The landlords argue the lease covers such sales (under what the 1979 contract termed "mail, telephone or similar orders") and are seeking backdated payments, while the case highlights wider disputes over ecommerce and store-based rent models.

2.58am: UAE to leave Opec from Friday

The United Arab Emirates is leaving Opec, the oil cartel led by Saudi Arabia, which under normal circumstances holds a strong sway over global oil prices.  

Nearly 60 years after first joining the group, the UAE said it is parting ways to gain more flexibility and focus on "national interests".

The move will take effect from May 1.

It reflects "the UAE's long-term strategic and economic vision and evolving energy profile", a statement carried by state media said on Tuesday.

Energy research company Rystad Energy said: "Losing a member with 4.8 million barrels per day of capacity, and the ambition to produce more, takes a real tool out of the group's hands."

Another analyst said the UAE's exit is "the beginning of the end of Opec".

2.50pm: AI stocks fall on Wall Street

It's been a mixed start on Wall Street, as expected.

The Nasdaq slid 0.85% and the S&P 0.5%, both retreating from yesterday's record highs.   

But the Dow Jones has gained 0.2%. 

Fallers on the Nasdaq 100 are led by ARM Holdings, down 5.9%, then Applied Materials, Broadcom, AMD, KLA-Tencor, Lam Research and ASML, all down over 3%, Intel, Marvell and NVIDIA, Qualcomm, Western Digital all more than 2%.

Leading the Dow higher are Coca Cola, Salesforce.com, and Johnson & Johnson.

1.30pm: OpenAI report sends Nvidia and big AI names tumbling

Some US tech stocks are tumbling in premarket trading, after 

Shares in Nvidia, Broadcom, AMD and semiconductor and tech giants are coming under pressure after a report from the Wall Street Journal reported that OpenAI missed sales targets and user acquisition goals .

OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar, according to the WSJ article, told other executives that "she is worried the company might not be able to pay for future computing contracts if revenue doesn't grow fast enough".

Shares in Oracle, which has a tie-up with OpenAI, are down over 7% premarket.

Microsoft is down around 1.5% after it announced a change to its partnership with OpenAI on Monday, where the Redmond company's license with OpenAI will no longer be exclusive, with no revenue-sharing element.

"OpenAI is the poster child for AI and its capabilities and ambitions. Its touted IPO is expected to raise close to a $1 trillion, but if it is struggling with sales then it could limit its spending on data centres, which would be a blow to the speed of AI uptake," said Kathleen Brooks at XTB.

"This news may threaten the AI investment theme that has driven US stock markets to record highs."

12.42pm: Stocks drop

The FTSE and most of its continental European peers have dived into the red since midday as US traders wake in a less positive mood. 

Miners, travel and leisure companies, property developers, banks and drugmakers are among the bigger fallers. 

US futures are mixed at the moment, with a reversal of yesterday's session the rough picture. 

Dow Jones futures are up 0.2%, while those for the Nasdaq are down 1.2%, and down 0.6% for the S&P 500. 

Shares in US carmaker General Motors are up 2% in premarket trading after it reported earnings, lifting its profit forecasts thanks to a tariff refund after Donald Trump's defeat in the Supreme Court.

GM now expects gross tariff costs of $2.5-3.5 billion this year, down from the original estimate of $3-4 billion.

11.50am: Grocery sales 

Tesco and Sainsbury's continued to gain market share as shoppers turned to discounts amid concerns over rising prices.

Spending at Tesco rose 4.3% in the 12 weeks to 19 April, with Sainsbury increasing 4.5%. Both were outdone by Marks and Spencer, where grocery sales increased 7.3%, according to the latest Worldpanel grocery market share data from Numerator.

British households were said to be increasingly on the hunt for deals, the report said, with spending on promoted items rising 7.8% year on year. By contrast, spending on full-price goods fell 0.2%.

Promotions now account for 31.3% of grocery spending, with most driven by price cuts rather than multi-buy deals.

It meant grocery inflation eased to 3.8%, the lowest level in 12 months.

