- FTSE 100 sheds 90 points
- BoE holds interest at 4.75%
- Water firms to hike bills by 36%
15.58pm: FTSE 100 heads for hefty drop
London’s blue chips failed to reverse on a steep decline felt early on in the wake of the Federal Reserve’s commentary that rate cuts would be few and far between next year.
Come late trading, the FTSE 100 was down 90 points at 8,108, having followed Wall Street lower after the Fed on Wednesday flagged just two cuts in 2025, effectively halving expectations.
Back in London, the Bank of England’s decision on Thursday to hold its key interest rate at 4.75 did little to move the dial, despite the tightness of the call surprising analysts.
Analysts pointed to a dovish sentiment seemingly appearing within the Monetary Policy Committee, as three members voted for a cut, against the six that backed holding.
Stocks remained on the back foot, however, with just four blue chips in the green late on in the day.
Severn Trent PLC (LSE:SVT) and United Utilities Group PLC (LSE:UU.) were up 1.6% and 0.4% respectively after Ofwat confirmed they could hike prices from April in line with their requests to the regulator.
Imperial Brands PLC (LSE:IMB) and Reckitt Benckiser Group PLC (LSE:RKT, ETR:3RB) made up the other two gainers.
Mondi PLC (LSE:MNDI) lead the FTSE 100 lower in the meantime, down 3.5%, followed by the likes of Londonmetric Property PLC, Airtel Africa PLC (LSE:AAF) and Intermediate Capital Group (LSE:ICP) PLC.
15.35pm: Wind power continues record-breaking streak
Wind turbines across Britain collectively racked up a new record in terms of power generation on Wednesday for the second time in a matter of days.
Over 22.5 gigawatts of power was generated by the country’s on and offshore wind farms over the day, according to the National Energy System Operator.
This beat the previous record set last Sunday of 22.4 gigawatts, which saw turbines generate more than 22 gigawatts of power for the first time ever.
Wednesday’s record meant wind power provided 68.3% of Britain’s electricity.
“Setting another clean electricity generation record just four days after the previous high shows the pivotal role wind is playing in keeping the country powered,” RenewablesUK’s boss Dan McGrail commented.
However, it follows a new record for gas generation across the UK recorded last week as a lack of windy conditions exposed the intermittent nature of the country’s power grid.
Britain’s last remaining coal-fired power station, Ratcliffe-on-Soar, closed in September, leaving the likes of gas, nuclear and biomass as non-intermittent sources of power.
Gas prices had spiked above 107p a therm towards the end of last week as a result of the still weather, but dropped as low as 96.99p this week as wind returned to drive turbines.
Spot electricity prices also averaged £56.22 per megawatt hour over the course of the last day in line with higher wind generation, against around £294.30 a week ago.
15.01pm: US stocks enjoy better start
The Dow Jones Industrial Average got off to a good start on Thursday, adding 266 points in the opening 30 minutes to bring the Wall Street benchmark to 42,593.
Traders hoped to see the Dow close in the green following 10 straight days of losses - the worst run since the 1970s.
Key to Dow closing in the green today would be a recovery on UnitedHealth Group Inc (NYSE:UNH, ETR:UNH)’s price, although the group’s stock headed down by 1.5% in early trading.
Nvidia Corp, however, boosted the index with a 1.65% gain.
The Nasdaq 100 tech index added 100 points in the meantime, while the broader S&P 500 gained 38 points to 5,910.
14.52pm: Budget impact leaves BoE in limbo
Rising inflation in the wake of October’s Budget and a recent economic downturn has left uncertainty around interest rate cuts ahead.
Following the central bank’s decision to hold interest at 4.75%, governor Andrew Bailey signaled policy makers could not commit to reductions ahead.
“We need to make sure we meet the 2% inflation target on a sustained basis,” he said.
“We think a gradual approach to future interest rate cuts remains right, but with the heightened uncertainty in the economy we can’t commit to when or by how much we will cut rates in the coming year.”
A separate survey by the Bank of England showed business sentiment had been hit as firms braced for higher labour costs on the Budget’s hike to employer national insurance.
Early reactions to the Budget had flagged a greater risk of upward pressure to consumer prices because of this, it added.
Monetary Policy Committee members were split over Thursday’s rate call, with six voting to maintain interest, but three backing a cut after the UK economy contracted in October.
