Source: Sharecast
The FTSE ended down 1% at 10,673.94, firmly in the red but well off earlier lows, helped by a recovery on Wall Street.
Patrick Munnelly at Tickmill Group also suggested that short covering and profit-taking on bearish positions trimmed the day's losses into the weekend.
Overall, sentiment was hit following heavy losses in Asia and on Wall Street on Thursday. Tech stocks led the global rout, after the Democrats - many of whom campaigned against the rapid, market-led expansion of artificial intelligence - took control of Congress.
Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club, said: "Big worries are colliding - the build-out of data centres looks set to slow, which risks shredding the spending spree underpinning the boom, right at the time that investors have become super nervous about returns on this massive investment.
"Any slowdown in AI generated growth, particularly in the US, will have repercussions for the wider market, and it comes as inflationary pressures are still playing on minds. Oil prices have crept higher yet again, as uncertainty swirls about the outcome of the middle East crisis, with fresh military action still potentially on the table."
Investors were also mulling the latest US non-farm payrolls report, which showed that job creation accelerated sharply in October, comfortably beating forecasts, while unemployment edged lower and wage growth unexpectedly picked up.
Non-farm payrolls increased by 165,000, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said, well ahead of consensus expectations for a 65,000 rise and more than double September's upwardly revised gain of 60,000.
September's initial estimate of 29,000 was revised up by 31,000, while August's figure was raised 53,000 to 186,000, meaning 84,000 jobs were added to two previously reported payroll figures.
The unemployment rate dipped to 4.1% from 4.2%, against expectations for an unchanged reading, although the number of unemployed people remained broadly stable at 7.1m.
Meanwhile, average hourly earnings increased by 0.4% month-on-month to $38.00, accelerating from September's 0.1% rise and exceeding forecasts of 0.3%.
Annual wage growth also accelerated to 3.1% from 3%, defying expectations for a slowdown to 2.9%, which would have represented the weakest rate in over five years.
On home shores, data showed that house prices slid in October as the challenging economic backdrop hit home. The Lloyds house price index fell 0.6% last month, building on September’s 0.1% dip. On an annual basis, house prices are now 1.2% lower - the biggest decline since October 2023. Both falls were considerably steeper than expected.
Investors were also digesting figures from the British Retail Consortium, which showed that retail footfall fell sharply in October amid low consumer confidence, with high streets the worst hit due to stormy weather.
The BRC-Sensormatic footfall monitor showed that footfall declined 4.7% on the year following a 2.9% drop in September.
In equity markets, shares of Man Group tumbled after the High Court ruled that the investment manager could have to pay around $155m for its part in corruption case involving Kuwait's state pension fund, the Kuwaiti Public Institution for Social Security (PIFSS).
On the upside, Coca-Cola HBC rose after saying it had received no notification from the Russian government of any changes to its operations in Russia, which have been operated locally on a self-standing basis since 2022. The statement came after shares in the bottler of Coca-Cola products tumbled on Thursday following reports its Russian business could be seized or placed under state-controlled external management.
It said in a brief statement: "Coca-Cola HBC does not rely on income or capital from its Russian business to fund the group’s operations outside Russia or to service the group’s indebtedness."
Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust rose after it reported a sharp increase in net asset value over the first half of its financial year, significantly outperforming global equity markets as investments in SpaceX, artificial intelligence and biotechnology delivered strong returns.
BA owner IAG flew higher as it reported a lower third-quarter profit as a sharp rise in fuel costs and operational disruption offset strong revenue growth across its transatlantic business, but increased its dividend and pressed ahead with its share buyback programme.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 10,673.94 -1.01%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 24,504.32 -0.80%
techMARK (TASX) 6,152.09 -1.25%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 4,188.00p 3.36%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,261.20p 2.89%
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 1,470.00p 2.51%
Metlen Energy & Metals (MTLN) 44.50p 1.86%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 433.70p 1.52%
Lion Finance Group (BGEO) 12,790.00p 1.43%
Halma (HLMA) 3,352.00p 1.15%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 2,093.00p 1.06%
Fresnillo (FRES) 2,513.00p 0.72%
Balfour Beatty (BBY) 851.50p 0.65%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
BT Group (BT.A) 217.00p -5.86%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 277.60p -4.01%
Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 1,913.00p -3.38%
The Sage Group (SGE) 1,165.00p -3.20%
British American Tobacco (BATS) 4,567.00p -3.18%
Next (NXT) 15,485.00p -3.16%
Admiral Group (ADM) 3,934.00p -3.15%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,973.00p -2.91%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 9,462.00p -2.85%
National Grid (NG.) 1,249.50p -2.80%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Frasers Group (FRAS) 981.50p 7.86%
Fidelity Emerging Markets Limited Ptg NPV (FEML) 1,218.00p 5.00%
Syncona Limited NPV (SYNC) 124.80p 3.83%
Ashoka India Equity Investment Trust (AIE) 260.00p 3.17%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 2,436.00p 2.87%
Pan African Resources (PAF) 115.70p 2.84%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 1,062.00p 2.31%
Kier Group (KIE) 314.20p 2.28%
Endeavour Mining (EDV) 4,094.00p 2.02%
TBC Bank Group (TBCG) 4,856.00p 1.76%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Man Group (EMG) 297.00p -7.65%
Telecom Plus (TEP) 900.00p -4.76%
Auction Technology Group (ATG) 484.60p -4.32%
WH Smith (SMWH) 420.80p -4.15%
Hays (HAS) 58.55p -3.94%
Entain (ENT) 470.80p -3.90%
Trustpilot Group (TRST) 265.00p -3.85%
HGCapital Trust (HGT) 379.00p -3.81%
Michael Page (PAGE) 211.00p -3.65%
Vistry Group (VTY) 263.20p -3.59%