9th Sep 2026 06:56
(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are set to open lower on Wednesday, as an underwhelming start to the week for equities looks set to continue, with the Brent price continuing to threaten to hit the USD100 a barrel threshold.
IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 to open 51.2 points lower, 0.5%, a 10,760.46 on Wednesday. The index of London large-caps closed down 10.47 points, 0.1%, at 10,811.66 on Tuesday.
A barrel of Brent spiked to USD99.01 early Wednesday, from USD98.00 at the time of the London equities close on Tuesday. It traded as high as around USD99.70 earlier on Wednesday.
"Risk appetite remains weak as rising oil prices occupy the headlines – and investors' minds. US crude is consolidating above the USD95pb mark this morning, while Brent crude is a few cents below the psychological USD100pb mark, on news that the US hit targets near Iran's Kharg Island, as several Saudi energy facilities halted operations due to Houthi attacks," Swissquote analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya commented.
"Summer was full of hope that a peace agreement could be achieved. This optimism is fading as we enter September. From a diplomatic perspective, it's very hard to keep that optimism alive."
The UK debt office sold a 30-year gilt at the highest yield since it was established, according to results published on Tuesday, highlighting the pressure on public sector finances.
The Debt Management Office re-opened the 5.375% Treasury Gilt 2056 through a syndication at a yield of 5.8168%.
The DMO said investor demand was strong. Proceeds from the sale are expected to amount to some GBP4.0 billion, though total orders topped GBP87 billion.
The pound edged up slightly to USD1.3551 on Wednesday, from USD1.3548 on Tuesday. Against the euro, it was steady at EUR1.1643. The euro bought USD1.1634, up fractionally from USD1.1631. Against the yen, the dollar fell to JPY153.31 from JPY154.18.
Commerzbank Antje Praefcke commented: "At the ECB meeting, the key question will be whether the Governing Council signals further rate hikes after tomorrow's expected rate increase, as the market still sees a chance of another rate hike by year-end and even beyond, whereas our experts are more sceptical and expect the rate-hiking cycle to end. If the market has to revise its expectations downward, the euro is likely to weaken.
"The market is hoping that the US inflation data for August will provide clues as to whether the Fed will indeed take action next week and raise the federal funds rate, as it is not yet entirely certain about this. So if the data comes in stronger than expected, adjustments to interest rate expectations could give the dollar a small upward boost."
In New York on Tuesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.2%, the S&P 500 lost 0.6% and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.3%.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.79% early Wednesday, narrowing from 4.80% at the time of the London equities close on Tuesday. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury narrowed to 5.24% from 5.25%.
In Tokyo on Wednesday, the Nikkei 225 was down 0.3%. In China, the Shanghai Composite was down 0.1%, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong was 0.5% lower. In Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 was slightly lower.
An ounce of gold fell to USD4,394.41 from USD4,494.00 late Wednesday afternoon.
On Wednesday's UK corporate calendar, Energean, Gym Group and WAG Payment Solutions report half-year results, while Frontier Developments and Pan African Resources publish full-year results.
By Eric Cunha, Alliance News news editor
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