London pre-open: Stocks seen lower as investors mull GDP data

The FTSE 100 was called to open 26 points lower at 7,885.

Figures out earlier from the Office for National Statistics showed the UK narrowly avoided a technical recession at the end of last year, after the economy stagnated in the last quarter of 2022.

GDP fell 0.5% in December following growth of 0.1% in November and 0.55% in October. December’s print was dragged down by a 0.8% decline in the services sector, which recorded falls in health, education, transport and storage, arts and entertainment.

However, it was not enough to push the quarterly data into negative territory, and GDP was 0.0% in the three months to December, following a decline of 0.3% in November.

The definition of a recession is two consecutive quarters of contraction.

Sophie Lund-Yates, lead equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "While the absence of an official label will be seen as a victory, there’s an argument to say the can has simply been kicked further down the road. The ramifications for consumers are also tough: around 7m households are still expected to struggle to pay energy and food bills, technical recession or not."

In corporate news, FirstGroup said it had been granted a two-year extension for its South Western Railway franchise, by the UK government.

The contract, which began in May 2021, will now run until May 25 2025 on existing terms, the company said.

Drugmaker GSK's mismatch repair-deficient recurrent or advanced endometrial cancer treatment has been granted full approval by the US Food and Drug Administration.

GSK said Jemperli’s approval comes hot on the heels of long-term outcome results from its GARNET phase I trial, which demonstrated an overall response rate of 45.4%.