Berenberg analysts pointed to the “risky” nature over the prospect of a dovish tone being taken by the bank ahead though.
“Any positive impulse to demand would allow firms to pass on more of the large increase in labour costs they face to customers by raising prices, keeping inflation higher for longer,” analysts noted.
Demand trends and promised government spending appeared on course to push quarterly growth rates higher into next year, Berenberg added.
13.55pm: US jobless claims drop faster than expected
Those filing initial claims for unemployment benefits across the US fell by more than expected last week, figures showed on Thursday.
Some 220,000 new jobless claims were recorded over the course of last week, according to the Labor Department.
Analysts had expected a reading of 230,000, with the figure marking a 22,000 drop from the 242,000 initial claims seen a week earlier.
13.48pm: FTSE 100 remains on bleak footing as BoE rate calls does little to shift
London’s blue chips to cough up any real bounceback after the Bank of England’s decision to hold interest at 4.75% on Thursday.
Come the afternoon, the FTSE 100 was off the day’s lows but still down 77 points at 8,121.
The drop had followed a slump across Wall Street on Wednesday in the wake of the Federal Reserve’s 25 basis point rate cut, but de facto warning of slower reductions ahead.
Intermediate Capital Group (LSE:ICP) PLC led the day’s fallers with a 3.8% drop, followed by Mondi PLC (LSE:MNDI) and Barclays PLC (LSE:BARC), which is partially reliant on US-based operations.
Antofagasta PLC (LSE:ANTO) was also among the losers, down almost 3.0% in line with a 1.7% drop in copper futures.
Other fallers included Pershing Square Holdings (LSE:PSH) PLC, Informa PLC (LSE:INF), DS Smith PLC (LSE:SMDS), easyJet PLC and Experian PLC (LSE:EXPN).
13.25pm: Pound gives up gains after BoE holds interest
Sterling lost some ground to the dollar in the wake of the Bank of England’s decision to hold interest at 4.75%.
The pound was up 0.33% against the greenback at US$1.2616 come Thursday afternoon, having sat 0.71% higher earlier on after rebounding from a slump on Wednesday.
“The door is still open to cuts” ahead, Hargreaves Lansdown analyst Susannah Streeter noted, given the Bank of England’s decision was not unanimous.
“However, they are expected to be fewer and far between next year, with the markets pricing in just two interest rate cuts.
“The Bank of England is ringing in the same discordant notes of caution as the Federal Reserve.”
13.05pm: Uncertainty hangs over tight BoE decision to hold interest rate
Uncertainty appeared to be the overarching theme among the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) as it opted to hold its key lending rate at 4.75% on Thursday.
Both higher-than-expected inflation recently and weaker economic growth were cited in the update, which pointed to a continued “gradual approach” in cutting interest ahead.
Though six members of the committee had backed holding the rate, analysts pointed to the other three that favoured another immediate cut.
This “slightly surprised markets,” ING Economics said, leaving expectations swaying towards a cut in February’s meeting.
“The apparent growing dovish front within the MPC in spite of the latest hawkish wage data potentially suggests a greater focus on slowing activity,” ING added.
Deutsche Bank highlighted expectations for a cut in February, before three-quarter point reductions in the second half of next year.
“Today’s decision was anything but a dull affair,” Deutsche chief UK economist Sanjay Raja said.
“Put simply, the MPC is neither committing to a particular quantum of rate cuts, or delivering said cuts within a specific time frame.”
12.45pm: US stocks set to regain after Fed-fuelled slump
US indexes are expected to make gains across the board on Thursday, following a Wednesday slump in response to hawkish commentary from the Federal Reserve over rate cuts ahead.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average will have another go at overcoming its Nvidia Corp problem.
Chipmaking monolith Nvidia joined the 30-strong Wall Street index in early November in place of troubled competitor Intel Corp.
In a case of bad timing, Nvidia’s recent slump has caused the DJIA to fall for 10 trading sessions straight. But pre-market trades suggest a 200-point bounce when trading commences, bolstered by an expected 1.8% gain on Nvidia shares.
The Nasdaq 100 is tipped to open around 100 points, or approximately half a percentage point, higher.
The broader S&P 500 index is also set to open half a percentage point higher.