Earlier, the BRC's calculation of shop price inflation fell to 1% for April, down from 1.2% in March, as retailers "competed harder on price to stimulate more spring spending".

The lobby group said the full impact on costs from the Gulf war was not yet feeding through to prices.  

11.42am: IQE completes fundraise after agreeing strategic investment

Shares in IQE are down over 20% after the compound semiconductor wafer manufacturer closed a £13 million placing and retail offer at 19.8p per share.

This is part of a broader £81 million fundraising package, where the Cardiff-based company is receiving a strategic investment from MACOM Technology Solutions, a US semiconductor company, combined with reinvestment of existing convertible loan notes by current noteholders.

The new shares and investment by MACOM are conditional on shareholder approval at a general meeting scheduled for 15 May, as well as clearance under the UK and Italian national security and investment rules. 

IQE boss Jutta Meier says the transaction is "transformational" for the company, with the investment from MACOM and other existing shareholders providing "the balance sheet strength to allow us to capitalise on the opportunities in front of us, while maintaining our unique global footprint".

She says the group is now "better positioned than ever to execute on our growth strategy, including in key technologies such as indium phosphide (InP) and gallium nitride (GaN)".

InP is used in data centres and increasingly AI infrastructure because it can handle very fast signal transmission with low power loss.

GaN is used in power electronics, fast chargers, electric vehicles, and 5G base stations, as devices can operate at higher voltages and temperatures than traditional silicon, making them more efficient and compact.

11.14am: Legal challenge to motor finance scheme

Last night, Consumer Voice said it has launched legal action against the FCA's car finance compensation scheme, arguing payouts risk being too low.

The group says millions of drivers could miss out on redress for widespread mis-selling.

Consumer Voice claims the scheme favours lenders like Lloyds Banking Group and Barclays, and is pushing for compensation to better reflect actual consumer losses.

The FCA has promoted headline average payouts of around £830 per person, across 12.1 million agreements.

"We support a redress scheme, but this one does not go far enough," said Alex Neill, co-founder of the group.

"Millions of drivers were overcharged through hidden and unfair commission, yet the FCA's scheme risks leaving many of them missing out on hundreds of pounds they're owed.

"People have already been let down once by lenders. They should not now be let down again by the regulator that is supposed to protect them. The FCA needs to fix the scheme to ensure it delivers fair and lawful compensation for drivers."

10.44am:

Some alternative views on the BP results from outside of the City. 

"It is horrifying to see BP's profits grow as millions suffer the fallout from the US-Israel war on Iran," says Patrick Galey at investigative climate group Global Witness.

"Unfortunately we've been here before – when Russia invaded Ukraine four years ago we saw big oil firms make bumper profits from spiralling fuel costs.

"As oil prices drive up bills once again, it's clear that fossil fuel companies don't enhance affordability or energy security, they make life worse. They destroy the climate, push up the cost of living, and rake in billions in profit while innocent civilians die.

"It's well overdue that we make oil companies pay for the damage their doing. If they broke it, they need to fix it. It's clear they can afford to."

Caitlin Boswell at Tax Justice UK says: "It is outrageous that households are getting hammered on all sides from rising bills and prices of essentials, while companies like BP are doubling their profits, all from the same crisis. The government needs to get a grip on the situation to stop companies from callous profiteering, whether in the energy sector, banking or defense.

We need the government to remain steadfast in maintaining the windfall tax on oil and gas companies, and apply additional excess profits taxes on those profiting from the crisis. That way, the government can recoup all unearned profits to help people get through the affordability crisis and make the UK more resilient to future shocks."

10.28am: Oil prices near highs

Oil prices are not far from their highs at the end of last month, levels not seen since the early months of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. (As shown in the six-month chart below and the five-year graph below that.)

Brent crude has risen 2.7% to top $111 a barrel this morning, while US WTI is up over 3% to just below $100 a barrel. 

"A matter of weeks ago, oil moving through $110 per barrel would be enough to give markets the willies but they seem to be in wait-and-see mode right now," says market analyst Dan Coatsworth at AJ Bell.

"Energy prices are reacting to stalled talks between the US and Iran and a blockage of the Strait of Hormuz which has now extended to the best part of two months – with just a few fleeting moments of the key shipping route being open." 

