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Australia, Aug 12 (Reuters) - The price of iron ore has dropped for a sixth consecutive week as China's steel sector continues to struggle and port inventories of the raw material stop rising.

Singapore Exchange futures ended at $101.49 a metric ton on Aug. 9, up a touch from the four-month closing low of $100.14 the previous day.

The benchmark contract has declined every week since July 5 and is down 29% from its peak so far in 2024 of $143.60 a ton, reached in the first week of the year.

https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/iron-ore-outlook-dims-china-inventories-steel-output-fade-russell-2024-08-12/

London stocks are on track to open around 50 points lower this morning, shedding a slight bit of weight from yesterday's gains and keeping the FTSE 100 below the point it started the week at

Https://www.planetf1.com/news/aston-martin-max-verstappen-lawrence-stroll-negotiations-speculation

The FTSE 100 is on track to open nearly 110 points higher at around 8,114 as London's blue-chip index looks to stage another session of recovery following Monday's heavy sell-off

London stocks are set to start the week close to 110 points higher, as the FTSE 100 looks to stage a recovery after one of its worst sessions this year on Monday

Aug 6 (Reuters) - Japanese stocks jumped at the open on Tuesday, underpinning a recovery across battered Asian share markets, after central bank officials said all the right things to soothe investor nerves.

The Nikkei (.N225), opens new tab soared more than 10% to above 34,500, rebounding sharply from its 31,458 close on Monday. The index had plummeted 12.4% in the previous session in its worst sell-off since the 1987 Black Monday crash.

Solid services sector ‘bodes well’ for UK economy

https://www.cityam.com/solid-services-sector-bodes-well-for-uk-economy-despite-stubborn-price-pressures/

""When was the last time a central bank warned everyone a recession was on the way?""

For a recession you need negative growth for two quarters GDP, come on stop posting misleading information

The FTSE 100 is set to start the week at its lowest point since the end of April, with the index on track to open around 140 points

""Imagine how much more difficult that will be with higher car prices in a recession/cost of living crisis""

BoE sharply raised its forecast for Britain's economic growth in 2024 to 1.25% from a previous 0.5%, potentially putting it ahead of France and Italy, as well as Germany - that improvement reflected the stronger start to this year rather than a rethink about the outlook

Chinese carmaker Geely has injected £120m into LEVC, the British producer of London’s famous black cabs, as it continues to expand in the UK’s electric vehicle (EV) market.

According to Companies House filings, Geely pumped £70m into its Coventry-based subsidiary last October, and a further £50m in May

City trader loses his 2 million bet

A money markets trader has placed a £2m bet on the Bank of England making the biggest interest rate cut in four years next month after inflation fell back to its 2pc target.

The trader would stand to net an £8m profit should policymakers reduce borrowing costs by half a percentage point from 5.25pc to 4.75pc in August, according to Bloomberg News.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trader-bets-2m-biggest-interest-170540640.html

The Bank of England voted to cut interest rates for the first time since March 2020 in a knife-edge decision.

Five members of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), including Governor Andrew Bailey, voted to reduce the Bank Rate by 25 basis points while four, including chief economist Huw Pill, backed another hold.

The decision means interest rates now stand at 5.0 per cent, having stood at 5.25 per cent since last August. That was the joint longest period that rates have been left on hold since the Bank gained independence in 1997

https://www.cityam.com/bank-of-england-cuts-interest-rates-for-first-time-since-march-2020/

The FTSE 100 is predicted to keep up the good work on Thursday, as we start the new month of August, ahead of the Bank of England's policy decision later and after the US Federal Reserve left rates changed overnight.

London's blue-chip benchmark has been tipped on futures markets to extend its gains by 33 points

Hann-Ju Ho, Senior Economist

Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking said: “This month shows that businesses are feeling more confident, buoyed by their positive trading prospects and economic outlook. Retail-focused businesses were the main driving force behind the positive rise in trading prospects and these results tally with the improvement we have seen in consumer confidence.

“With the data suggesting that businesses may have taken a more cautious approach in June, next month will be one to watch to see if the renewed sense of optimism continues.”

Lloyds Bank’s latest Business Barometer found that overall business confidence rose significantly in July to equal the highest level in confidence shown by businesses for eight years. Business confidence increased by 9 points to 50% this month, reversing the drop in June and equalling the eight-year high seen in May.

Underpinning July’s strong result was an improved outlook for trading prospects and economic optimism. 62% of businesses reported stronger activity - up from 53% in June - while 6% predicted weaker trading prospects - down from 9%. The resulting net balance increased 12 points to 56%, which, for the trading prospects data specifically, is a level last exceeded in April 2017 (a seven-year high).

https://www.lloydsbankinggroup.com/media/press-releases/2024/lloyds-bank-2024/business-confidence-rebounds-sharply-in-july.html

Japan's central bank has raised its benchmark interest rate to "around 0.25%" from it previous range of 0% to 0.1%.

This would mark the highest interest rates since October 2008, when it was set at 0.3%.

Lawrence Stroll is quoted:

“As we commence an exciting second half of 2024, Aston Martin is at a pivotal moment in its journey, with our immense product transformation supporting volume growth and sustainable positive free cash flow generation later this year, of which we have full confidence in achieving.

And CFO Doug Lafferty is quoted as stating on the Earnings Call:

“2024 is already proving to be another significant year of achievement for Aston Martin”

The FTSE 100 is expected to hit the ground running on Monday ahead of a blockbuster week for global markets.

Futures for the London benchmark are pointing to a gain of 38 points

Https://www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/1052566/aston-martin-shares-rev-up-as-confidence-grows-in-second-half-production-ramp-1052566.html