Hot Features
Premium
Customisable watchlists with full streaming quotes from leading exchanges, such as LSE, NASDAQ, NYSE, AMEX, Bovespa, BIT and more.
London open: Stocks edge higher ahead of retail sales, ECB
London stocks edged higher in early trade on Thursday, taking their cue from a positive session in Asia as investors eyed UK retail sales data and a rate announcement from the European Central Bank.
At 0830 BST, the FTSE 100 was up 0.2% to 7,449.08, while the pound was down 0.2% versus the dollar and the euro at 1.2995 and 1.1288, respectively.
Accendo Markets analyst Mike van Dulken said official UK retail sales numbers would be in focus, forecast to return to growth at 0.4% for June versus the 1.2% decline in May, to help the annual pace return to its 2.5% four-month average.
“Watch FTSE retailers and GBP; stronger growth could imply better retailer performances and stoke the fires of inflation,” he said.
Retail sales are due from the Office for National Statistics at 0930 BST, while the latest policy announcement from the ECB is at 1245 BST. The ECB is widely expected to keep interest rates on hold as market participants bet that it will announce plans in September to reduce its bond-buying.
Van Dulken said: “We know what the ultimate goal is with ECB QE (taper purchases to zero), however it’s more about how soon it wants to start. With the Fed now unlikely to hike in September, and cooler UK inflation taking the pressure off the BoE to act in August, the ECB may be the only major central bank left to tighten policy move over the next few months. September, after the summer break?”
On the corporate front, rental equipment firm Ashtead was the standout gainer after US peer United Rentals’ second-quarter numbers beat expectations and the company lifted its 2017 earnings guidance.
International distribution and outsourcing group Bunzl ticked up after saying said it has made a binding offer to buy a group of businesses in France and has also bought a marketing services business in the UK for undisclosed sums.
Unilever edged higher after its first-half sales disappointed but earnings came in stronger than expectations, with the consumer goods colossus increasing its guidance for full year profit margins.
Anglo American gained ground after it posted an 8% year-on-year increase in copper-equivalent production in its second quarter, while Howden Joinery advanced as it reported an increase in first-half revenue
Shares in Sports Direct rallied as it reported a near-60% drop in full-year underlying pre-tax profit on the back of the weaker pound, but its revenue came in ahead of expectations.
Going the other way, low cost carrier easyJet flew lower despite lifting its profit outlook and reporting a 16% jump in third-quarter revenue.
Price comparison website Moneysupermarket tumbled as it warned that adjusted operating profit for the full year will be at the lower end of the consensus range.
