London pre-open: Stocks seen up ahead of BoE rate announcement

London stocks were set to edge up at the open on Thursday as investors eyed the latest policy announcement from the Bank of England.

The FTSE 100 was called to open 20 points higher at 7,560.

The Bank of England rate announcement is due at midday amid expectations that monetary policy will be kept on hold.

CMC Markets analyst David Madden said: "At the previous interest rate meeting, two members voted to cut rates, and economists are predicting that two policymakers will vote for rate cuts again. Earlier this week the flash manufacturing and services PMI reports came in at 47.4 and 49 respectively, so it is clear the sectors are struggling.

"On the other side of the coin, the jobless rate is on par with the 1975 level, and average earnings are 2% above CPI, so workers are getting a decent increase in real wages. The BoE are unlikely to move rates until the Brexit saga ends and given the recent chatter about a no-deal scenario after the transition period, the central bank is likely hold steady for the foreseeable future."

Investors will also be digesting news that the House of Representatives voted to impeach US President Donald Trump.

"The process will now pass to the Senate, and 67 of the 100 lawmakers in that chamber will need to vote in favour of impeachment in order to remove him from office,” said Madden. Given that Republicans hold the majority in the Senate, he is unlikely to be removed from the job."

In corporate news, Royal Bank of Scotland has parted company with the bosses of its investment bank as chief executive Alison Rose seeks to shake up the underperforming business. Chris Marks has stepped down as chief executive and chair of NatWest Markets and Richard Place has quit as the division's finance director.

Real estate investment trust GCP Student said it planned to raise £75m through a share placing in response to demand from various pension funds managed by APG Asset Management.

The shares will be placed at 186p each, which represents a premium of 10.4% to the company's prevailing EPRA net asset value of 168.55p and a discount of 6.3% to the closing price on December 18 of 198.40p, GCP said.

PayPoint is looking for a new chief executive after Patrick Headon stepped down from the in-store payments company with immediate effect. Chairman Nick Wiles will work in an executive role until a new boss is found.

Crest Nicholson has appointed Tom Nicholson as chief operating officer with effect from 1 January.

The housebuilder said Nicholson has had an extensive career in the industry including roles with Trafalgar House Group, Berkeley Group and Try Homes. After joining Try Homes, he spent 23 years at what became Linden Homes, part of the Galliford Try Group.