UK stocks pulled back Monday, struggling as sterling climbed against the euro in the wake of Germany’s general election that could result in a prolonged talks for Chancellor Angela Merkel to form a coalition, MarketWatch reports.

The FTSE 100 index fell 0.3% to 7,287.88, led by financial and telecommunications shares. But oil and gas, industrial and consumer-related shares advanced. On Friday, the London benchmark rose 0.6% and logged a weekly rise of 1.3%, the best week since early August, according to FactSet data.