatively small part of the revenue mix, with North America by far the largest region by revenue. Economic uncertainty is also building in the US, but essential diagnostic services tend to be relatively resilient to cyclical ups and downs. 

Overall, organic revenue growth is expected to improve this year. And there’s hope for further progress towards the medium-term target of operating profit margins approaching 20%, driven by efficiency gains and product innovations. To achieve all this, GE spends over $1bn a year on Research & Development, but that’s supported by healthy cash flows and a strong balance sheet. The high pace of innovation carries some execution risk. But the valuation doesn’t look too demanding, and investors could be rewarded if the plan can be delivered.

Nvidia – AI leadership credentials intact

Despite another set of forecast-beating earnings, as well as better-than-expected guidance for the current quarter, NVIDIA’s valuation has slid further below the long-term average so far this year. 

We think it’s been caught up in the wider pivot towards more defensive sectors. But it also reflects concerns about trade restrictions and the scale of future demand for NVIDIA’s powerful computer processors. 

We’re encouraged by the innovations set out at the company’s recent developer conference. The group looks well positioned to retain its leadership in computing for AI as the focus moves from the training of models to reasoning in real-time or inference. While there are some meaningful rivals emerging in the inference space, NVIDIA offers a compelling solution to its customers. 

It’s not just the chips that make NVIDIA’s product so appealing, the CUDA software platform that enables users to optimise the hardware is key. AI has the scope to transform practically every industry, and NVIDIA is proving to be a key partner in everything from healthcare through to self-driving vehicles. 

However, the ability to scale does depend on key partners. While recent production constraints seem to have been addressed, there’s no guarantee the supply chain will continue to keep up with soaring demand. That said, the next iteration of the company’s commuting architecture is expected to be less challenging to roll out. 

CEO Jensen Huang thinks there’s scope for revenues to grow more than five-fold to $1trn by 2028, but it’s too early to say how likely that is. In the near term, forecasts for revenue to nearly treble to over $250bn by the end of the next financial year don’t feel unreasonable. On that basis, prospective earnings multiple of 25x looks attractive. But the company is under immense scrutiny, so any missteps are likely to be punished. 

A party connected to the author owns shares in NVIDIA

Uber – from rides to riches

Uber, America’s leading ride-hailing service, is transitioning into a global transportation powerhouse, offering food delivery and freight services. Its asset-light model connects drivers and riders, delivering better value and service as user numbers grow and the network broadens. Thanks to its multi-service offering, Uber’s ride-hailing, delivery, and freight services attract a broad range of customers. Many Uber Eats users come from the rides app and vice versa, which helps to keep more customers on the platform and boost overall usage and spending.

The ride-hailing arm is the main money-maker, and trends are improving here. It’s expanding into new regions, allowing fixed costs to be spread across more journeys. This helps them keep prices competitively low, win more rides, and increase drivers’ earnings – a key factor in growing its fleet and improving the user experience. There are some challenges though, including regulatory hurdles and ongoing disputes with local taxi drivers. Stiff competition can also lead to heavy price discounting. It’s important that Uber remains competitive on costs, without compromising on service levels or its variety of offerings to consumers. 

Uber’s food delivery business is growing at pace, becoming profitable and expanding beyond food to groceries and other essentials. Advertising revenue in this division is expected to grow faster than order revenue, as Uber effectively targets user-centric ads based on habits.

Autonomous Vehicles (AV) are an emerging trend, and Uber plans to approach this by enabling AV partners to scale using their platform, rather than building vehicles themselves. We support this approach, but there’s a lot of execution risk ahead and no guarantee that partnerships will endure.

Uber has become a part of everyday life through its diverse range of offerings. The group’s growth profile, combined with improving margins and impressive cash generation, makes for a compelling proposition. That’s recognised by a forward earnings multiple in the high 20s. We think that’s merited by its strong competitive position and superior service offering. But it also means there’s some pressure to deliver in the face of economic uncertainty.”

The FTSE 100 sank with global equities on Thursday as investors reacted to the most severe US trade tariffs on its partners for over 100 years.

Donald Trump has taken an axe to years of globalisation and in the process wiped off billions in global equity value.

London’s leading index was trading down 0.9% at the time of writing. However, the FTSE 100 got off lightly compared to other major equity indices after the UK was hit by tariffs of only 10%. The EU was slapped with a 20% tariff.

The Japanese Nikkei shed 2.7% while S&P 500 futures tumbled 3%. Germany’s DAX lost 1.3%.

“Trump’s bold attempt to reshape international trade has sent shockwaves through global markets,” said Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown.

“The effects of ‘Liberation Day’ are being felt far and wide, with Asian markets down overnight, European stocks under pressure in early trading, and US futures pointing to a big drop later today.

“With tariffs reaching levels unseen in over a century, the US is poised to rake in an additional $600bn in tariff revenue in an optimistic scenario, or put that another way, that’d be a $600bn added cost for businesses or consumers to stomach.”

There was a clear divide in the performance of FTSE 100 companies on Thursday. Those with substantial overseas exposure or close ties with the US were heavily hit, while those that have more of a grounding in the UK tended to be ok, or even gained.

Standard Chartered, a bank with operations focused on Asia, was the FTSE 100’s top faller, losing over 6%, as investors reacted to an additional 34% tariff on China.

HSBC lost 5% on the same sentiments.

JD Sports shares tumbled over 5% on supply chain concerns after countries such as Thailand and Vietnam were hit with some of Trump’s highest tariffs. The company’s North American growth ambitions have now also become more complex.

UK-centric property companies were enjoying hopes of lower interest rates as a result of trade tariffs. Student accommodation specialist Unite Group rose 3% with other REITs, Land Securities and Londonmetric, rising over 2%.

Taylor Wimpey and Persimmon were over 1% higher.

Utility companies jumped on a safe-haven trade. Severn Trent was the top riser at the time of writing, with United Utilities not far behind.