London, Feb 13, 2026, 17:51 GMT — The market has closed.
- FTSE 100 finished 0.42% higher at 10,446.35, sticking close to its record peak.
- Takeover chatter and renewed talk of rate cuts managed to counter fresh nerves over AI-related upheaval.
- UK inflation figures, retail sales data, and a heavy slate of blue-chip earnings are all due next week.
The FTSE 100 ended Friday up 0.42% at 10,446.35. Shares of NatWest dropped roughly 2.5% after posting annual results.
Markets are closed. London traders wrap up the week with takeovers again taking center stage, while questions linger around the Bank of England’s next decision.
The FTSE 100 logged its third week of gains, supported by a pick-up in deal activity and hopes for looser monetary policy, even as investors tried to gauge the impact of fresh AI technologies shaking up the landscape. As for the FTSE 250, it climbed 0.5% during the session. Data showing UK GDP inched up only 0.1% in the fourth quarter pushed traders to price in a 63.4% probability of a 25 basis-point rate cut in March—a basis point is one-hundredth of a percentage point.
Dealmakers are moving the needle. Schroders’ 9.9 billion pound sale to Nuveen has stoked speculation about more shakeups in Europe’s asset management sector. Schroders CEO Richard Oldfield called the merged group “a powerhouse.” Morningstar’s Johann Scholtz pointed to Jupiter and Liontrust as companies trading cheap relative to their market value. But Giambattista Taglioni at Oliver Wyman cautioned, cost cuts in a people-heavy business? Not so easy to pull off. Reuters
NatWest posted a pretax profit of 7.7 billion pounds for 2025 and bumped up its return-on-tangible-equity goal to over 18% by 2028. CEO Paul Thwaite put it plainly: “We are raising our ambition and sharpening our strategic focus.” The bank is sticking with a 750 million pound buyback, and still moving forward on the planned 2.7 billion pound acquisition of Evelyn Partners, the wealth manager. Reuters
Defence stocks pressed higher by the session’s end, extending a trend that’s dominated all week. Rolls-Royce tacked on 3.6%, while BAE Systems advanced 2.2% as investors keyed in on UK missile spending talk and signs of deeper cooperation with European partners, themes surfaced at the Munich Security Conference.
Sterling was headed for its steepest weekly drop against the euro in over two months, battered by shaky growth figures and political turmoil. The euro hovered near 87.05 pence, putting it up roughly 0.3% for the week. “Q4 UK GDP disappointed,” said Pepperstone strategist Michael Brown, noting that the risks for the outlook “tilt firmly to the downside.” Reuters
The rate-cut narrative comes with a caveat. Bank of England Chief Economist Huw Pill put underlying inflation at roughly 2.5% and called rates “a little bit too low,” a remark that challenges hopes for rapid, automatic easing. Reuters
If inflation hangs on, domestically focused stocks might feel the pinch, with bank margin hopes staying muted. At the same time, a softer pound could give a boost to several major FTSE 100 overseas earners.
All eyes are on the UK’s inflation print due Wednesday, with retail sales data hitting Friday. Investors are zeroing in on the numbers to gauge how swiftly price pressures are fading—and what that could spell for March policy bets.
More corporate updates on the way: Antofagasta, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, and InterContinental Hotels Group are scheduled for Tuesday, according to the London Stock Exchange earnings diary. Wednesday brings results from BAE Systems and Glencore. Then on Thursday, keep an eye out for Centrica, Mondi, and Rio Tinto, among several others.
As markets open Monday, eyes turn to defence stocks to see if momentum from Munich headlines over the weekend sticks. Attention also shifts to Wednesday, when the UK inflation figure lands and could shake up expectations for a March rate cut from the Bank of England.
