UK stocks have edged lower this morning as the markets reacted to the Federal Reserve's hawkish tone at yesterday's meeting, with policymakers now targetting just one rate cut this year.
Making early movements was Halma, which led the charge, after it posted yet another record profit, leading to management hiking the annual dividend for the 45th year in a row.
BT also experienced a lift after it was revealed Latin America's richest man Carlos Slim had taken a 3% stake in the telecom giant.
Housebuilder Barratt and real estate firm Land Securities slipped in early movements after new industry data revealed the housing market's recovery "slipped into reverse" after the announcement of the election. New buyer demand and prices dropped in May, as the confidence in the UK housing market began to wane, according to the Royal Insititute of Chartered Surveyors.
Over in the US, attention is turning to the vote on Elon Musk's historic US$56 billion pay package, which he has taken to Twitter/X to claim he has won. Tesla investors are scheduled to vote against or for its boss's bonus, with top shareholders and proxy advisors having already come out against the package.