London open: Stocks little changed ahead of BoE

Stocks in London were little changed in early trade as investors looked ahead to a rate decision from the Bank of England and digested the latest policy announcement from the Federal Reserve.

At 0825 GMT, the FTSE 100 was up 0.1% to 6,853.16.

On Wednesday the Federal Reserve decided not to up its key interest rate, as widely expected, but indicated that a hike could be on the cards at its next meeting in December.

CMC Markets’ Michael Hewson said: “The Fed made no mention of the political tsunami affecting global markets merely stating that the US economy is making good progress, and unlike last year they held back from directly implying that a rate hike was imminent, though theremoval of the line about inflation remaining low in the near term would appear to suggest that policymakers expect prices to start rising again, thus keeping the prospect of a December move very much on the table.”

As far as the BoE is concerned, he said: “It is quite clear that any further easing at this time is not necessary and it is quite likely that the Bank of England will have to revise upwards its inflation and growth forecasts. The inflation forecast will be of particular interest given the recent rise in forward inflation expectations which are currently well above the levels of 10 year gilt yields.”

UK services PMI is at 0930 GMT, while the BoE rate announcement and the Inflation Report are due at 1200 GMT. In the US, initial jobless claims are at 1230 GMT and ISM non-manufacturing is at 1400 GMT.

Also on Thursday, the High Court will declare its verdict on whether the UK government has the right to trigger Brexit.

In corporate news, Wm Morrison Supermarkets edged higher after reporting its fourth consecutive quarter of growth, helped by its biggest ever Halloween.

Asset manager Schroders also nudged up as it said third-quarter assets under management rose 9.1%.

Satellite services provider Inmarsat rallied after reporting a jump in third-quarter revenues following strong performances in the government and aviation divisions, but a drop in pre-tax profit.

On the downside, specialty chemical company Croda International slipped despite posting an increase in third-quarter sales.

Randgold Resources was on the back foot despite noting a 55% surge in third-quarter profit, while Coca-Cola HBC ticked down after saying third-quarter sales volumes dropped on the back of unfavourable weather compared to the same period last year.

Glencore also retreated as it said production in most of its commodities declined in the third quarter.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 6,835.94 -0.14%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 17,463.48 0.00%
techMARK (TASX) 3,320.60 0.05%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Shire Plc (SHP) 4,633.50p 4.56%
Dixons Carphone (DC.) 338.50p 3.71%
BAE Systems (BA.) 542.50p 1.40%
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 255.80p 1.15%
Coca-Cola HBC AG (CDI) (CCH) 1,786.00p 0.96%
Sky (SKY) 822.00p 0.74%
Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 2,063.50p 0.44%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,740.00p 0.40%
Kingfisher (KGF) 363.80p 0.36%
ITV (ITV) 169.20p 0.24%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Old Mutual (OML) 194.00p -1.67%
Anglo American (AAL) 1,112.50p -1.59%
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,585.50p -1.31%
Mondi (MNDI) 1,578.00p -1.25%
Carnival (CCL) 3,859.00p -1.18%
Intu Properties (INTU) 267.60p -1.04%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 2,801.00p -1.02%
Glencore (GLEN) 244.55p -0.97%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,200.00p -0.95%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 545.50p -0.82%

FTSE 250 - Risers

JRP Group (JRP) 135.00p 9.76%
Shawbrook Group (SHAW) 223.10p 5.58%
Inmarsat (ISAT) 763.00p 4.52%
Centamin (DI) (CEY) 166.90p 3.86%
Lancashire Holdings Limited (LRE) 736.00p 3.81%
GVC Holdings (GVC) 708.50p 3.28%
Countryside Properties (CSP) 244.80p 2.43%
Redefine International (RDI) 40.67p 2.24%
Ascential (ASCL) 295.80p 2.04%
Beazley (BEZ) 370.80p 1.87%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Playtech (PTEC) 881.00p -4.34%
Laird (LRD) 136.10p -3.27%
Dunelm Group (DNLM) 759.00p -2.19%
DFS Furniture (DFS) 255.10p -2.07%
Softcat (SCT) 311.30p -1.98%
PayPoint (PAY) 1,063.00p -1.94%
Ibstock (IBST) 168.40p -1.92%
Investec (INVP) 495.40p -1.71%
Ashmore Group (ASHM) 342.50p -1.52%
Aldermore Group (ALD) 165.50p -1.31%