British shares cheer easing U.S.-Iran worries

UK stocks rebounded on Thursday as chances of a full-blown crisis in the Middle East waned, but shares of SIG, Marks and Spencer, and Card Factory missed out on the recovery after the companies warned of a hit to their annual performance. The FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 rose 0.4% after U.S. President Donald Trump stepped back from more military action against Iran and Tehran signaled an end to retaliation.

Building materials supplier SIG slumped 25% to the bottom of the midcaps after warning that profit would be significantly lower as its recovery in the weak UK and Germany construction markets were taking longer than expected. M&S slid 7.5% after the retailer warned full-year gross margins would be around the lower end of its forecast. Greeting card specialist Card Factory tumbled 18% to a life low, after saying subdued performance over Christmas would hit profit.