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(Alliance News) - The FTSE 100 is expected to open in the green on Thursday, with equity markets feeling more cheerful after softer US jobs data eased fears over interest rates.
The US JOLTS data earlier in the week had pointed to a hotter-than-expected jobs market, prompting fears of a protracted period of high interest rates in the US.
However, on Wednesday, the ADP national employment report showed job growth in the US private sector slowed significantly in September.
"The score is now one to one. One good news for the US jobs market, and one bad news. Everyone is now holding his or her breath into Friday’s jobs data, which will determine whether we will end this week with a sweet or a sour taste in our mouth," said Swissquote Bank's Ipek Ozkardeskaya.
Later on Thursday, there will also be the weekly jobless claims data for the US.
In early UK company news, Imperial Brands announced a new USD1.1 billion share buyback, and said it would deliver on annual guidance. Unite's CEO will step down at the end of the year, after heading up the firm since 2016. Diversified Energy Co said it was no longer pursuing its planned US listing, amid equity market conditions and an unexplained slump in its share price in recent days.
Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: called up 25.5 points, 0.3%, at 7,437.95
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Hang Seng: up 0.4% at 17,264.29
Nikkei 225: closed up 1.8% at 31,075.36
S&P/ASX 200: closed up 0.5% at 6,925.50
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DJIA: closed up 127.17 points, 0.4%, at 33,129.55
S&P 500: closed up 0.8% at 4,263.75
Nasdaq Composite: closed up 1.4% at 13,236.01
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EUR: up at USD1.0521 (USD1.0515)
GBP: up at USD1.2157 (USD1.2144)
USD: down at JPY148.52 (JPY148.83)
GOLD: up at USD1,827.30 per ounce (USD1,826.09)
OIL (Brent): down at USD86.22 a barrel (USD87.91)
(changes since previous London equities close)
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ECONOMICS
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Thursday's key economic events still to come:
China - National Day Golden Week continues: financial markets closed. Hong Kong open.
UK - BoE Deputy Governor Ben Broadbent speaks at ECB Monetary Policy Conference
11:00 CEST EU balance of payments
09:30 BST UK construction PMI
09:30 BST UK BoE decision maker panel data
07:30 EDT US Challenger job-cut report
08:00 CDT US Fed Cleveland President Loretta Mester speaks
08:30 EDT US international trade in goods and services
08:30 EDT US unemployment insurance weekly claims report
11:30 EDT US Fed Richmond President Thomas Barkin speaks
16:30 EDT US foreign central bank holdings
16:30 EDT US federal discount window borrowings
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The average advertised rent for a home across Britain, excluding London, reached a record high of GBP1,278 per month in the third quarter of this year, according to Rightmove. It marks the 15th consecutive quarter that average advertised rents have risen to a new record. In the third quarter of 2023, average advertised rents across Britain but outside London were 10% higher than this time last year. Within London, the average asking rent also reached a new record of GBP2,627 per month, which was 12% higher than a year earlier.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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Citigroup reinitiates Vodafone with 'neutral' - price target 77 pence
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JPMorgan places Reckitt Benckiser on 'positive catalyst watch'
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Imperial Brands said it was on track to deliver on annual guidance for the twelve months ended September 30, as it announced a further GBP1.1 billion in share buybacks. The tobacco company said the implementation of its five-year strategy was driving further improvements in operational and financial performance. It expects constant currency growth net revenue growth in tobacco and next-generation products in the low single digits, including Russia, and group adjusted operating profit to accelerate to the lower end of its mid-single digit range. It said strong tobacco pricing was driving the growth.
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Student accommodation company Unite said its chief executive Richard Smith will step down at the end of the year, having been in post since 2016, and with the company for 13 years. He will remain with the firm as an advisor until September 2024. Joe Lister will become CEO from January 1. Lister has been Unite's CFO for 15 years, and with the company for 22 years. "With Unite in such a strong position, both financially and operationally, I felt now was the right time to step down and focus on my personal goal of helping improve access to education for young people," Smith said. The firm also updated on its recent trading, noting "record" occupancy and strong rental growth for the 2023/2024 academic year. Rental growth was 7.3% for the year, compared to 3.5% the prior year. Its portfolio of beds was 99.7% let in the final stages of the letting cycle for the year, compared to 97.9% the prior year.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Diversified Energy Co noted a recent decline in its share price, and said it was "unaware of any operational or company specific reason" for this. The stock is down 18% over the past five days. The company said there has been no material change in its financial or operational condition since its updates on September 1 and 26. It also updated on its third-quarter production results, expecting them to be in a range of 805-830 million cubic feet equivalent per day. This was in line with expectations and reflects the sale of its non-operating assets in the prior quarter. "Additionally, given the current equity market dynamics, the company is no longer pursuing its previously communicated desire to list shares in the US. The company will continue to execute share repurchases under its previously announced share repurchase program," it said.
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OTHER COMPANIES
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UK communications regulator Ofcom said it was concerned about the market dominance of Amazon Web Services and Microsoft in UK cloud infrastructure services. It said its study uncovered features that would limit competition, and make it hard for UK businesses to switch and use multiple cloud suppliers. It has referred the public cloud infrastructure services market to the Competition & Markets Authority for further investigation. "Cloud computing has become critical for many businesses across the UK economy - including telecoms companies, broadcasters and public sector organisations - and has transformed the way they deliver services on which we all rely every day. It uses data centres around the world to provide UK businesses with remote access to services such as software, storage and networking," Ofcom explained.
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Motorpoint Group said it managed to narrow its underlying pretax loss to around GBP600,000 in the second quarter from GBP3.1 million in the first quarter, thanks to its measures to improve margins and its cost base actions. Before interest expenses, the automotive retailer made an underlying operating profit of around GBP1.6 million over the first half. "The impacts of high inflation, interest rates, and consumer uncertainty continue to affect demand for used cars...We have successfully preserved cash while making progress on selective strategic initiatives, and are well positioned to emerge from this difficult macroeconomic cycle a leaner and more agile business," said CEO Mark Carpenter.
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By Elizabeth Winter, Alliance News senior markets reporter
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