(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London are seen opening higher on Friday following a rally on Wall Street overnight and a positive day in Asia.
IG futures indicate the FTSE 100 index will open 63.15 points higher at 7,083.60. The index closed down 68.77 points, or 1.0%, at 7,020.45 Thursday.
Wall Street ended higher on Thursday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.6%, S&P 500 up 1.0%, and Nasdaq Composite up 1.6%.
"European equity markets slumped sharply yesterday, knocked back by concerns that its two biggest economies could well be sliding into recession, after June flash PMIs slowed more than expected. US equity markets, on the other hand, have proved to be slightly more resilient this week, finishing the day higher, led by the Nasdaq 100, as the tug of war continues between the bulls and bears, as investors look to navigate a path between higher rates and recession risk," said CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson.
"Because of the positive US close, and positive Asia session, European markets are set to see a positive open," he added.
In Asia on Friday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo was up 1.2%. In China, the Shanghai Composite was up 0.5%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was up 1.7%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney was up 0.7%.
Japan's consumer prices jumped in May, according to figures released by the internal affairs ministry.
The annual inflation rate in Japan was at 2.5% in May 2022, unchanged from April's seven-and-a-half year high figure and in line with market consensus.
The core consumer price index, which excludes fresh food, jumped 2.1% year-on-year in May. The rise follows a 2.1% rise in April, the first time since March 2015 that the figure breached the 2.0% set by the Bank of Japan as its long-term inflation target.
In the UK, Oliver Dowden has resigned as chair of the Conservative Party after it suffered two by-election defeats, saying in a letter to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson that "someone must take responsibility".
In Tiverton and Honiton in south west England, the Liberal Democrats overturned a 24,000 Tory majority to win, while Labour reclaimed Wakefield in northern England.
The contests, triggered by the resignation of disgraced Tories, offered voters the chance to give their verdict on the prime minister just weeks after 41% of his own MPs cast their ballots against him.
Dowden said in his letter to the PM the by-elections "are the latest in a run of very poor results for our party".
The pound was quoted at USD1.2288 early Friday, up from USD1.2260 at the London equities close Thursday.
The euro was priced at USD1.0545, up from USD1.0517. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY134.77 in London, higher against JPY134.56.
Brent oil was trading at USD110.35 a barrel Friday morning, down from USD111.15 a barrel late Thursday. Gold stood at USD1,826.00 an ounce, lower against USD1,837.04.
Friday's economic calendar has UK retail sales at 0700 BST and US new residential sales at 1500 BST.
By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com
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