London pre-open: Stocks to rise as bond markets stabilise
London stocks were set to rise at the open on Monday as bond markets steady.
The FTSE 100 was called to open 43 points higher at 6,526.
CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson said: "Markets in Europe look set to start the week in a positive fashion despite the tumbles seen on Friday, which saw the FTSE 100 post its worst one day fall since October last year.
"The slightly more positive tone appears to be as a result of a pause in the move higher in yields, as bond markets stabilise after the choppiness seen at the end of last month, with markets in Asia enjoying a solid rebound after the big falls on Friday.
"Despite the big falls at the end of last week, we still managed to finish the month higher, albeit by a fairly small margin, as did other markets in Europe.
"US markets also finished the week on the back foot, but again still managed to post a monthly gain, which when you consider how far yields have risen over the same period, would suggest that investors aren’t panicking yet, despite the uncertainty about the effects."
On the data front, investors will eye mortgage approvals and Markit’s manufacturing PMI at 0930 GMT. Later in the week, attention will turn to Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s budget.
In corporate news, distribution group Bunzl reported a rise in annual profit and increased its dividend as deliveries of Covid safety equipment offset a fall in business from the food and retail sectors.
The company said pre-tax profits for the year to December 31 rose 22.6% to £555.7m and the total dividend was lifted 5.5% to 54.1p a share.
Aggreko announced a final dividend as the power generator supplier said its markets were recovering after reporting an annual loss. Pretax loss for the year to the end of December was £73m compared with a £199m profit a year earlier as revenue fell 15% to £1.37bn. Underlying pretax profit before exceptional items fell to £102m from £109n.
Aggreko proposed a final dividend of 10p a share taking the annual payout to 15p compared with 9.38p in 2019 when it paid an interim dividend only. The company said it had positive momentum so far in 2021 and its finances were strong.