London open: Stocks steady ahead of payrolls report

At 0825 BST, the FTSE 100 was flat at 7,167.22.

Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: "Investors are keeping their nerve ahead of the non-farm payrolls report, with both the S&P500 and the Nasdaq hitting fresh record closing highs.

"The consensus is for 750000 jobs to have been added in August, as against the much better than expected number of 943000 reported in July.

"Such a figure would probably be enough to keep a lid on concerns of overheating, and would leave the level of employment around 5 million lower than the February 2020 peak. The lower figure for August is expected to have resulted from a resurgence in Covid-19 cases, which has crimped job growth as some remain unwilling to return to work in the face of the variant, and as some generous unemployment benefits persist.

"At the same time, the shortage of raw materials which has been blocking the supply chain globally has also had an impact, with the likes of the motor sector hit by a shortage of semiconductors, and making general restocking more difficult.

"Even so, a non-farms reading which confirms steady, rather than rapid economic expansion is likely to ease the pressure on the Federal Reserve to taper and at the same time vindicate its current views on the immediate outlook."

The payrolls report is due out at 1330 BST, along with the unemployment rate and average earnings. On home shores, Markit’s services PMI for August is scheduled for release at 0930 BST.

In equity markets, Berkeley Group edged higher despite saying it was experiencing construction cost inflation and "mindful of ongoing supply chain and labour market issues due to Brexit and the pandemic". The housebuilder maintained full-year guidance of pre-tax profit at or above last year’s £518m for the 12 months to April 30, 2022.

AstraZeneca ticked up after it said its Ultomiris blood disorder treatment has been approved in the European Union for expanded use to include children and adolescents.

Discoverie was the standout gainer on the FTSE 250 after it raised £55m in a placing to fund two acquisitions.

Emerging markets asset manager Ashmore fell despite posting a jump in full-year assets under management as it benefited from a positive investment performance as economic activity picks up. In the year to the end of June 2021, AuM rose 13% to $94.4bn, with an investment performance of $9.6bn and net inflows of $1.2bn.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,167.22 0.05%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 24,227.26 0.00%
techMARK (TASX) 4,860.55 0.07%

FTSE 100 - Risers

BHP Group (BHP) 2,139.50p 1.54%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 186.35p 1.15%
Barratt Developments (BDEV) 715.60p 0.87%
Legal & General Group (LGEN) 278.80p 0.80%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 5,444.00p 0.70%
Anglo American (AAL) 3,095.00p 0.67%
Aviva (AV.) 414.30p 0.63%
Evraz (EVR) 600.20p 0.60%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 1,554.50p 0.58%
Fresnillo (FRES) 838.00p 0.58%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Just Eat Takeaway.Com N.V. (CDI) (JET) 6,950.00p -0.81%
Kingfisher (KGF) 347.90p -0.63%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 5,796.00p -0.58%
Bunzl (BNZL) 2,639.00p -0.49%
Prudential (PRU) 1,529.00p -0.49%
Barclays (BARC) 184.72p -0.41%
Admiral Group (ADM) 3,474.00p -0.40%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 43.45p -0.40%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 538.00p -0.37%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 458.10p -0.37%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Discoverie Group (DSCV) 1,100.00p 7.00%
Ultra Electronics Holdings (ULE) 3,276.00p 2.25%
Cineworld Group (CINE) 68.84p 1.65%
Petropavlovsk (POG) 22.34p 1.55%
IG Group Holdings (IGG) 853.00p 1.43%
Crest Nicholson Holdings (CRST) 414.00p 1.22%
Hill & Smith Holdings (HILS) 1,916.00p 1.16%
Clarkson (CKN) 3,945.00p 1.15%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 360.80p 1.01%
Cairn Energy (CNE) 198.10p 0.97%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Ashmore Group (ASHM) 379.40p -3.90%
FDM Group (Holdings) (FDM) 1,244.00p -3.86%
Network International Holdings (NETW) 378.40p -3.76%
Vietnam Enterprise Investments (DI) (VEIL) 686.00p -2.14%
Sanne Group (SNN) 912.00p -2.04%
PureTech Health (PRTC) 336.50p -1.32%
Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) 354.50p -1.25%
Mediclinic International (MDC) 312.00p -1.14%
IP Group (IPO) 141.80p -1.12%
CMC Markets (CMCX) 302.00p -0.98%