Equity markets in Europe are relatively sanguine, with the FTSE 100 higher thanks to its oil and gas heavyweights BP and Shell.

There are gains on mainland Europe too, with the Milan and Madrid benchmarks up either side of 1%, while in Frankfurt and Paris the gains are nearer 0.2%. 

"Investors are having to make difficult decisions," says Coatsworth. "If a mediated solution to the crisis emerges then investors do not want to be caught on the wrong side of a relief rally. Equally, if there is a return to fighting then there is a danger of being caught out by a sharp correction."

"A busy week for corporate and economic announcements, including several interest rate meetings, may help provide some direction. 

"Close attention will be paid to what central bankers say about any renewed inflationary pressures and the signals they provide on the trajectory of rates in the remainder of 2026."

9.18am: FTSE battles higher

The FTSE 100 has fought its way into the green, up 20 points at 10,341.

BP and Shell are doing a lot of the heavy lifting, up 2.4% and 1.5%, with BP's results also coming alongside rising oil prices today. Brent front-month futures are hovering just below $111 a barrel. 

British Gas owner Centrica is up 1.4% too. 

Miners Rio Tinto and Glencore are among the risers, along with distributor Diploma and bottler Coca-Cola Europacific.   

Market analyst Neil Wilson at Saxo says the price of a crude oil has been climbing as the market reflects "concerns that there is no viable way to reopen the Strait of Hormuz".

He adds: "The backwardated forward curve indicates physical scarcity is driving prices rather than headlines over the war.

"Fundamental supply side tightness remains unfixed and traders are increasingly watching what's happening on the water (ie nothing) rather than trading the diplomatic stuff."

Elsewhere, Barclays is down 3.1% now, the main faller on the FTSE.

This is "despite some pretty decent looking headline numbers", says Wilson, though return on tangible equity declined from 14% to 13.5%. 

He notes that Barclays said it would limit complex corporate lending activities after booking a £228 million loss from the collapse of mortgage lender MFS, which sent impairment charges up 28% to £823 million.

8.44am: Windfall profits for BP

The lion's share of BP's uplift in headline profits came from oil trading, notes analyst Derren Nathan at Hargreaves Lansdown, "as customers scrambled to secure supplies following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz".

Oil production & operations saw profit dip, with Nathan adding that the spike in crude prices likely to be better reflected in second-quarter numbers.

"However, since the year-end, net debt, a key area of investor focus, increased by over $3 billion to $25.3 billion due to the sharp build in working capital that comes with fast rising commodity prices.

"The duration of the conflict in the Middle East will be key to the outcome this year. Price volatility is the key variable, with total production in the region representing under 20% of last year's total.

"Given the high level of uncertainty, BP's been cautious not to signal a step change in dividends and hasn't dropped any clues about the likely return date of share buybacks.

"Still, the increased profitability has been enough to send the shares a few points higher this morning.  There's been no change to capex guidance, but markets will be watching closely for any signals about the new chief's strategic direction in this afternoon's analyst presentation."

For analyst Mark Crouch at eToro, the earnings "offer a timely reminder of just how abruptly the pendulum can swing in the energy sector".

He adds that the political backdrop is "hard to ignore".

"Stronger profits, particularly those linked to geopolitical disruption, are likely to revive calls for windfall taxes across Europe as household budgets get squeezed," Crouch says.

"The UK already imposes one of the most aggressive regimes globally, leaving BP walking a fine line between capital discipline, shareholder returns and an increasingly complex fiscal backdrop."

8.31am: Travis Perkins drops

On the FTSE 250, shares in Travis Perkins have slid 5.7% on Tuesday morning as the UK's largest distributor of building materials reported that persistently weak construction activity had weighed on its core merchanting business . 

Group revenue fall 1.7% on a like-for-like basis in the first three months of 2026.

Analyst Sam Cullen at Peel Hunt notes that the business is "making progress in passing through price increases from suppliers (with more to come in May) and is maintaining market share".

