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London Shares Close Lower; British American Tobacco, Wise Gain

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London shares closed lower on Friday, with the UK's FTSE 100 0.22% in the red, after reports of an attack on a ship along the Strait of Hormuz added to the uncertainty over the interim peace deal between the US and Iran.

Media outlets, citing US officials, reported that Iran attacked a Singapore-flagged cargo ship on the waterway near Oman. The reported attack hampered the United Nations' escort operations for stranded sailors in Hormuz.

"So that led to some renewed uncertainty over the normalization of shipping, after the number of vessels going through the strait had risen in recent days. Oil prices moved higher following the incident," Deutsche Bank Research noted.

On the corporate front, British American Tobacco (BATS.L) shares rose 1.45% on plans to resume its share buyback program, which had previously been expanded by up to 1.3 billion pounds sterling. The tobacco company tapped UBS AG London Branch to execute repurchases from June 30 through July 29.

Meanwhile, payments technology company Wise Group (WISE.L) gained 9.45% after reporting fiscal 2026 profit of $498.7 million, down from $550.3 million a year ago, while revenue grew to $2.50 billion from $2.10 billion. Wise is also planning a new share repurchase program of more than $500 million.

Unilever (ULVR.L) edged up 0.46% after the Financial Times reported that the consumer goods company is considering a bid for US supplements brand Thorne. The seller, L Catterton, is seeking a valuation of as much as $4 billion.

Looking ahead, investors will focus on a busy week of UK economic releases. Monday brings Bank of England data on mortgage approvals, consumer credit and M4 money supply, followed by final first-quarter gross domestic product figures on Tuesday. Final June manufacturing and services PMI readings are due on Wednesday and Friday, respectively.

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