London's leading share index closed lower on Friday, ending a bruising week for UK equities as a global technology sell-off spread from Wall Street to Europe.

The FTSE 100 finished at 10,673.94, down 108.72 points, or 1.01 per cent, on the day. The index had fallen as low as 10,528.07 during the session before recovering some ground as US shares steadied. Over the week as a whole, the FTSE 100 lost 0.5 per cent. The more domestically focused FTSE 250 fell 0.8 per cent on Friday.

AI worries spread from Wall Street

The selling was driven by growing doubts about the returns on heavy spending on artificial intelligence, alongside political uncertainty in the US after the midterm elections. The technology-heavy Nasdaq fell 5.52 per cent on Thursday, its largest one-day drop in 19 months, and entered correction territory, more than 10 per cent below its record close on 6 October. The S&P 500 suffered its sharpest one-day fall since April 2025 on Thursday, although both indices recovered some ground on Friday.

European markets fall together

London was not alone. Germany's DAX fell 1.92 per cent to 25,820.36, France's CAC 40 lost 0.81 per cent to 8,139, and the Euro STOXX 50 dropped 0.98 per cent. Reuters reported that the FTSE 100 was on course for its steepest daily fall in more than seven months.

Miners hold up as energy slides

Most London sectors fell, but precious metal miners rose 1.2 per cent as investors sought safer assets. Energy stocks fell 2.5 per cent as oil prices slipped. BT Group was the biggest faller on the FTSE 100, down 5.51 per cent, while IAG rose 1.29 per cent after its results. Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust, which holds United States technology stocks, closed 2.5 per cent higher.