London midday: Stocks steady ahead of Powell speech
London stocks were steady by midday on Friday as investors eyed a speech by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell at the Jackson Hole symposium for clues on tapering.
The FTSE 100 was unchanged at 7,121.68, with little in the way of corporate news and no UK macro data to move markets as we head towards the Bank Holiday weekend.
Neil Wilson, chief market analyst at Markets.com, said: "It’s all about today’s Jackson Hole event - lots of talk but ultimately, it’s going to come down to whether Powell talks up the taper or talks it down.
"Yesterday among the various ‘sideline’ chats, Dallas Fed president Robert Kaplan didn’t say anything new - he expects to taper this year and hike next year but stressed the two decisions are entirely separate. James Bullard and Esther George also reiterated their view that the taper should start sooner rather than later. All three are on the hawkish end of the committee so this is not that big a deal or anything we didn’t know already. What matters ultimately is what Powell, Williams and Clarida think.
"Away from Jackson Hole we have some actual data that is important - the core PCE price index, which as well know is the Fed’s preferred measure of inflation. It’s expected to rise 0.3% month-on-month in July, easing from the +0.4% in June. Last month’s annual print showed inflation excluding energy and food rose at +3.5%, the fastest pace in 30 years. PCE including those more volatile elements rose 4%, the most since 2008."
Sentiment was also dented by bombings near Kabul airport on Thursday that left dozens of people dead.
On the corporate front, newsflow was unsurprisingly thin given the upcoming long weekend.
Miners were the best performers, with Anglo American, Glencore, Rio Tinto and BHP all higher.
Aerospace and defence engineer Babcock ticked higher after an upgrade to ‘overweight’ from ‘equalweight’ at Barclays, which also lifted its price target to 424p from 315p. The bank said that following the FY20 restatement, £2bn impairment, accounting policy changes and forthcoming disposal proceeds to mitigate balance sheet risk, Babcock looks set to generate meaningful cash flow from 2024, "returning as an attractive income play".
On the downside, Just Eat Takeaway shares slumped after the New York City Council approved legislation to cap commissions delivery apps can charge restaurants. The new bill, which was approved on Thursday, limits the amount that delivery apps such as Uber Eats, DoorDash and GrubHub - which is owned by Just Eat Takeaway - can charge to 15% of food orders. The new measure will also stop food delivery companies from charging more than 5% for marketing.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,121.68 -0.05%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 23,980.50 0.12%
techMARK (TASX) 4,831.05 -0.02%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Anglo American (AAL) 3,044.50p 1.69%
Fresnillo (FRES) 848.60p 1.46%
SEGRO (SGRO) 1,282.00p 1.30%
Glencore (GLEN) 329.30p 1.29%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,857.00p 1.14%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,440.00p 0.88%
Tesco (TSCO) 255.20p 0.87%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 5,362.00p 0.87%
BHP Group (BHP) 2,250.50p 0.83%
Polymetal International (POLY) 1,480.00p 0.78%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Just Eat Takeaway.Com N.V. (CDI) (JET) 6,617.00p -4.46%
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 312.90p -2.16%
ITV (ITV) 116.45p -1.61%
Prudential (PRU) 1,508.50p -1.50%
BT Group (BT.A) 167.00p -1.42%
Informa (INF) 527.80p -1.35%
Ocado Group (OCDO) 2,042.00p -1.21%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 43.72p -1.14%
Smith & Nephew (SN.) 1,397.50p -0.99%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 454.60p -0.98%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Trustpilot Group (TRST) 411.60p 4.20%
Wood Group (John) (WG.) 258.40p 2.87%
Network International Holdings (NETW) 389.20p 2.64%
Grafton Group Ut (CDI) (GFTU) 1,406.00p 2.63%
PureTech Health (PRTC) 335.50p 2.44%
Auction Technology Group (ATG) 1,586.00p 2.32%
Avon Protection (AVON) 1,881.00p 2.01%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 380.80p 1.87%
Bytes Technology Group (BYIT) 525.00p 1.84%
Kainos Group (KNOS) 1,968.00p 1.71%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Just Eat Takeaway.Com N.V. (CDI) (JET) 6,617.00p -4.46%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 4,878.00p -2.05%
Reach (RCH) 411.50p -2.02%
WH Smith (SMWH) 1,641.00p -2.00%
TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 314.60p -1.72%
Cineworld Group (CINE) 65.40p -1.71%
Shaftesbury (SHB) 630.50p -1.48%
Rank Group (RNK) 176.00p -1.46%
Hays (HAS) 161.20p -1.35%
easyJet (EZJ) 801.40p -1.28%