London pre-open: Stocks seen up ahead of lending data

London stocks were set to nudge a touch higher at the open on Wednesday following losses in the previous session, as investors eye lending data.

The FTSE 100 was called to open up four points at 7,032.

CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson said: "European markets had a poor day yesterday, all of them down over 2%, with the notable exception of the FTSE 100 which was helped in no small part by its hefty energy component, and a sinking pound, which helped to keep it above the 7,000 level.

"US markets also fell back yesterday, with steep losses across the board, with the highly valued tech sector bearing the brunt, although the Russell 2000 wasn’t too far behind. While the Nasdaq 100 hit its lowest levels in over a month, both the S&P500 and Dow are still above last week’s lows.

"Despite yesterday’s losses, markets in Europe look set to open slightly higher, with attention once again likely to be on various central bank speakers, as we get set to hear from the holy trinity of Christine Lagarde of the ECB, Andrew Bailey of the Bank of England and Fed chair Jay Powell at the ECB forum on central banking at 1645 BST."

On the macro front, all eyes will be on lending figures and mortgages approvals data for August at 0930 BST.

In corporate news, fashion retailer Next lifted full-year guidance as it reported a rise in interim profits and sales as stores reopened from Covid pandemic lockdowns.

The company forecast pre-tax profit of £800m, up 6.9% from 2019 and £36m ahead of previous guidance of £764m. Full price sales for the rest of the year were expected to be 10% higher from 2019.

Profit for the six months to July 31 on a two-year basis rose 5.9% to £346.7m driven by a 7.6% increase in group sales to £2.2bn.