12.38pm: BoE flags caution over Donald Trump trade war
Minutes from the Bank of England’s December meeting show fears around a potential trade war sparked by Donald Trump’s second term in the White House.
Monetary Policy Committee members cited potential knock-on effects from tariffs were Trump to stick to his campaign promises of introducing sweeping taxes on US imports.
“Increase tariffs [...] could influence future global trade if applied and, as a result, have some direct and indirect impacts on the UK economy,” the committee said, according to the minutes.
“The magnitude and direction of any such impacts would depend on a range of factors that were at present unknown, including the total package of economic policies to be delivered in the United States, their timing and any subsequent policy responses from other countries.”
12.28am: Government borrowing costs barely budge after interest rate held
Government borrowing costs edged ever so slightly lower in the wake of news the Bank of England had opted to hold its key interest rate at 4.75%.
Yields on 10-year UK gilts moved from 4.64% to 4.63% in the aftermath of the announcement, but failed to move significantly after having surged beforehand.
A selloff prior to the decision had pushed gilt yields up from 4.56% earlier in the day, as fears of stagflation, meaning surging interest but low economic growth, built.
The bank's update had highlighted faster than expected price rises recently, but also weaker economic growth than initially anticipated.
12.18pm: Weaker economic growth expected - BoE
Monetary Policy Committee members now anticipate weaker economic growth than previously expected, the Bank of England’s statement said.
“Bank staff expect gross domestic product (GDP) growth to have been weaker at the end of the year than projected in the November Monetary Policy Report,” it noted.
It added that members saw the labour market “broadly in balance”, but that “significant uncertainty” remained.
The impact of October’s Autumn Budget was also being monitored, alongside effects of “geopolitical tensions and trade policy uncertainty”.
“These developments have generated additional uncertainties around the economic outlook,” the bank said.
12.09pm: FTSE 100 off lows as interest held
London’s blue chips regained slightly in the immediate aftermath of the Bank of England’s decision to hold interest rates at 4.75%.
The FTSE 100 was still down 90 points at 8,108, but was up against a drop in excess of 110 points seen earlier in the day.
12.05pm: Bank of England holds interest rate at 4.75%
The Bank of England has opted to maintain its key interest rate at 4.75% in December’s meeting.
Monetary Policy Committee members voted six to three in favour of holding the bank rate, the central bank said on Thursday.
Higher than expected inflation of 2.6% in the year to November was cited by the bank, which also acknowledged indicators pointing to a near-term UK economic decline.
“A gradual approach to removing monetary policy restraint remains appropriate,” a statement said.
“Monetary policy will need to continue to remain restrictive for sufficiently long until the risks to inflation returning sustainably to the 2% target in the medium term have dissipated further.”
11.45am: Bank of England outlook key in rate call - analyst
Any hint of an outlook for the path of interest rates ahead will be key in the Bank of England’s update on Thursday, AJ Bell’s Russ Mould has said.
Markets are anticipating the Monetary Policy Committee will hold the bank rate at 4.75% on Thursday, after having cut interest twice since August.
“The Bank of England seems to be one step ahead of the Fed for once,” Mould said ahead of the decision.
“Like the Fed’s latest announcement, of more importance is any commentary from the Bank of England on where it sees rates going next year.”
The Federal Reserve had sparked a sharp drop in equities, both on Wall Street and this side of the Atlantic, by slashing hopes over the pace of rate cuts over the year ahead.
“The Fed’s shifting narrative matters to more than just people in the US as its actions tend to influence investor sentiment globally,” Mould continued.
“If the Fed is now playing the ‘rates higher for longer’ game, it suggests to investors in the UK that the Bank of England will do the same.”
11.21am: FTSE 100 stuck in slump before rate call
London’s blue chips failed to rebound from a hefty drop on Thursday morning after following Wall Street lower on the Federal Reserve’s latest update.
The FTSE 100 remained 110 points down at 8,088 on Thursday morning, having tumbled after Wednesday saw the Fed cut interest but effectively half hopes for reductions in 2025.
Intermediate Capital Group (LSE:ICP) led the drop, down 4.3%, followed by Pershing Square Holdings (LSE:PSH) and Experian PLC (LSE:EXPN), which fell by 3.8% and 3.6% respectively.
