Engine maker Rolls-Royce (RR.L) was in the spotlight on Monday morning, after it was reported that the company plans to unveil a share buyback worth more than £1bn ($1.35bn) this week.
Sky News reported that Rolls-Royce (RR.L) is expected to announce a repurchasing worth up to £1.5bn alongside its annual results, which are due out on Thursday.
In addition, the Financial Times reported on Monday that Rolls-Royce (RR.L) is urging the UK government to commit to subsidies for a £3bn development of a new aircraft engine.
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The FT reported that the company has told senior officials it would like to secure a commitment in the first half of this year, citing three people familiar with the discussions.
Rolls-Royce (RR.L) had not responded to Yahoo Finance UK’s request for comment on Monday morning. Shares in the company dipped 1.2% lower on Monday morning, though the stock is still up nearly 117% over one year, as investors have flocked to defence-related stocks as governments have committed to spend more in this space amid heightened geopolitical tensions.
Shares in miner Fresnillo (FRES.L) were up 3.4% at the time of writing on Monday morning, as gold (GC=F) prices surged, following US president Donald Trump’s latest tariff threat.
Gold futures (GC=F) jumped 1.4% on Monday morning to $5,149.70, while spot gold was up 0.4% to $5,126.
Trump announced a new temporary global tariff of 10%, then upped this to 15% on Saturday, after the US Supreme Court ruled that many of his global levies were unlawful.
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This latest resurgence in trade tensions buoyed demand for gold (GC=F) as a so-called safe haven asset, driving shares in precious miners higher.
Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “The new tariff uses a different legal authority, but it is a far blunter instrument than the flexible, targeted tools the administration had been relying on.”
“While the White House insists that all existing trade deals remain intact, the EU is already making noises about pausing negotiations until the new landscape becomes clearer.”
Despite this latest bout of trade uncertainty, shares in JD Sports Fashion (JD.L) were up nearly 5% on Monday morning, making it the biggest gainer on the FTSE 100 (^FTSE).
The rise in shares came after the sportswear retailer announced plans to return £200m to shareholders through share buybacks in its 2027 fiscal year.