London equities traded higher in early dealings, led by copper miners as Antofagasta rose 3.5% and Anglo American gained 2.7%, with Glencore also advancing. The move reflected firmer expectations for higher copper prices. Elsewhere, Segro agreed final terms for its £13.5 billion takeover by Prologis, Travis Perkins reported interim results showing a slight revenue decline but a return of price inflation, and HSBC shares lagged.

The FTSE 100 turned higher after an early dip, helped by earnings guidance upgrades from index heavyweights Rolls-Royce and BAE Systems. Rolls-Royce reported first-half revenue of £15.8 billion, up 9% year on year. BAE Systems said first-half orders rose to £16.4 billion, pushing its backlog to a record £84 billion, and lifted its full-year underlying earnings per share growth forecast to 11–13%. Mining stocks including Rio Tinto, Antofagasta, Fresnillo, Shell and Glencore also advanced, while UK gilt yields moved back above 5%.

US nonfarm payrolls for June rose by just 57,000, far below forecasts of 113,000, and earlier months were revised down, easing expectations for Federal Reserve rate hikes this year. Gold climbed 1.5% to $4,183.92 an ounce on the shift in rate expectations. US equities were mixed, with the Dow hitting a record high while the Nasdaq fell 0.8% and the S&P 500 slipped 0.1%. In London, the FTSE 100 closed Friday up 25 points at 10,679, ending the week 1.6% higher.