With the market backdrop remaining challenging, despite price inflation that is "likely to be helpful through the rest of the year", market volumes are expected to drift lower, Cullen says he sees risks to the current consensus forecast for adjusted operating profit of £141 million.

8.15am: Barclays leads FTSE lower at open

The FTSE 100 has opened very slightly lower, pulled down by Barclays and housebuilders.

In opening trades, the index has dropped 11 points to 10,310.

Barclays is the biggest faller, down 2.8% on the back of its quarterly results. 

Housebuilders Persimmon, Berkeley and Barratt Redrow have been dragged lower by Taylor Wimpey's trading update. 

There is a mix of heavyweight fallers, including drugmakers AstraZeneca and GSK, and 'AI worry' names like RELX, LSEG and Experian. 

On the upside, BP is out in front, rising 2.5% after reporting a surge in profits. 

7.59am: Taylor Wimpey warns of rising build costs

Taylor Wimpey said trading has remained "steady" so far this year, though pricing and costs are coming under pressure .

The FTSE 250-listed housebuilder said its net private sales rate edged down to 0.74 per outlet per week to 26 April, from 0.77 a year earlier, and its order book shrank to £2.2 billion from £2.3 billion.

Prices in the order book are around 1% lower year on year, with the sharpest pressure in the south of England and in London apartments.

Customer demand was said to remain resilient, but affordability constraints and macroeconomic uncertainty are weighing on pricing, while margins are being squeezed on the other side by build cost inflation that is now expected to be in the "low to mid" single digits this year.

7.37am: BP profit surges

BP has reported a return to profit in the first quarter , helped by stronger trading and refining as oil prices surged and then fluctuated wildly in the aftermath of the Iran war.

New CEO Meg O'Neill says: "We are heading in the right direction, strengthening the balance sheet and continuing to accelerate delivery. Now, we have to capitalize on the opportunity that exists across our portfolio, simplifying how we work, unlocking growth and driving improved returns. That is how we will make BP a simpler, stronger, more valuable company."

Looking ahead, she expects a weaker second quarter, with upstream production lower due to maintenance and Middle East disruption, with refining throughput due to be slowed by turnaround activity.

For 2026, output is seen broadly flat compared to last year, with margins and earnings sensitive to oil prices, supply costs and geopolitical uncertainty.

7.25am: Oil prices are unnerving markets

The week "started on a cautious note as no major progress was made on Middle East peace negotiations", says market analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya at Swissquote.

"Tensions remain elevated, keeping oil prices under upward pressure."

She flags that Germany's Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, has said that "the US is being humiliated by Iranian leaders."

Crude above $100 per barrel is "unnerving even allies, while trade tensions with the US are pushing countries to forge partnerships outside the US".

She says this geopolitical "mess" is pushing global prices higher and derailing most major central banks from their initial plans to cut interest rates.

In Japan this morning, policymakers voted 6-3 to keep rates unchganged. Later today, the US Federal Reserve starts its two-day policy meeting today, and is also expected to keep rates unchanged, with the same for the Bank of England on Thursday.

7.16am: FTSE 100 predicted to drop to new three-week low

The FTSE 100 is expected on Tuesday to sink back to where it started the month, as oil prices continued to rise amidst a lack of progress towards peace in the Middle East. 

A small decline of around 12 points has been predicted on the futures market for London's blue-chip share index, coming after yesterday saw modest mid-afternoon gains erased, ending with loss of 58 points by the close at 10,321.09.

Brent crude futures have climbed above $110 a barrel this morning, the highest in three weeks. 

Wall Street had a quietly constructive session overnight, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq both grinding 0.1% and 0.2% to fresh record closing highs thanks to strength from Nvidia and other big tech. The Dow Jones dropped 0.1%. 

Asian stocks are lower this morning, led by Japan's Nikkei and Hong Kong's Hang Seng, both down over 1%. 

And back home this morning, UK shop price inflation rose by 1% year-on-year this month, a slowdown from the 1.2% in March and below the three-month average of 1.1%, according to the British Retail Consortium.

The BRC said retailers "competed harder on price to stimulate more spring spending", while the full impact on costs from the Gulf war was not yet feeding through to the high street.