The FTSE 100 is expected to add 41 points (0.7 percent) after tacking on 11 points (0.2 percent) to end the session at 5,880. The US Labor Department said yesterday that initial jobless claims rose 10,000 to 424,000 last week. The US government left its Q1 GDP growth estimate unchanged at 1.8 percent.
Engineering company Weir Group (LON:WEIR) led the blue chips, climbing 5.3 percent. Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) followed with a 3.5 percent gain. Fellow mining majors Lonmin (LON:LMI), Fresnillo (LON:FRES) and Anglo American (LON:AAL) added over 2 percent. Hedge fund manager Man Group (LON:EMG) advanced 2.5 percent. Property company Land Securities (LON:LAND) tacked on 2.1 percent.
Fashion house Burberry (LON:BRBY) was the heaviest faller, sliding 4.5 percent. Cruise operator Carnival Corp (LON:CCL) declined 2.5 percent. Hotel and restaurant group Whitbread (LON:WTB) lost nearly 2 percent. Pharmaceutical major Shire (LON:SHP) and credit information group Experian (LON:EXPN) were down 1.3 percent.
In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) rose marginally to 12,402, the S&P 500 index rose 5 points (0.4 percent) to 1,325 and the technology heavy NASDAQ composite surged 21.5 points (0.8 percent) to close at 2,782.
Microsoft (NYSE:MSFT) was the top performer among the DJIA components, rising 2 percent. Hewlett Packard (NYSE:HPQ) added 1.5 percent. General Electric (NYSE:GE) and Caterpillar (NYSE:CAT) tacked on 1 percent.
Home Depot (NYSE:HD) and Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) shed 1.2 percent.
In Asia, Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index fell 27 points (0.3 percent) to 9,534 and China’s Shanghai Composite Index declined 14 points (0.5 percent) to 2,722.
Commodities
US light, sweet crude for July delivery climbed to US$100.71/barrel. July Brent crude last traded at US$115.20/barrel.
Precious metals rose. Gold reached US$1,524/oz, while silver and platinum advanced to US$37.74/oz and US$1,781/oz respectively.
Base metals followed with copper and nickel climbing to US$4.12/lb and US$10.46/lb respectively. Zinc stood at US$1.014/lb.
Today’s macroeconomic data will include US personal income and spending data, pending home sales and the University of Michigan consumer confidence index.