LONDON (Alliance News) - UK shares are set to open lower, as EU finance ministers meet again Tuesday to discuss their new EUR80 billion bailout of Greece, whose leader, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, now faces the difficult task of selling the harsh terms of the deal back home.
CMC Markets is calling the FTSE 100 to open 8 points lower at 6,729, having closed up 1.0% at 6,737.95 on Monday after Greece and its creditors said they came to an agreement on the nation's third bailout deal. IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 to open 12.8 points lower at 6,725.2.
Athens is being asked to implement some reforms by Wednesday in an effort to restore trust between Greece and its creditors following five months of fraught bailout negotiations. Further reform pledges must follow.
Defence Minister Panos Kammenos, who leads the junior partner in Tsipras' governing coalition, said the prime minister faced a "coup" after being "blackmailed by the [prospect of a] collapse of banks and a total haircut on deposits."
Kammenos said his party, Independent Greeks (ANEL), supported the premier's efforts, but would decide Tuesday whether to back the bailout deal. Their opposition would likely not block its passage through parliament but would create a rift in the coalition.
"Tsipras faces possible mutiny within his own coalition government over the harsh terms of the country?s bailout," says Jasper Lawler of CMC Markets. "Headlines of infighting or hard-line stances within Athens will be a downside risk throughout the day."
If the Greek Parliament delivers, other national legislatures will be asked for their approval of the deal, a process that Eurogroup chief Jeroen Dijsselbloem hoped to complete by the end of the week.
In Asia on Monday, the Japanese Nikkei 225 trades up 1.7%. Meanwhile, the Hang Seng is down 0.9% and the Shanghai Composite is trading down 1.2%.
Wall Street ended higher Monday. The DJIA closed up 1.2% and the S&P 500 up 1.1% and the Nasdaq Composite closed up 1.5%.
Negotiators from Iran and six world powers were taking the last steps toward a far-reaching nuclear deal early Tuesday in Vienna, aiming to announce an agreement in the morning, several diplomats said. The deal has weighed on oil prices and ahead of the open Brent oil trades at USD57.28 a barrel.
The total value of like-for-like sales in the UK was up 1.8% on year in June, the British Retail Consortium said on Tuesday. That topped forecasts for an increase of 0.5% following the flat reading in May. Overall sales were up 2.9% on year, the BRC said.
"We saw welcome signs of growing consumer confidence, with people more willing to 'trade-up' and spend a bit more on big-ticket purchases, likely boosted by the growth in the supply of credit and other factors such as low inflation and rising real incomes," BRC Director General Helen Dickinson said.
Also in the economic calendar Tuesday, German inflation data are at 0700 BST and UK inflation numbers are at 0930 BST. ZEW economic surveys for the eurozone and Germany are at 1000 BST, alongside eurozone industrial production data. US retail sales are at 1330 BST.
In the UK corporate calendar, there are interim management statements from FTSE 250-listed companies Dairy Crest Group, Michael Page International and Carillion. FTSE SmallCap-listed ITE Group also issues an interim management statement. Transport operator FirstGroup and electronics diagnostics and repair services provider Regenersis issue trading statements. Professional services consultancy Begbies Traynor Group reports full-year results.
By Neil Thakrar; neilthakrar@alliancenews.com; @NeilThakrar1
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