(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London are seen opening higher on Monday, tracking strong gains in Asian equity markets and ahead of a raft of PMI readings in Europe and the US.
In early company news, ad agency WPP made an acquisition. Budget airline easyJet named a former Royal Bank of Scotland chief executive as its incoming chair. London West End-focused landlord Shaftesbury said trading was recovering.
IG futures indicate the FTSE 100 index is to open 40.50 points higher at 7,128.40. The blue-chip index closed up 29.04 points, or 0.4%, at 7,087.90 on Friday.
WPP said it has acquired Satalia, a technology company offering artificial intelligence solutions for clients, for an undisclosed amount.
The marketing firm highlighted that Satalia builds technologies that helps clients develop business strategies and improve operational efficiency. Satalia has clients include BT, DFS, DS Smith, PwC, Tesco and Unilever.
In addition, WPP said Satalia Chief Executive Officer Daniel Hulme will become chief AI officer of WPP, working with WPP's chief technology officer and WPP agencies to promote artificial intelligence capabilities across the company and help shape WPP's AI strategy.
Chief Executive Officer Mark Read said: "Advances in technology are revolutionising how people live, work and shop, how brands go to market, and how products and services are delivered. Clients are looking for end-to-end solutions that harness these technologies to grow their business. I'm delighted to welcome Daniel and the Satalia team to WPP as we continue to strengthen our offer to global brands."
easyJet said it has appointed Stephen Hester as a non-executive director and chair-designate. Hester will join the board on September 1 and succeed John Barton as chair on December 1. Barton will step down from the board having completed nearly nine years in the role.
Hester served as CEO of state-backed lender Royal Bank of Scotland Group during the financial crisis, replacing Fred Goodwin who led the bank to the brink of collapse in 2008.
Hester left RBS, since renamed NatWest Group, in 2013 and went on to lead RSA Insurance as CEO from February 2014 to May of this year. RSA was acquired for GBP7.2 billion by a two-headed consortium composed of Canada's Intact and Scandinavian insurer Tryg AS. The deal closed in June.
Hester commented: "As a long-standing admirer of easyJet, and from my own experience as a customer, I am very excited to be joining the airline and look forward to playing my part in driving its continued success."
Shop landlord Shaftesbury said West End footfall and trading was recovering and its operating environment has been improving during the period of April 1 to last Friday.
Shaftesbury highlighted West End footfall has recovered to 50% to 60% of pre-pandemic levels as Londoners, domestic day trippers and staycation visitors have returned in growing numbers.
The landlord said available-to-let vacancy at 31 July was 4.6%, down from 8.4% on March 31, which it described as an "encouraging pace" at which space continues to go under offer. Available-to-let vacancy fell further to 4.1% on August 13.
Shaftesbury noted hospitality and leisure demand improved over the period, reflecting confidence in the long-term prospects for West End locations. There was also healthy occupier interest for shops, including online retailers looking for physical space.
Shaftesbury said office enquiries, viewings and lettings continued at a steady pace as occupiers prepare for the return of workforces in the autumn.
CEO Brian Bicknell said: "The long-term curation we bring to our central, bustling villages, with its focus on differentiated, mid-market choices targeted primarily at a domestic audience, continues to attract both visitors and new occupiers. The progress we have seen towards a return to normal patterns of activity over the period, and improving medium-term prospects, have been catalysts for a strong recovery in confidence and leasing activity, both for commercial and residential accommodation across our locations.
"The momentum of the last four months is providing a sound platform for the continuing revival of the West End in the important months ahead, leading up to Christmas and into the New Year, and the prospects for a return to pre-pandemic patterns of life and activity."
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 stock index closed up 1.8%. In China, the Shanghai Composite was up 1.3%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was up 1.7%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed up 0.4%.
The Japanese private sector declined further in August, with growth in manufacturing continuing to slow and services falling deeper into contraction, survey results from IHS Markit and au Jibun Bank showed.
The au Jibun Bank flash Japan composite purchasing managers' index stood at 45.9 index points in August, compared to the final score of 48.8 points in July.
The headline au Jibun Bank Japan manufacturing PMI dipped to 52.4 points in August from 53.0 in July. At 43.5 in August, the au Jibun Bank flash Japan services business activity index fell from 47.4 in July.
Activity fell at the quickest pace for 15 months, while new business inflows also contracted, as state of emergency restrictions remained in place to combat a steep rise in Covid-19 cases in Japan.
In the US on Friday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 0.7%, the S&P 500 up 0.8% and the Nasdaq Composite up 1.2%.
Friday's upbeat performance on Wall Street was fuelled by comments from US Federal Reserve official Robert Kaplan who said that the spread of the Delta variant could cause him reconsider plans to taper stimulus.
"Today's European open expected to be a positive one after Friday's decent US close, and a positive start to the week in Asia this morning," said CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson.
The pound was quoted at USD1.3658 early Monday, up from USD1.3621 at the London equities close Friday.
The euro was priced at USD1.1720, higher than USD1.1681. Against the Japanese yen, the dollar was trading at JPY109.90, up from JPY109.81.
Brent oil was quoted at USD66.40 a barrel Monday morning, up from USD66.02 late Friday. Gold was trading at USD1,786.80 an ounce, slightly higher against USD1,783.81.
Monday's economic calendar has a slew of flash PMIs: from Germany at 0830 BST, the eurozone at 0900 BST, the UK at 0930 BST, and the US at 1445 BST.
By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com
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