The FTSE 100 is seen sharply lower today with financial bookmakers projecting it to shed 64 points or 1.2% after another freefall in US markets. Investors are still concerned with Europe’s debt woes, which have heavily contributed to the decline in global equity markets over the past weeks.
The UK’s blue chip index plummeted 3.1% on Friday with base metal miners leading the retreat. Xstrata (LSE: XTA) declined 8%, Eurasian Natural Resources (LSE: ENRC) lost 7%, as did Kazakhmys (LSE: KAZ), while Vedanta (LSE: VED) and platinum miner Lonmin (LSE: LMI) dropped 6.6% and 6.2% respectively. Banking group Barclays (LSE: BARC) was down 6.1%, while Antofagasta (LSE: ANTO), Rio Tinto (LSE: RIO) and Anglo American (LSE: AAL) all lost around 5.5%.
Plumbing and heating equipment manufacturer Wolseley (LSE: WOS) went against the tide, rallying 5%.
In the US, the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 1.5%, the broader S&P 500 index lost 1.9% and the technology heavy NASDAQ composite retreated 2%.
Asian markets were in decline today. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 2.5%, China’s Shanghai Composite Index plummeted 4.3%, South Korea’s KOSPI was 2.6% lower and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 index lost 3.1%, while Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 declined 2.2%.
Commodities
Oil prices were lower. July Brent Crude moved down to US$76.63/barrel, while US light, sweet crude for July delivery slid to US$73.88/barrel.
Precious metals improved with gold reaching US$1,237/oz, while silver and platinum advanced to US$19.22/oz and US$1,705/oz respectively.
Base metals followed the trend. Copper and nickel moved down to US$3.02/lb and US$9.32/lb, while zinc declined to US$0.87/lb.
Today’s economic data will include the Empire State index in the US.