25th Sep 2025 06:58
(Alliance News) - London's blue chip index is set to open lower on Thursday, following a Wall Street slump on Wednesday ahead of a slew of US data releases, including a GDP reading.
IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 to open down 16.8 points, 0.2%, at 9,233.63 on Thursday. The index of London large-caps closed up 27.11 points, 0.3%, at 9,250.43 on Wednesday.
"Risk sentiment was limited across European and US indices yesterday, as investors likely decided to take profits on the latest rally and step aside before fresh data hits," commented Swissquote analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya.
"Federal Reserve member Mary Daly said she would support further policy easing but stressed the need to proceed cautiously to avoid oversteering. Her comments came a day after Jerome Powell refrained from committing to further rate cuts, citing lingering inflation risks. He also noted that asset valuations look high - but, of course, that’s not the Fed's mandate. Lowering rates while raising growth forecasts certainly helps, Jerome! Either way, Fed commentary this week is unlikely to provide broad market support."
In the US on Wednesday, Wall Street ended lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average falling 0.4%, the S&P 500 slipping 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite losing 0.3%.
Sterling was quoted at USD1.3454 early Thursday, slightly higher than USD1.3452 at the London equities close on Wednesday.
The euro traded at USD1.1742 early Thursday, up from USD1.1740 late Wednesday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted up at JPY148.79 versus JPY148.75.
Risks to the UK's inflation outlook may have increased, justifying the need to take a cautious approach to cutting interest rates, a Bank of England policymaker has said.
Megan Greene, a member of the Bank's rate-setting committee, said the current uncertainties and risks facing the economy meant it may be better to "skip" rate cuts rather than lower them quickly. Greene said "supply shocks" to the economy were likely to become more frequent.
This refers to events such as the Covid pandemic and the war in Ukraine that impact production and therefore can send prices higher.
She said the lessons learned from recent supply shocks "suggest that the risks to our inflation outlook have shifted to the upside".
This was partly because of weak productivity growth in the UK as well as the rising unemployment rate, which both put pressure on overall inflation.
In Asia on Thursday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo rose 0.3%. In China, the Shanghai Composite gained 0.1%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was marginally lower. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney improved 0.1%.
Gold was quoted at USD3,738.08 an ounce early Thursday, down from USD3,750.05 on Wednesday.
Brent oil was trading at USD69.01 a barrel early Thursday, higher than USD68.94 late Wednesday.
In Thursday's corporate calendar, a trading statement from safety equipment company Halma, and media firm STV.
In the economic calendar on Thursday, the US GDP, durable goods orders, and weekly jobless claims data, as well as quarterly personal consumption expenditures figures.
By Emily Parsons, Alliance News reporter
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