Barclays PLC (LSE:BARC) also dropped by 3.5%, ahead of Informa PLC (LSE:INF), Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust PLC (LSE:SMT) and Intercontinental Hotels Group PLC (LSE:IHG).
Just four blue chips racked up gains in the meantime, including Severn Trent PLC (LSE:SVT) and United Utilities Group PLC (LSE:UU.) on news they would be allowed to hike prices from April.
Imperial Brands PLC (LSE:IMB) and BT Group PLC (LSE:BT.A) were the other two companies in the green.
11.00am: Bank of England set to maintain interest rate
The Bank of England meets on Thursday, with markets widely expecting policy makers to hold its key interest rate at 4.75%.
Monetary Policy Committee members reduced the bank rate by 25 basis points in November, marking a second cut after August saw interest drop from a peak of 5.25%.
Though data has painted a picture of stagnating economic growth recently, the central bank is expected to be bound by figures pointing to sticky inflation and wage growth.
Wages, including bonuses, had grown by 5.2% over the year to November, Office for National Statistics figures showed on Wednesday.
Inflation ticked up by 2.6% in the meantime, against 2.3% over the year to October, with the core rate, which excludes energy and food prices, at 3.5%.
Moderating wage growth and stabilising inflation ahead was set to pave the way for further cuts to interest in 2025 though, according to the National Institute of Economic and Social Research.
10.39am: Factory output slumps at fastest pace since pandemic
Output across Britain’s manufacturing sector declined at the fastest pace since mid-2020 over the three months to December, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has said.
Its latest Industrial Trends Survey showed output volumes down by a weighted balance of minus 25%, against minus 12% in the quarter to November.
Output was lower across 15 of the 17 sub-sectors across the industry, the CBI noted, with order books dropping “markedly” against November, from -19% to -40%.
“Manufacturers are facing a perfect storm of weakening external demand on the one hand, amid political instability in some key European markets and uncertainty over US trade policy,” CBI economist Ben Jones commented.
“And on the other hand, domestic business confidence has collapsed in the wake of the Budget, which has increased costs and led to widespread reports of project cancellations and falling orders.”
Output was also expected to face another “steep” drop over the coming three months, the CBI added.
10.02am: Pound regains against dollar before BoE rate call
Sterling racked up a gain against the dollar as markets mulled the Federal Reserve’s Wednesday update before the Bank of England’s meeting on Thursday.
The pound was up 0.71% versus the greenback at US$1.2664 on Thursday morning.
It had slumped against the dollar on Wednesday after the Fed pointed to a slower path for rate cuts in 2025.
Though policymakers had opted to cut interest by 25 basis points, expectations were laid out for around two further reductions in 2025, essentially halving previous anticipations.
Attention on Thursday turned to the Bank of England’s latest rate call, which is widely expected to see the bank rate maintained at 4.75%.
“The central bank has been between a rock and a hard place for some time now, given stubborn inflationary pressures and growth which has been lukewarm to non-existent over recent times,” interactive investor analyst Richard Hunter commented.
“Despite any need for stimulus to the economy, inflationary pressures - such as strong wage growth which is likely to be exacerbated by the measures announced in the Budget - are likely to win the day, leading to a widely expected no-change decision as the bank errs on the side of caution for the time being.”
9.44am: MPs to probe water sector as bills hiked
Ministers on Thursday unveiled a new inquiry to the water sector, coinciding with news from Ofwat that firms would be allowed to up bills by 36% over the next five years.
The Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the probe would “scrutinise the breadth of issues confronting the water sector”.
Water companies have faced strong criticism over “their environmental, financial and customer satisfaction performance,” it said, alongside dividends and bonuses for bosses.
The long-term review would cover the sector’s financial stability, support for customers and the likes of sewage spills, emergency measures and outages, the committee added.
“Over the past few years we have seen a strong backlash to water companies’ failings,” chair Alistair Carmichael commented.
“Companies have breached environmental rules over sewage discharges while paying out huge dividends to shareholders, and big bonuses to executives, even as they have taken on ever more debt.
“In this inquiry our committee will investigate the deep-rooted problems underlying the industry.
“We need a water system that is fit for the future. The government and the regulator Ofwat urgently need to restore public confidence in the sector.”
9.31am: Retail sentiment looking better for Christmas season - Deutsche
Deutsche Bank analysts have pointed to improving sentiment across Britain's retail sector in the run-up to the all-important Christmas shopping period.
