London pre-open: Stocks seen lower after mixed US session

London stocks were set for a weaker open on Tuesday following a mixed session on Wall Street.

The FTSE 100 was called to open around 20 points lower.

Investors will be mulling industry data showing that UK retail sales inched higher in May, staging a minor rebound after a disappointing performance in April.

According to figures from the British Retail Consortium and KPMG, total sales were up 0.7% year-on-year last month, following a 4.0% annual decline in April, as a 3.6% increase in food sales managed to outweigh a 2.4% decline in non-food.

While non-food sales were down, the BRC noted that the two bank holidays in May helped drive growth in purchases of DIY and gardening equipment, as well as clothing, while computing sales reached their highest levels since the pandemic.

The overall growth rate was higher than the three-month average of 0.3%, but still came in below the 12-month average gain of 2.0%.

"Despite a strong bank holiday weekend for retailers, minimal improvement to weather across most of May meant only a modest rebound in retail sales last month," said the BRC's chief executive Helen Dickinson.

"Retailers remain optimistic that major events such as the Euros and the Olympics will bolster consumer confidence this summer," she said.

In corporate news, budget carrier Wizz Air said May passenger numbers rose 2.1% although capacity was still impacted by the grounding of 45 Airbus aircraft due to issues with their Pratt & Whitney GTF engines.

The airline carried 5.1 million passengers with a load factor of 91%, up from 90% from 2023. Capacity rose 1.2% year on year to 5.6 million seats.

Cigarettes, tobacco and vape manufacturer British American Tobacco said it remains on track to hit guidance this year after first-half trading met expectations.

Full-year results, which should deliver low-single digit increases in revenue and adjusted profit, will be weighted to the second half as previously highlighted, with growth still expected to accelerate “driven by the phasing of innovation in New Categories, and the benefits of H1 investment in US commercial actions and related wholesaler inventory movements”.