With the pound reversing some of its recent growth the FTSE was able to crawl out of the red on Wednesday.
The return of Brexit concerns to the forefront of investors’ minds – inspired by Michel Barnier warning that the UK and EU were unlikely to reach the October deadline set by the European Council – undermined sterling’s recent gains. Against the dollar, which still isn’t back to its best, the pound slipped 0.2%, sending cable to $1.288, while against the euro sterling fell as much as 0.4%, leaving it at its worst price in almost a fortnight.
This, alongside a return to growth from the majority of its oil and mining stocks – Antofagasta (LON:ANTO) was the only real notable exception – allowed the FTSE to join its eurozone peers on the green side of the board. The UK index rose 0.3%, and is once again teasing 7600, while the DAX nudged 0.1% higher and the CAC jumped 0.2%.
Looking to this afternoon and the Dow Jones is set to dip after the bell, investors cautious as the US and China trade talks get back underway. At points on Tuesday the Dow was knocking on the door of 25900, heights not seen since the start of February and only 800 points off of its all-time intraday peak. However, but the end of the session it was back at 25800, with Wednesday’s prospective fall set to push it under that level.
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