Commentary from companies had been hampered in October as consumer confidence dropped and the Budget saw employer national insurance hiked, Deutsche said.
“We believe it picked up in November and has likely seen a further improvement in December,” analysts added, however.
“There are some consumer themes that appear to be coming through over the period.”
Consumers looked to be buying into events to a greater extent, Detusche highlighted, while there appeared more willingness from consumers to pay premium prices.
Retailers were also “maintaining discipline” on markdowns as online channels appeared to increasingly come into favour.
9.05am: Serco surges as trading improves through second half
Serco Group PLC (LSE:SRP) marked a bright spot in London on Thursday as it gained over 6% after unveiling stronger trading momentum for the second half.
Full-year revenue will amount to £4.8 billion, the outsourcing firm said on Thursday, marking a 3% decline for the year.
Underlying operating profit will be up 9% year-on-year to £270 million, supported by a 50-basis-point increase in margins to 5.60%, it added... Read more
Shares jumped 6.1% to 147.10p on Thursday.
8.58am: Sea of red for London stocks
Stocks across the board in London followed Wall Street in taking a beating in the wake of Wednesday’s update from the Federal Reserve.
Interest was indeed cut by 25 basis points, though slashed projections for reductions ahead sent US stocks tumbling.
London markets followed suit in dropping on Thursday morning in response to the announcement.
The FTSE 100 was down almost a full per cent, while the FTSE 250 and FTSE 250 shed 1.2% and 1.0% respectively.
London’s junior market also headed lower, with the AIM 100 off 0.9% and the AIM All-Share index down 0.8%.
“Aside from the decision itself, just about every other aspect leant in a more hawkish direction than expected,” Deutsche Bank analysts noted.
“Our US economists see yesterday’s meeting as reinforcing their baseline view that a skip at the January meeting will likely turn into an extended pause in 2025.”
Severn Trent PLC (LSE:SVT) and United Utilities Group PLC (LSE:UU.) remained among just six risers on the FTSE 100 on Thursday.
Both had largely been granted price hikes for the coming five years in line with requests to Ofwat... Read more
8.45am: BA cuts further flights on Rolls-Royce delays
Delays at Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC (LSE:RR.) have seen British Airways cut flights from Heathrow to Abu Dhabi.
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (LSE:IAG)-owned BA announced the route from Britain’s busiest airport would be suspended from March to October next year.
Other flights had previously been axed as a result of the delays, which center around Rolls-Royce’s Trent 1000 engine for BA’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft.
“We’re disappointed that we’ve had to make further changes to our schedule as we continue to experience delays to the delivery of engines and parts from Rolls-Royce,” a BA spokesperson said.
“We’ve taken this action because we do not believe the issue will be solved quickly, and we want to offer our customers the certainty they deserve for their travel plans”... Read more
Rolls-Royce shares dropped 1.7% on Thursday, while IAG slipped 0.9%.
8.31am: FTSE 100 drop follows Wall Street hammering
The FTSE 100’s drop on Thursday followed a hammering of US stocks in the wake of Wednesday’s Federal Reserve interest rate cut.
Though policymakers cut interest by 25 basis points, commentary hinting towards fewer reductions due to stubborn inflation next year hampered sentiment.
The Dow Jones shed 2.3%, or 1,123 points, as a result, taking the 40-company strong index to a tenth consecutive daily drop.
The Nasdaq dropped 3.6% in the meantime, as the S&P 500 tumbled by just under 3.0%.
“The verdict was clear: the Fed must slow down,” Swissquote Bank analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya commented in the wake of the decision.
Just two cuts in 2025 had been hinted at by the Fed, Ozkardeskaya pointed out, effectively halving expectations for reductions ahead.
“Investors were blindsided,” interactive investor Richard Hunter added, “the projections completely wrongfooted the market”.
Back in London, the FTSE 100 was down 87 points at 8,111 on Thursday.
8.19am: Full list of confirmed water bill hikes
8.13am: FTSE 100 sinks early on
London’s blue chips tumbled as trading got underway on Thursday, dropping 99 points to 8,099.
Severn Trent PLC (LSE:SVT) and United Utilities Group PLC (LSE:UU.) were among the early risers, having been granted bill increases largely in line with what they requested for the coming years.
