The FTSE 100 is seen 0.6% higher today after shedding 1.3% on Wednesday on disappointing US housing data.
Publisher Reed Elsevier (LON:REL) emerged atop the leaderboard with a 1.7% gain. Telecom company Cable & Wireless Worldwide (LON:CW) followed, advancing 1%. No other FTSE 100 constituent added 1% or more. Retailers Next (LON:NXT), Marks & Spencer (LON:MKS) and Tesco (LON:TSCO) and oil and gas producer BG Group (LON:BG) came close, tacking on nearly 1%.
Plumbing and heating equipment manufacturer Wolseley (LON:WOS) was at the bottom of the pile with a 5.2% loss. Bank Barclays (LON:BARC) and platinum miner Lonmin (LON:LMI) declined 3.2%, while commercial property company Segro (LON:SGRO) lost 3% and base metal miner Xstrata (LON:XTA), insurer Legal & General (LON:LGEN), engineering firm Invensys (LON:ISYS), private equity group 3i (LON:III) shed more than 2.5%.
US stocks closed flat after a volatile day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average got back to the opening level, while the broader S&P 500 index slid 0.3% after breaking even shortly before the close. The technology heavy NASDAQ composite also declined 0.3%. The US indexes are currently seen opening 0.2% higher.
Asian markets were mixed. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index were flat, China’s Shanghai Composite Index dropped 0.3%, South Korea’s KOSPI advanced 0.8% and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 slid 0.15%.
Commodities
Oil prices were slightly higher. August Brent Crude rose to US$76.35/barrel, while US light, sweet crude for July delivery climbed to US$76.40/barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX).
Precious metals were mixed. Gold and platinum declined to US$1,234/oz and US$1,559/oz, while silver advanced to US$18.57/oz.
Base metals were on the rise. Copper and nickel reached US$3/lb and US$8.80/lb, while zinc inched higher to US$0.82/lb.
US continuing and initial jobless claims are due to be released today.