27th Feb 2026 06:56
(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are set to open higher on Friday, shaking off mixed trade in New York, while in Europe, eyes will be on inflation readings from France and Germany.
IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 to open 32.3 points higher, 0.3%, at 10,879 on Friday. The index of London large-caps closed up 40.29 points, 0.3% at 10,846.70 on Thursday. It is up 1.5% so far this week.
In New York on Thursday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended slightly higher, the S&P 500 shed 0.5% and the Nasdaq Composite declined 1.2%. Nvidia shares weakened, slumping 5.5%, despite blockbuster earnings.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury ebbed to 4.0% early Friday, from 4.03% at the time of the London equities close on Thursday. The 30-year yield slimmed to 4.65% from 4.68%.
Pepperstone analyst Michael Brown commented: "Treasuries saw gains across the curve, with the benchmark 10-year yield briefly falling as low as 4.01%, printing its lowest level since late-November last year. That said, we do remain, just about, within the longer-run range here."
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 ended slightly higher. In China, the Shanghai Composite was 0.4% higher, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong was 1.0% higher. In Sydney, the S&P/ASX 200 added 0.3%.
The pound fell to USD1.3475 on Friday from USD1.3513 late Thursday, The euro rose to USD1.1805 from USD1.1792. Against the yen, the dollar faded to JPY155.84 from JPY156.20.
The Green Party has won its first ever parliamentary by-election in Gorton & Denton, dealing a bitter blow to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
Labour's defeat, trailing in third behind Zack Polanski's Greens and Nigel Farage's Reform UK in the previously rock-solid Greater Manchester constituency, will pile pressure on the prime minister.
Hannah Spencer, a councillor and plumber, emerged victorious for the Greens, with 14,980 votes and a majority of 4,402 votes.
Reform UK's candidate Matt Goodwin got 10,578 votes, with Labour's Angeliki Stogia trailing on 9,364, down from 18,555 in the 2024 general election, when the turnout was similarly high.
UK consumer confidence worsened in February, with survey respondents expressing concern for their financial situation going forward amid rising unemployment and weak wage growth, survey results showed Friday.
The overall score for the GfK consumer confidence index fell to minus 19 in February from minus 16 in January, below the FXStreet-cited consensus forecast of negative 15.
Neil Bellamy, consumer insights director at GfK, commented: "After a modest improvement in recent months, consumer confidence is down three points in February, returning to the level seen in November 2025. This decline is mainly driven by weaker perceptions of personal finances — both looking back a year and ahead."
The measure for personal financial situation over the last 12 months fell to minus seven from minus three, while the measure for personal financial situation over next 12 months declined to plus 2 from plus 6.
A barrel of Brent fell to USD71.25 early Friday from USD72.58 late Thursday. Gold rose to USD5,192.25 an ounce from USD5,180.61.
Iran and the US made "significant progress" in talks in Switzerland on Thursday, mediators said, after the latest round of negotiations to avert a war between the longtime foes, and agreed to further discussions next week in Austria.
The Oman-mediated negotiations follow repeated threats from US President Donald Trump to strike Iran, with the president last Thursday giving Tehran 15 days to reach a deal.
While Iran has insisted the discussions focus solely on its nuclear programme, the US wants Tehran's missile programme and its support for militant groups in the region curtailed.
Friday's global economic calendar has a German inflation reading at 1300 GMT and US producer price data at 1330 GMT.
Friday's UK corporate calendar has full-year results from property portal Rightmove, educational materials publisher Pearson, and aerospace firm Melrose. British Airways parent IAG releases annual results.
By Eric Cunha, Alliance News news editor
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