British equities ended the week higher, with London's FTSE 100 rising 0.27% on Friday, outperforming a broadly weaker European market.
Among blue-chip constituents, Burberry Group (BRBY.L) was the session's biggest decliner, falling 6.38%.
For the 13 weeks ended June 27, the British luxury retailer reported a year-over-year increase in retail revenue to 455 million pounds sterling from 433 million pounds, but comparable retail sales in Europe, the Middle East, India and Asia declined 3% due to the Middle East conflict and lower tourist spending.
"Burberry has successfully gone through its first brand revival chapter. Burberry Forward works. The ball is now in management's court to sustain the recovery, adding spice and oomph to it," commented Bernstein.
Meanwhile, oil major BP (BP.L) agreed to sell a 42% stake in the unit responsible for the redevelopment of four producing oil fields in Iraq's Kirkuk area. The buyer is US-based petroleum group ConocoPhillips, with the deal expected to close by the end of 2026. BP stock gained 1.35%.
In geopolitical news, tensions remained elevated after the conflict between the US and Iran intensified for a sixth consecutive day. Washington expanded its campaign by striking transport and military infrastructure in southern Iran, while Tehran responded with attacks targeting US military facilities and critical infrastructure across the Gulf.
On the economic front, the UK government said Friday that its free-trade agreement with India took effect on Wednesday. The deal will remove or reduce tariffs on 99% of Indian goods entering the UK and 90% of UK products entering India, with officials expecting it to speed up trade between the two countries.
Looking ahead, investors will turn their attention to UK labor market data for May, inflation for June and industrial production figures due next week, following the economy's unexpected expansion in May. Andy Burnham is also set to take office as prime minister next week, succeeding Keir Starmer.