11th Sep 2025 06:57
(Alliance News) - London's FTSE 100 is called to open higher, recouping its loss from Wednesday, ahead of a eurozone interest rate decision and US inflation reading.
IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 to open 17.6 points higher, 0.2%, at 9,242.99 on Thursday. The index of London large-caps closed down 17.14 points, 0.2% at 9,225.39 on Wednesday.
The pound fell to USD1.3524 on Thursday morning from USD1.3548 at the time of the London equities close on Wednesday. The euro faded to USD1.1697 from USD1.1722. Against the yen, the buck rose to JPY147.45 from JPY147.35.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.06%, where it stood late Wednesday afternoon London time. The 30-year yield remained at 4.71%.
In New York on Wednesday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.5%, the S&P 500 added 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite edged up marginally.
In Tokyo on Thursday, the Nikkei 225 was up 0.8% in late trade. The Shanghai Composite in China was up 1.0%. The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong was down 0.3%. Sydney's S&P/ASX 200 was 0.3% lower.
The global economic calendar on Thursday has US inflation figures and weekly jobless claims data, plus the European Central Bank's interest rate decision and press conference.
"Yesterday's US PPI update suggested a notable drop in input price inflation in August. Both headline and core PPI unexpectedly fell last month, pulling the annual figures down to 2.6% for the headline and 2.8% for the core. Though still sticky near 3%, these figures do not disrupt dovish Federal Reserve expectations — nor do they strengthen them. US 2-year yields slipped slightly, while the S&P 500 hit a fresh record before giving back gains," Swissquote analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya commented.
"All eyes now turn to today's CPI report. Headline inflation is expected to tick up to 2.9% from 2.7% a month earlier, while core inflation is seen holding sticky at 3.1% year-on-year. A softer-than-expected set of numbers could fuel bets of a jumbo Fed cut next week to support a weakening jobs market, while stronger-than-expected figures would strengthen the case for the Fed to start with a 25bp cut and follow with two more. In that case, we could see consolidation in 2-year yields and the dollar, and only limited incremental appetite for equities."
The European Central Bank is expected to leave rates unmoved again, putting the central bank's latest batch of forecasts in focus, with any nod to an inflation undershoot presenting a "dovish risk" to proceedings.
In July, the Frankfurt-based official lender left interest rates unchanged despite a "challenging" environment and uncertainty caused by trade disputes.
The decision, which was expected, left the rate on the deposit facility at 2.00%, on the main refinancing operations at 2.15%, and on the marginal lending facility at 2.40%.
What followed was a "wait-and-see holiday", a phrase ECB President Christine Lagarde coined at the end of the last meeting, typifying the central bank's approach to rate decisions.
That approach is likely to continue. Another hold is in the offing on Thursday, analysts predict. The ECB announces its decision at 1315 BST, and a press conference with Lagarde follows around half an hour later.
Rabobank analysts commented: "The doves don't have a solid case for another rate cut, as some hawks are starting to think about the future need for rate hikes already. Even though we forecast higher headline inflation than the ECB, we expect only relatively small adjustments to the ECB's economic projections."
A barrel of Brent faded to USD67.20 early Thursday, from USD67.31 at the time of the London equities close on Wednesday. Gold faded to USD3,632.01 an ounce from USD3,646.88.
Thursday's local corporate calendar has half-year results from soft drinks manufacturer Fevertree Drinks and a trading statement from online train ticket platform, Trainline.
By Eric Cunha, Alliance News news editor
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