The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) and European stocks were lower on Friday as UK government borrowing came in higher than expected, and as retail sales fell across Britain last month, down for the first time since May.

UK government borrowed a higher-than-forecast £17.4bn in October, piling further pressure on chancellor Rachel Reeves ahead of next week’s autumn budget.

City economists had expected borrowing to drop to £15bn, down from the £20bn borrowed in September. This was £3bn more than the £14.4bn forecast in March by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR).

The latest figures come less than a week before Reeves is due to deliver the budget on 26 November, with the chancellor expected to announce tax increases to help repair the UK’s public finances.

Meanwhile, UK retail sales fell last month for first time since May. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that sales volumes are estimated to have fallen by 1.1% in October .

The ONS said: “Supermarkets, clothing, and mail order retailers fell in October 2025, which some retailers attributed to consumers delaying their spending in the lead up to Black Friday.”

This follows a 0.7% rise in September (revised up from a 0.5% rise) and a 0.5% increase in August (revised down from a 0.6% rise).

Read more: UK announces billions more investment in AI ahead of budget

Elsewhere, the UK energy price cap is set to rise by 0.2% in January, affecting those on variable tariffs in England, Wales and Scotland.

Regulator Ofgem announced on Friday that from 1 January to 31 March 2026 there will be a monthly increase of 28p on the price of energy for a typical household who use electricity and gas and pay by direct debit.

This means the average dual fuel energy bill will increase to £1,758 per year in January to March, up from £1755 in the current quarter, an increase of 0.2%.

Tim Jarvis, from energy regulator Ofgem, said: “While wholesale energy costs are stabilising, they still make up the largest portion of our bills which leaves us open to volatile prices.”

  • London’s benchmark index (^FTSE) was 0.6% lower in early trade

  • Germany’s DAX (^GDAXI) dipped 1.2% and the CAC (^FCHI) in Paris headed 0.8% into the red

  • The pan-European STOXX 600 (^STOXX) was down 1%

  • However, Wall Street is set for a positive start as S&P 500 futures (ES=F), Dow futures (YM=F) and Nasdaq futures (NQ=F) were all in the green.

  • The pound was 0.2% up against the US dollar (GBPUSD=X) at 1.3096

FTSE Index – Delayed Quote • USD

As of 11:35:14 GMT. Market open.

Follow along for live updates throughout the day:

LIVE 9 updates

  • Markets “did not appreciate” Nvidia’s earnings, says Huang

    In a company meeting on Thursday, Nvidia boss Jensen Huang said that “the market did not appreciate” its “incredible” quarter.

    Business Insider has the details…

    Nvidia delivered record-shattering earnings on Wednesday as Huang rebuffed swelling narratives around an AI bubble. Its stock popped on Wednesday and then fell again on Thursday as confidence in the AI trade wavered.

    Huang said the expectations for Nvidia were so sky-high that the company was in somewhat of a no-win situation. He nodded to online chatter about the company’s massive economic sway.

    Huang also cited posts saying that Nvidia’s work was helping the US to avoid a recession.

    While he said he was “delighted” by the company’s results and proud of employees, Huang said that Nvidia’s massive influence has made expectations harder to meet — something that has also played out in its market value.

    He joked about the “good old days” when the company had a $5 trillion market cap.

    “Nobody in history has ever lost $500 billion in a few weeks,” Huang said. “You’ve gotta be worth a lot to lose $500 billion in a few weeks.”

  • Tullow oil nosedives to record low on production warning

    Tullow oil (TLW.L) nosedived 32% in London on Friday, hitting a record low, after it warned that 2025 production will be at the lower end of its forecast.

    Despite recent asset sales and progress in Ghana, natural production decline and delayed government payments are pressuring cash flow.

    The group now expects output this year to come in at the lower of its 40,000-45,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day range, while next year’s output could fall to 34,000-42,000 as it grapples with natural declines in its wells in Ghana.

    “Our near-term priority remains to put Tullow on a long-term sustainable financial footing,” CEO Ian Perks in a statement.

    “To achieve this, we are focused on maximising operational efficiency in Ghana, cost optimisation, and refinancing the Group’s capital structure.”

    It came as oil prices tumbled on Friday as renewed hopes of a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine raised expectations that this could lead to increased supply on the market.

    Brent crude (BZ=F) futures fell 1.5% to $62.45 per barrel at the time of writing, while West Texas Intermediate futures (CL=F) rose 1.7% to $58.01 a barrel.

    Meanwhile, US sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, are due to come into effect on Friday.

  • Stocks on track for worst week since April

    Global stocks are now on track to register their worst week since president Donald Trump’s tariff plan ripped through markets back in April.

    Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, said:

  • Energy price cap rise is a ‘tedious disappointment’

    Richard Neudegg, director of regulation at Uswitch.com, said:

  • UK energy cap to rise by 0.2% in January

    The UK energy price cap is set to rise by 0.2% in January, affecting those on variable tariffs in England, Wales and Scotland.

