15th Sep 2026 06:58
(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are set to open lower on Tuesday, after it was somewhat of an outlier on Monday, when it registered a rise despite artificial intelligence worries hanging over stocks.
IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 to open down 19.0 points, 0.2%, at 10,678.57 on Tuesday. The index of London large-caps ended up 47.13 points, 0.4%, at 10,697.57 on Monday.
But European peers are to rise, with the CAC 40 and DAX 40 each called 0.1% higher.
Sterling was quoted at USD1.3482 early Tuesday, barely budging from the USD1.3481 it fetched at the time of the London equities close on Monday. Versus the euro, the pound rose to EUR1.1684 from EUR1.1679.
The single currency traded at USD1.1534 against the dollar, down from USD1.1541 a day prior. Against the yen, the dollar rose to JPY154.89 from JPY154.59.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury widened to 5.02% on Tuesday morning, from 4.96% late Monday afternoon. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury yield stretched to 5.38% from 5.34%.
The 10-year yield spiked to its loftiest level since 2007 ahead of Wednesday's Federal Reserve decision.
Analysts at Rabobank commented: "The overnight index swap market now has 24.9bps priced in for Wednesday's FOMC meeting – suggesting that traders view a Fed hike this week as a near certainty."
In the US on Monday, Wall Street ended lower, dragged down by AI worries, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.3%, the S&P 500 down 0.5% and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.6%.
Swissquote analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya commented: "Unsurprisingly, the market reaction was a swift selloff in AI winners. Philadelphia's semiconductor index tanked nearly 6%. Those sitting on the other side of the table did very well, however. The likes of Google and Meta rallied on the news, as a slowdown in frontier models would justify slower spending (a thing that investors would love to hear now that most free cash is gone), and a slower pace of development would also give these companies time to monetise what they have already built."
In Tokyo, SoftBank Group, which slumped 11% on Monday, was up 7.9% late on Tuesday afternoon.
US President Donald Trump on Monday dismissed as a "hoax" fears that artificial intelligence poses a threat to humanity, after several tech bosses called for a slow-down in the development of the technology.
"AI taking over the World, destroying Humanity, and all other things bad, is a HOAX," he said on Truth Social.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 was down 0.2%. In China, the Shanghai Composite traded 0.3% lower, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong fell 0.7%. The S&P/ASX 200 lost 1.0%.
China's unemployment rate rose in August, with retail sales slowing as industrial production accelerated, official data showed Tuesday.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the urban surveyed unemployment rate was 5.3% in August, accelerating from 5.2% in July.
Retail sales rose 0.4% year-on-year in August, below the 0.6% increase the previous month and missing the 0.8% growth consensus forecast cited by FXStreet.
Industrial production grew 5.2% on-year in August, surpassing July's 4.5% increase and the 4.8% growth consensus.
In the UK, unemployment and average earnings figures are due for release at 0700 BST.
According to consensus cited by FXStreet, the jobless rate is expected to have risen to 5.0% for the three months to July, from 4.9% in the three month to June.
Gold rose to USD4,293.29 an ounce, from USD4,291.66 late Monday afternoon. Brent fell to USD107.40 a barrel from USD108.30.
Saudi Arabia warned Tuesday it will react "firmly" to Yemen's Houthis, after a series of attacks carried out by the pro-Iranian rebels using ballistic missiles and drones wounded 13 civilians in the country's south.
The Houthis have been engaged in renewed fighting with Saudi-backed government forces since Yemen's civil war reignited in July, when the group declared a maritime blockade on Riyadh and began targeting its ships in the Red Sea.
The group seized control of Yemen's Red Sea coast and the Bab al-Mandab Strait last week, which has become vital as the wider US-Iran war chokes the Strait of Hormuz, in a significant blow to Yemeni government forces.
Tuesday's local corporate calendar has half-year results from Princes Group and full-year earnings from Keir Group and Alumasc, amongst others.
By Eric Cunha, Alliance News news editor
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