Each will be allowed to hike consumer bills by 47% and 32% respectively over the coming five years, Ofwat’s final determination showed on Thursday.
Elsewhere, Scottish Mortgage Investment Trust headed the early fallers, down 3.2%, followed by the likes of Barclays PLC (LSE:BARC) and DS Smith PLC (LSE:SMDS).
8.04am: FCA extends motor finance complaint response deadline
Britain’s Financial Conduct Authority has increased the time companies have to address complaints over historic motor finance deals which did not involve non-discretionary commission payments.
Firmed had until 4 December 2025 to respond to such complaints, which the FCA noted was in line with a deadline for those involving non-discretionary commission agreements.
An October ruling saw the Court of Appeal decide such hidden payments between lenders and car finance sellers were illegal.
This had opened the door for motor finance firms to be ordered to pay billions extra in compensation, with an FCA investigation having solely focussed on non-discretionary arrangements.
“Firms who provide motor finance are likely to receive a high volume of complaints in response to the judgment,” the financial watchdog said in a statement.
Britain’s Supreme Court has since agreed to hear appeals against the October ruling, put forward by the likes of Close Brothers Group PLC (LSE:CBG), but having a knock on effect for lenders such as Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LSE:LLOY).
“We have extended the time firms have to handle complaints to help prevent disorderly, inconsistent and inefficient outcomes for consumers and firms,” the FCA added.
7.41am: Thames Water bills to go up by 35%
Thames Water customers will face a 35% increase in bills over the next five years, Ofwat’s final determination showed on Thursday.
The crisis-struck water supplier had lobbied Ofwat for a 53% increase in bills as it looked to stave off renationalisation due to hefty debt levels.
Ofwat’s confirmed increase will see bills average £588 annually, against £436 previously.
Among listed companies, Severn Trent PLC (LSE:SVT) was granted a 47% increase to £583 annually, against the 46% rise it had asked for.
Pennon Group PLC (LSE:PNN, OTC:PEGRY)’s South West water will be allowed to hike bills by 23% to £610, in line with the rise requested by the supplier.
United Utilities Group PLC (LSE:UU.) was also granted the 32% rise it had asked for, which will take bills for the firm’s customers to £588.
7.22am: Water bills to be hiked by 36% a year
Regulator Ofwat has announced that water bills will rise by an average of 36% annually over the coming five years.
In its final determination for the sector, the regulator confirmed on Thursday that prices would be hiked by the equivalent of £31 a year.
Water firms had lobbied for an average 40% increase to bills, with the increase above the 21% average hike initially proposed by Ofwat earlier this year.
“We recognise it is a difficult time for many, and we are acutely aware of the impact that bill increases will have for some customers,” Ofwat chief executive David Black said.
“That is why it is vital that companies are stepping up their support for customers who struggle to pay.”
“We have robustly examined all funding requests to make sure they provide value for money and deliver real improvements while ensuring the sector can attract the levels of investment it needs to meet environmental requirements.”
7.09am: Stocks set to drop
Futures had the FTSE 100 falling by eight points to 8,414 ahead of Thursday’s trading, following a slight three-point gain seen throughout Wednesday.
Overnight, Asian markets largely fell, with China’s Shenzhen down almost 2% and leading the drop, after steep declines on Wall Street in the wake of the Fed’s latest move on interest rates.
Though policymakers had opted to cut interest by a further 25 basis points, markets were spooked by commentary around a slower pace of reductions over the coming months.
Back in London, attention early on was set to be on Ofwat and its price control decision for the water sector for the coming five years.
5.00am: Thursday's schedule
Serco is among those set to update on Thursday before the Bank of England's latest decision on interest rates, while water firms will be braced for a key update from Ofwat.
Water companies will be in focus as Ofwat reveals price controls for the coming years... Read more
Serco will still be reeling from its recent contract loss and October's Budget hit... Read more
Announcements due:
Finals: Serco Group PLC (LSE:SRP)
Trading update: Time Finance PLC
Interims: FIH Group Plc
US earnings: Accenture PLC, FedEx Corporation, Nike Inc
Economic news: BoE Interest Rate Decision (UK), GDP (US), Current Account (EU), Continuing Claims (US), Initial Jobless Claims (US), Personal Consumption Expenditures (US), Existing Home Sales (US)