FTSE 100 Live October 13: Jeremy Hunt warns on UK economy, Next seals FatFace deal, natural gas futures rise

BP and BAE shares continue to rally, St James’s Place loses 14%

Shares in St James’s Place fell 14% today on reports that the asset manager is under pressure to overhaul its fee structure.

The fall from 118p to 703.6p came as the FT said regulators were talking to the company about compliance with the UK’s new consumer tariff standard.

St James’s Place today confirmed that a review of its fee and billing models is underway to “ensure value for customers”.

Today’s FT report said it was considering eliminating early withdrawal fees for new customers by mid-2025, as well as simplifying fees for some advisory and administration services.

Britain’s largest asset manager announced plans to cut fees for some clients back in July, sending shares down 30%.

Today’s decline came during a lackluster session for the London market, with the FTSE 100 index falling 18.67 points to 7626.11.

On the list of rising prices, a rise in Brent crude to $88.57 a barrel meant a further 11.4p rise to 547.5p for BP. Shares are up more than 5% for the week.

The flight into defense stock BAE Systems also continued as shares rose a further 24.5p to 1093p, compared to 980.6p on Monday morning.

The FTSE 250 index fell 125.07 points to 17,710.62, with emerging markets fund manager Ashmore falling 7%, or 12.5p, to 172.1p after it said assets under management for the quarter fell by $4.2 billion as of September 30.

Chief executive Mark Coombs said: “After three quarters of positive returns, such a period of consolidation is normal within a longer recovery cycle and there continue to be positive fundamental trends in emerging markets.”

On the FTSE All-Share, defense supplier Avon Protection rose 9.2p to 678.2p after announcing its order book had grown 10% year-on-year.

Shares are up 11% this week but remain a third lower over the past year. CEO Jos Sclater said the company, which supplies helmets and respiratory protection products to customers such as the U.S. Army, was now seeing more reliable financial performance.