FTSE 100 set for slow start as inflation data eyed
Spread-betters IG expect the blue-chip index to open down around 68 points in Wednesday morning
The FTSE 100 is expected to open lower on Wednesday as investors await the latest batch of UK inflation data.
Spread-betters IG expect the blue-chip index to open down around 68 points after ending Tuesday’s session 1 point higher at 7,034.
Concerns over the potential for sharp rises in inflation have been one of the key influences behind market sentiment in recent weeks, so that latest reading from the UK could determine the direction for equities going forward.
Expectations of the slower start in London followed a bleak performance for US markets overnight, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing down 0.78% at 34,060 while the S&P 500 dropped 0.85% to 4,127 and the Nasdaq fell 0.56% to 13,303.
It was a similar picture in Asia this morning as Japan’s Nikkei 225 fell 1.79%. Hong Kong’s market, meanwhile, is closed for a public holiday.
On currency markets, the pound was up 0.02% against the dollar at US$1.419, although the UK inflation data and Fed minutes due today could provide some catalysts for movement.
Around the markets:
Sterling: US$1.419, up 0.02%
Brent crude: US$67.96 a barrel, down 1.09%
Gold: US$1,869 an ounce, down 0.06%
Bitcoin: US$39,742, down 11.46%
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