    Regulator Ofgem announced on Friday that from 1 January to 31 March 2026 there will be a monthly increase of 28p on the price of energy for a typical household who use electricity and gas and pay by direct debit.

    This means the average dual fuel energy bill will increase to £1,758 per year in January to March, up from £1755 in the current quarter, an increase of 0.2%.

    Tim Jarvis, from energy regulator Ofgem, said:

    Meanwhile, Dame Clare Moriarty from Citizens Advice said:

  • UK retail sales fall for first time since May

    UK retail sales unexpectedly fell last month for first time since May.

    The Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that sales volumes are estimated to have declined 1.1% in October. Economists had been expecting sales growth to be flat on the previous month.

    It comes as shoppers awaited Black Friday deals, and hold back amid uncertainty over the upcoming budget.

    The ONS said: “Supermarkets, clothing, and mail order retailers fell in October 2025, which some retailers attributed to consumers delaying their spending in the lead up to Black Friday.”

    Clothing, footwear and textile stores posted a 3.3% month-on-month drop in sales, the largest fall, after strong summer when shoppers were motivated to buy clothes during warm weather and sporting events improved consumers’ mood.

    Supermarkets recorded a sales decrease of 1.1% in October, the second consecutive monthly fall.

    Online retail sales fell 1.7% month on month, while fuel sales dropped 2.4% in October compared with September.

  • UK government borrows more than expected in pre-budget blow for Reeves

    UK government borrowing fell in October to £17.4bn but was higher than expected, piling further pressure on chancellor Rachel Reeves ahead of next week’s autumn budget.

    This figure was £1.8bn less than in October 2024, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Friday. However, this was higher than consensus expectations of £15.1bn and the Office for Budget Responsibility’s (OBR) forecast of £14.4bn.

    October’s public sector net borrowing figure was lower than the £20.2bn recorded for September, but the ONS said it was still the third highest borrowing figure for October since monthly records began in 1993.

    Borrowing for the financial year to October totalled £116.8m, which was £9bn more than the same seven-month period last year. It was also the second highest April-to-October borrowing on record after 2020.

    These latest figures come less than a week before Reeves is due to deliver the budget on 26 November, with the chancellor expected to announce tax increases to help repair the UK’s public finances.

    James Murray, chief secretary to the Treasury, said:

    The current budget deficit – borrowing to fund day-to-day public sector activities – was £12.6bn for October, which was £2.4bn less than the same month last year. The total current budget deficit for the financial year to October was £83.9bn, which was £7.4bn more than the same period last year.

    Public sector net debt excluding public sector banks was provisionally estimated to be 94.5% of the UK’s gross domestic product (GDP) at the end of October.

    Central government receipts came in at £86.4bn for October, which was £5.8bn more than the same month last year.

    Grant Fitzner, chief economist for the ONS, said:

  • Asia and US overnight

    Stocks in Asia were extended the global rout overnight, with the Nikkei (^N225) falling 2.4% on the day in Japan, while the Hang Seng (^HSI) also tumbled 2.4% in Hong Kong. The Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) was 2.5% down by the end of the session.

    In South Korea, the Kospi (^KS11) lost 3.8% on the day.

    Across the pond on Wall Street jitters over inflated tech stock prices continued, while a highly anticipated US jobs report failed to provide clarity on whether the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates.

    The S&P 500 (^GSPC) dipped 1.6%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq (^IXIC) was 2.2% lower by the end of the session, it what was its widest one-day swing since April 9 when the Trump administration’s tariffs spooked markets. The Dow Jones (^DJI) also lost 0.8%.

    It came as data showed the US economy added far more jobs than expected in September, but a rise in the unemployment rate to 4.4%m and downward revisions to prior months painted a murky picture for the Fed as it considers its interest rates next month.

    Treasury yields fell as futures moved to imply a 40% probability of a US rate cut in December, up from 30% a day earlier.

    However, with the next jobs report only available after the Fed meeting, investors were unconvinced that easing would come next month.

    Nasdaq GIDS – Delayed Quote • USD

    22,078.05

    -486.18

    (-2.15%)

    At close: 20 November at 17:15:59 GMT-5

  • Coming up

    Good morning, and welcome back to our markets live blog. As usual we will be taking a deep dive into what’s moving markets, and what’s happening across our global economy.

    To the day ahead, we’ll get the global flash November PMIs, US November Kansas City Fed services activity, UK November GfK consumer confidence, October retail sales, public finances, France November manufacturing confidence, October retail sales, and Canada retail sales.

    Central bank speakers include the Fed’s Williams and Logan, the ECB’s Lagarde, de Guindos, Kocher, Muller and Nagel, and the BoE’s Pill.

    Here’s a snapshot of what’s on the agenda for today:

    • 7am: Trading updates: Asos, Babcock International, Tullow Oil

    • 7am: UK public finances for October

    • 7am: UK retail sales for October

    • 7am: UK energy price cap for January-March 2026 to be set

    • 8am: Eurozone flash PMI economic data

    • 9:30am: UK flash PMI economic data

    • 3.40pm: Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill panellist in Zurich on ‘the future of the world’s leading currencies’

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