A muddled morning may gain a bit more focus this afternoon, as the US releases a couple of key bits of data.
After initially treading water the FTSE managed to push higher as Thursday went on, supported by BP (LON:BP) and Shell’s Brent Crude-led gains, and the pound’s retreat against the dollar following last night’s Fed rate hike. The UK index rose 0.2% to hit 7525, a fresh near one-month peak, while cable shed 0.4%, dropping back under $1.313 having briefly crossed $1.32 on Wednesday.
Over in the eurozone, the DAX and CAC managed to significantly reduce their losses as lunchtime approached. The German index, which at one point had fallen as much as 1%, is now down just 0.2%, while the CAC is back at 0.1% after trimming its decline to only a handful of points. That the euro, like the pound, has slipped 0.4% against the dollar helped, with the single currency suffering from some post-Fed, pre-Italian budget blues.
Turning to the US open and the Dow Jones is looking at a 0.1% increase after the bell, one that would just about allow it to stick its head back above 26400 having lost another 100 or so points on Wednesday. In terms of the afternoon’s data, the final Q2 GDP reading is set to remain at 4.2% at the annualised rate, while the core durable goods orders figure is expected to jump from 0.1% to 0.4%, something that may only boost the greenback.
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