Keir Starmer Just Survived His Worst Week, But The Gilt Market Is Not Convinced
Key takeaways
- Bond markets are relieved, but only barely, and only for now.
- Labour suffered heavy losses in Thursday s local elections, losing control of at least eight councils as Reform U.K. made significant gains across the country.
- Speaking to reporters on Friday, he said he would not walk away and plunge the country into chaos, and that he intended to see through the five-year term he was elected to complete.
Keir Starmer Just Survived His Worst Week, But The Gilt Market Is Not Convinced Mark Nichols Sat, May 9, 2026 at 12:31 AM GMT+7 8 min read GBPUSD Keir Starmer Just Survived His Worst Week, But The Gilt Market Is Not Convinced - Moby THE GIST United Kingdom gilts had a brutal week, and British politics had an even worse one. Starmer says he is staying. Bond markets are relieved, but only barely, and only for now.
Labour suffered heavy losses in Thursday s local elections, losing control of at least eight councils as Reform U.K. made significant gains across the country. Early results pointed to hundreds of Labour councillors losing their seats, with the Conservatives also taking a beating and left-wing Greens picking up ground.
Starmer responded by vowing to stay in post. Speaking to reporters on Friday, he said he would not walk away and plunge the country into chaos, and that he intended to see through the five-year term he was elected to complete. Gilt yields, which had surged to multi-decade highs earlier in the week on speculation of an imminent leadership challenge, fell in response. The 10-year yield dropped around 5 basis points to 4.88%, a two-week low. The 30-year yield, which had touched 5.79% earlier in the week, its highest since 1998, retreated to around 5.55%. Sterling rose 0.5% against the dollar to $1.36.