Despite Brent Crude hitting a 2-year high, the FTSE felt back on Thursday, retreating from Wednesday’s 2-and-a-half-week high close.
Shedding more than half a percent, the UK index dropped back below 7,060 after the bell, suffering from a spate of losses in its mining and banking divisions, and more pronounced falls for BT Group (LON:BT) and Kingfisher (LON:KGF).
Things were far calmer in the Eurozone, where both the DAX and CAC started the session essentially unchanged at 15,585 and 6,500 respectively.
As for the Dow Jones, it is heading for a 0.2%, or 65-point, drop after the bell, one that would knock it back below 34,550.
There’s a flurry of interesting US data to come out this afternoon, especially related to the labour market.
The ADP nonfarm employment change number is forecast to fall from 742,000 to 645,000 month-on-month, ahead of expectations of a rise from 266,000 to 645,000 for the official number tomorrow.
The usual Thursday jobless claims reading, meanwhile, is set to drop from 406,000 to 400,000. If accurate, that would be the lowest figure since the pandemic began.
Elsewhere, the final Markit services PMI from the States is expected to hold at 70.1, while the ISM reading is set to nudge higher, from 62.7 to a 63.0.
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