23rd Sep 2026 09:19
(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened higher on Wednesday, as oil prices extended their longest losing streak in more than a year, while investors looked ahead to a summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
UK economic growth is now expected to slow next year in a blow to Andy Burnham's ambitions despite a stronger-than-expected performance in 2026 in the face of the Middle East conflict, according to new forecasts.
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation & Development, OECD, also reported that UK inflation will be below previous forecasts this year but will then take longer than expected to fall back to target levels.
The FTSE 100 index opened up 49.29 points, 0.5%, at 10,757.62. The FTSE 250 was down 16.15 points, 0.1%, at 24,510.30, and the AIM all-share was up 0.73 points, 0.1%, at 796.57.
The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.3% at 1,069.54, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.2% at 21,252.95, and the Cboe small companies was up 0.2% at 18,848.67.
In European equities on Wednesday, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.3%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was down 0.1%.
Sterling was quoted at USD1.3308 early Wednesday, lower than USD1.3342 at the London equities close on Tuesday. Against the euro, sterling fell to EUR1.1650 from EUR1.1662 a day prior.
The euro traded at USD1.1425 early Wednesday, lower than USD1.1440 late Tuesday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY157.77 versus JPY157.38.
Brent oil traded at USD98.89 a barrel early Wednesday, down from USD99.39 late Tuesday, putting prices on course for a sixth straight daily decline, their longest losing streak in more than a year.
US President Donald Trump said US and Iranian representatives had met for "very good" talks at the United Nations.
Trump told reporters the three-hour meeting was "very good", "very productive" and "they have another one scheduled in the very near future".
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia moving to restart a key pipeline and the US signalling progress in talks with Iran combined to push prices lower, despite Trump threatening Iran during his address to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday.
On the FTSE 100, Rentokil Initial jumped 2.5% after Investec raised the pest-control firm to 'buy' from 'hold', with a 400 pence price target.
At the bottom of the blue-chip index, JD Sports Fashion fell 2.4% after reporting pretax profit of GBP241 million for the 26 weeks ended August 1, up 75% from GBP138 million a year earlier, despite sales edging down 0.7% to GBP5.90 billion from GBP5.94 billion.
Statutory operating profit fell 19% to GBP314 million from GBP389 million, while adjusted operating profit declined 21% to GBP294 million from GBP369 million.
JD Sports said the trading environment remains "tough", but highlighted improving momentum in performance running and newer footwear styles. It left its financial 2027 guidance unchanged from its second-quarter trading update, continuing to expect profit before tax and adjusting items of GBP700 million to GBP800 million.
Airtel Africa rose 0.5% after saying its mobile money business Airtel Mobile Commerce, known as Airtel Money, intends to launch an initial public offering and seek admission to the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange.
The proposed IPO will comprise a secondary offering of existing shares by current Airtel Money shareholders, meaning the business will raise no new capital. Airtel Africa currently owns around 78% of Airtel Money and expects to remain a long-term strategic shareholder following the listing.
The Financial Times reported on Tuesday that Airtel Money is targeting a valuation of USD8.00 billion to USD9.00 billion, with existing shareholders seeking to raise at least USD800 million through the flotation. The newspaper said Airtel Africa had also considered listing the business in the Middle East before opting for London.
On the FTSE 250, Ceres Power Holdings fell 5.0% after reporting a narrowed pretax loss of GBP15.4 million for the six months ended June 30 from GBP19.0 million a year earlier, as revenue rose 8.0% to GBP22.8 million from GBP21.1 million.
Ceres reiterated that contracted group revenue for 2026 is around GBP45 million before any new business and said it remains confident of signing one new licensee partner during the year, which could provide additional revenue. Cash and short-term investments stood at GBP172.0 million at the end of June, boosted by a GBP102.6 million equity raise.
At the top of the FTSE 250, Renishaw rose after reporting pretax profit of GBP150.0 million for financial 2026, up 27% from GBP118.0 million a year earlier.
Judges Scientific fell 1.1% after the company swung to a pretax loss of GBP1.7 million in the six months ended June 30 from a GBP6.6 million profit a year earlier, as revenue fell 21% to GBP55.7 million from GBP70.2 million.
Judges described its first-half performance as "very poor", citing reduced US research funding, delays in China, continued weakness in offshore wind and the expected absence of a Geotek coring expedition.
In Asia on Wednesday, financial markets in Japan were closed for a holiday. In China, the Shanghai Composite closed down 0.4%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong ended 1.1% lower. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed up 0.1%.
In the US on Tuesday, Wall Street ended mixed. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.4%, the S&P 500 closed flat, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.5%.
The yield on the US 10-year Treasury was quoted at 4.96%, unchanged from Tuesday. The yield on the US 30-year Treasury was quoted at 5.30%, also unchanged from Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Xi is due to arrive in Washington on Wednesday for a three-day state visit at Trump's invitation.
The leaders of the world's two largest economies are expected to discuss their tariff and trade dispute, artificial intelligence security and global conflicts including the war in Iran and Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Trump plans an extensive programme through Friday, including a military parade, a state banquet attended by senior technology executives and a joint tea reception.
It will be Xi's first trip to the US since 2023, when he travelled to California for the APEC economic summit and met Trump's predecessor Joe Biden. Trump invited Xi to the White House during his visit to Beijing in May.
The agreement reached on Tuesday between the US, Denmark and Greenland could also cast a diplomatic shadow over the summit.
Gold was quoted at USD4,323.39 an ounce early Wednesday, marginally lower than USD4,328.77 on Tuesday.
Still to come on Wednesday's economic calendar are flash composite purchasing managers' indices from the UK and US.
By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News senior economics reporter
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