(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened mixed on Thursday as the threat of tariffs from the US continues to loom, and investors eye the US producer price index release later.
"European equity markets are expected to open steady as investors brace for earnings from some major European names," commented Hargreaves Lansdown's Matt Britzman. "The FTSE 100 is following suit...as the index struggles to find a platform to accelerate from, hovering around three-month lows.
"Alongside results in the UK from big names like Burberry and Aviva, investors will also have one eye on UK GDP data out tomorrow where 0.2% growth is expected."
Also in the UK, data from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors showed signs of improvement in the housing market. A net balance of 16% of property professionals reported house prices rising in October, and a 12% balance saw fresh buyer inquiries rising. However, demand appears to be outweighing supply in the rental market.
Also, the government is announcing plans to pool assets from 86 local government pension scheme authorities into "megafunds" worth around GBP500 billion through a new pension schemes bill next year.
Consolidating the assets into a handful of funds run by professional fund managers will allow them to invest more in assets such as infrastructure, supporting economic growth and local investment on behalf of the 6.7 million public servants, the government said.
The FTSE 100 index opened down 1.03 points, almost flat, at 8,029.30. The FTSE 250 was up 11.21 points, 0.1%, at 20,370.42, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.47 points, 0.1%, at 728.82.
The Cboe UK 100 was marginally lower at 807.42, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.1% at 17,808.99, and the Cboe Small Companies was down 0.2% at 15,878.99.
Spirax led the FTSE 100, rising 4.2%.
The thermal energy and fluid technology firm reported strong organic sales growth in the ten months to October 31, despite a tepid market backdrop where conditions "remain challenging", especially in China.
It said the full-year outlook remains unchanged, expecting a mid-single digit rise in organic revenue.
Aviva was in third place, rising 3.4%.
In a trading update it said its third-quarter performance was "very strong", and that it is confident in achieving the operating profit target of GBP2 billion by 2026. The insurer also expects "strong growth momentum" to continue in its Wealth division.
Burberry led the FTSE 250, jumping 14% despite reporting an interim loss and revenue decline, with no dividend.
The luxury retailer said it has suspended dividend payments for financial 2025 to "maintain a strong balance sheet and our capacity to invest in...long-term growth".
However, the firm also unveiled its official new strategic plan, titled 'Burberry Forward', which includes attracting a broader base of customers to improve its performance and driving "long-term value creation".
At the other end, Keller lost 11%.
The geotechnical engineering company said full-year outlook remains in line with expectations, but that its year-end net debt to Ebitda leverage ration looks set to miss the 0.5x to 1.5x target range.
It has also hired Carl-Peter Forster as its non-executive chair. The current chair of Vesuvius and Chemring, Forster is expected to replace Keller's incumbent Peter Hill in March.
In smaller caps, Deltic Energy surged 26%.
The investor in UK offshore oil & gas assets has entered the second term of Licence P2437 at the Selene prospect, and expects first gas in 2028. Licence operator Shell is backing the joint venture's next development phase, Deltic said.
The company said it expects net present value of USD61 million for Selene after tax, with a 34% internal rate of return.
In European equities on Thursday, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.3%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was up 0.7%.
The pound was quoted lower at USD1.2671 early on Thursday in London, compared to USD1.2714 at the equities close on Wednesday. The euro stood at USD1.0534, down against USD1.0568. Against the yen, the dollar was trading higher at JPY155.91 compared to JPY155.24.
"Despite the recent dip in USD/JPY, the pair's upward trend remains intact in the short to medium-term," noted XS.com's Rania Gule. "The dollar gains support from market expectations that the new fiscal policies of [Trump's] administration will lead to inflationary pressures. Policies such as protectionism, high tariffs, and tax cuts may drive domestic spending, supporting inflation and reducing the pressure to cut rates."
In Asia on Thursday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo was down 0.5%. In China, the Shanghai Composite was down 1.4%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was down 2.0%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed up 0.4%.
In the US on Wednesday, Wall Street ended mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.1%, the S&P 500 up 1.39 points, and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.3%.
According to Deutsche Bank Research analysts: "The past 24 hours saw investors growing more confident about a December rate cut after US CPI was in line with expectations. Admittedly, the report wasn't actually that good compared with some recent months, as monthly headline CPI was the fastest in six months, and core CPI was still a bit faster than the Fed would ideally like.
"This helped to reassure investors that the Fed was still on a path towards at least a cut in December, but long-end yields rose to multi-month highs, as fears about upcoming tariffs and a potential re-acceleration of inflation lingered."
Brent oil was quoted at USD72.39 a barrel early in London on Thursday, edging higher from USD72.32 late Wednesday.
Gold was quoted at USD2,556.60 an ounce, falling against Wednesday's USD2,591.88.
Still to come on Thursday's economic calendar, the US releases jobless data alongside the PPI read. Also, there are data releases from the eurozone and comments from European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde.
By Emma Curzon, Alliance News reporter
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