London open: Stocks little changed ahead of inflation figures

London stocks were little changed in early trade as investors kept their powder dry ahead of key inflation figures and amid rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and Korean Peninsula.

At 0825 BST, the FTSE 100 was down 0.1% to 7,339.94, while the pound was 0.1% lower at $1.2413.

All currency traders' eyes will again be on UK inflation data in what has become the most important monthly reading for the pound.

"In February the figure smashed forecasts, surging half a percent in the space of a month to hit 2.3%," said Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell. "That news gave sterling a serious boost, putting cable on track to graze $1.26 by the end of March. This time around the CPI reading is forecast to slip slightly to 2.2%; if accurate, it will be interesting to see how the pound reacts to inflation solidifying, rather than building on, its current highs.

"Of course, since the referendum last June analysts have tended to underestimate the strength of inflation’s growth, the figure outperforming expectations, often significantly, in six of the last nine months."

The retail price index, consumer price index and producer price index are all at 0930 BST.

Geopolitical tensions continued to build after North Korea denounced the US deployment of a navy strike group to the Korean Peninsula.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump and UK Prime Minister Theresa May agreed there is a "window of opportunity" to persuade Russian to ditch its support for Syria's Bashar al-Assad, though this reportedly dismayed the many European leaders who were resisting plans set out by Boris Johnson for more Russian sanctions.

Investors were also digesting the latest figures from the British Retail Consortium, which showed like-for-like retail sales in the UK fell 1% on the year in March. This follows a 0.6% drop in January and a 0.4% decline in February.

Overall, the first quarter of the year experienced a LFL sales drop of 0.7%, which was the worst three-month figure since March 2011.

In corporate news, JD Sports Fashion was in the black after it reported annual profits before tax and exceptional items up 56% to £244.8m on revenue up 31% to £2.4bn. The FTSE 250 group, which had £213m net cash at year end, lifted the final dividend 4.8% to 1.30p to bring the total dividend to 1.55p, an increase of 4.7%.

Recruiter Robert Walters was on the front foot as it posted a 33% jump in net fee income for the first quarter, noting an upturn in financial services recruitment activity in London. Peers Hays and Michael Page also gained ground.

Banknote printer De La Rue rallied after saying full-year operating profit is expected to be above the top end of market consensus, driven by good growth in Identity Systems and Product Authentication & Traceability product lines.

Balfour Beatty was lifted by an upgrade to 'buy' from 'neutral' from Bank of America Merrill Lynch.

Vedanta Resources nudged lower despite achieving record levels of aluminium, zinc, silver and copper production at its India mines in the fourth quarter.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,339.94 -0.12%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,248.17 -0.09%
techMARK (TASX) 3,435.09 -0.04%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 7,315.00p 1.18%
DCC (DCC) 7,090.00p 1.07%
Fresnillo (FRES) 1,598.00p 0.95%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,777.00p 0.91%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,290.50p 0.87%
Paddy Power Betfair (PPB) 8,435.00p 0.60%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 855.50p 0.53%
Aviva (AV.) 515.50p 0.49%
Mediclinic International (MDC) 727.50p 0.41%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,321.00p 0.38%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Next (NXT) 4,064.00p -1.12%
Micro Focus International (MCRO) 2,485.00p -0.76%
Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) 237.40p -0.67%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 343.10p -0.67%
Intertek Group (ITRK) 3,987.00p -0.62%
Hammerson (HMSO) 582.50p -0.60%
CRH (CRH) 2,769.00p -0.57%
easyJet (EZJ) 1,050.00p -0.57%
Wolseley (WOS) 4,906.00p -0.55%
Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 2,132.00p -0.54%

FTSE 250 - Risers

JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 420.10p 3.32%
Balfour Beatty (BBY) 279.30p 3.22%
Senior (SNR) 213.50p 2.10%
Pagegroup (PAGE) 442.70p 1.91%
Allied Minds (ALM) 169.80p 1.13%
Polymetal International (POLY) 1,054.00p 0.86%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 169.20p 0.77%
Go-Ahead Group (GOG) 1,752.00p 0.75%
Cineworld Group (CINE) 674.00p 0.67%
Marston's (MARS) 135.70p 0.59%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Redefine International (RDI) 36.25p -1.33%
Restaurant Group (RTN) 344.00p -1.12%
Ascential (ASCL) 317.00p -1.06%
Dixons Carphone (DC.) 312.70p -1.04%
St. Modwen Properties (SMP) 331.80p -1.04%
Cobham (COB) 137.80p -0.93%
Morgan Advanced Materials (MGAM) 316.50p -0.85%
Investec (INVP) 538.00p -0.83%
Cairn Energy (CNE) 211.70p -0.80%
Sophos Group (SOPH) 327.40p -0.79%