The FTSE gave up some of its early gains to trade just below the flatline near 9,131 on Monday, as nerves mounted ahead of talks between EU leaders, Ukrainian President Zelensky, and US President Trump to address the ongoing Ukraine conflict. Zelensky and European leaders are bracing for potentially tough proposals from Donald Trump. Attention is also on monetary policy, especially the Fed’s Jackson Hole meeting starting Thursday. Top central bankers will give keynote speeches, with many watching Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s talk on Friday for clues about the Fed’s next steps. On the corporate front, the energy sector and mining stocks were among the top losers. Centrica, Ashtead Group, Glencore and Rio Tinto saw declines up to 1.8%. On the upside, Babcock surged more than 4% to lead the index after RBC Capital Markets initiated coverage with an ‘Outperform’ rating and a price target of 1,200 pence. Defensive stocks such as Endeavour Mining and Astrazeneca also gained.