14th Oct 2025 06:52
(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are set to open lower on Tuesday, returning an advance made at the start of the week ad China vowed to "fight to the end" in a possible US trade war.
In the UK, unemployment data is released at 0700 BST.
"This morning, the August UK labour market report should show unemployment having held steady at 4.7%, while earnings pressures are set to remain close to 5% year-on-year, clearly incompatible with a sustainable return to the Bank of England's 2% inflation target over the medium-term," Pepperstone analyst Michael Brown commented.
IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 to open 42.8 points, 0.3% at 9,400.07 on Tuesday. The index of London large-caps closed up 15.40 points, 0.2%, at 9,442.87 on Monday.
In New York on Monday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1.3%, the S&P 500 rose 1.6% and the Nasdaq Composite climbed 2.2%.
"There is still a lingering risk, even if it's a very slim possibility, that Trump does indeed follow through on the threats made at the back end of last week. That's largely why we've, broadly speaking, only unwound about half of the damage wrought on Friday," Pepperstone's Brown commented.
China said on Tuesday it was ready to "fight to the end" in a trade war with the US after President Donald Trump said he would impose an additional 100% tariff on the world's second-largest economy.
"On the matter of tariff wars and trade wars, China's position remains consistent," an unnamed commerce ministry spokesperson said.
"If you wish to fight, we shall fight to the end; if you wish to negotiate, our door remains open."
Concerns spiked over the weekend that the trade war between the world's top two economies will worsen after Trump announced extra 100% tariffs on all Chinese goods.
In Tokyo on Tuesday, the Nikkei 225 was down 2.5%. Financial markets in Tokyo had been closed on Monday. In China, the Shanghai Composite was down 0.1%, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong was 1.2% lower. Sydney's S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.2%.
Sterling rose to USD1.3348 early Tuesday, from USD1.3331 late Monday. Against the dollar, the euro advanced to USD1.1591 from USD1.1569. Versus the yen, the dollar traded at JPY151.69, easing from JPY152.30.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.03%, easing from 4.04%. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was unmoved at 4.62%.
Gold burst through the USD4,100 an ounce mark on Monday and advanced further early Tuesday. It traded at USD4,136.93 an ounce, rising from USD4,093.56 at the time of the London equities close on Monday. It had earlier on Tuesday set a new record high of USD4,179.75 an ounce.
A barrel of Brent fell to USD63.03 from USD63.40.
Tuesday's UK corporate calendar has full-year results from housebuilder Bellway.
Across the Atlantic, US banks kick off the earnings season. Numbers from Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo come on Tuesday, with Bank of America and Morgan Stanley following on Wednesday.
By Eric Cunha, Alliance News news editor
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