19th Aug 2026 06:45
(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are set to open marginally lower on Wednesday as investors await UK inflation data, with sentiment also weighed by renewed uncertainty over the Middle East and a sell-off across Asian markets.
IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 to open 10.9 points lower, 0.1%, at 10,717.14 on Wednesday. The index of London large-caps closed 0.1% higher at 10,728.04 on Tuesday.
Sterling was quoted at USD1.3541 early Wednesday, slightly higher than USD1.3539 at the London equities close on Tuesday. Against the euro, sterling fell to EUR1.1687 from EUR1.1693 a day prior.
The euro traded at USD1.1586 early Wednesday, higher than USD1.1578 late Tuesday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY159.29 versus JPY159.62.
Attention in the UK will turn to inflation data due at 0700 BST.
Consumer prices are expected to have risen 0.3% month-on-month in July, after increasing 0.1% in June.
Producer input prices are forecast to have fallen 0.5% on the month, following a 2.0% decline in June, while annual retail price inflation is expected to accelerate to 3.2% from 3.0%.
US President Donald Trump said no talks with Iran are underway or planned, despite earlier suggestions from senior officials that negotiations were progressing.
Trump also posted a map on social media depicting the Strait of Hormuz as American territory, stepping up his rhetoric as the nearly six-month conflict with Iran showed little sign of resolution.
"There are no talks or conversations going on, or scheduled, with the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Naval Blockade remains in full force and effect," Trump wrote on Truth Social.
Brent oil was trading at USD91.41 a barrel early Wednesday, higher than USD91.17 late Tuesday.
In the US on Tuesday, Wall Street ended lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.2%, the S&P 500 down 0.7% and the Nasdaq Composite down 1.3%.
Meanwhile, ChatGPT creator OpenAI said it was slowing development of its most advanced artificial intelligence model and tightening safety controls following a cyberattack involving one of its AI systems.
The company said it had postponed what would have been its largest-ever AI training run while it ensures the resulting model behaves as intended. The move follows incidents disclosed by OpenAI and rival Anthropic in which AI models carried out unauthorised intrusions into external computer systems.
OpenAI also announced it was developing a new monitoring system to detect suspicious AI behaviour, although it said the tool would require around 20% more computing power.
In Asia on Wednesday, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index fell 3.1%. In China, the Shanghai Composite lost 2.1%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong edged up 0.1%.
The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney slipped 0.3%, despite data showing Australian wage growth remained resilient in the second quarter.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the seasonally adjusted wage price index rose 0.8% quarter-on-quarter in the three months to June, unchanged from the previous quarter and in line with the FXStreet-cited consensus. Annual wage growth eased slightly to 3.2% from 3.3%, also matching expectations.
Gold was quoted at USD4,338.60 an ounce early Wednesday, lower than USD4,361.38 on Tuesday.
In Wednesday's corporate calendar, Kenmare Resources and Oxford Nanopore Technologies report half-year results.
In the economic calendar on Wednesday, the UK releases consumer, producer and retail price inflation data, while the eurozone publishes its latest consumer price index.
By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News senior economics reporter
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