Proactive Investors - The FTSE 100 is set to open lower, following weak Asian markets, as Fitch stripped the US of its triple A credit rating, while it’s another bumper day for UK earnings.
Spread betting companies are calling London’s premier index down by around 40 points after it closed down 33.14 points at 7,666.27 on Tuesday.
BAE Systems (LON:BAES), Haleon (LON:HLN), Smurfit Kappa (LON:SKG), ConvaTec (LON:CTEC) and Taylor Wimpey (LON:TW) are among the companies reporting today in what promises to be another action-packed day.
But equities may take a hit from news Fitch Ratings has moved the US debt rating from triple A to double A plus, citing worsening fiscal conditions and governance.
The rating agency said its downgrade reflected “expected fiscal deterioration over the next three years” and “a high and growing general government debt burden”.
Fitch also noted an “erosion of governance” over the past two decades “that has manifested in repeated debt limit stand-offs and last-minute resolutions”.
Washington narrowly avoided a default projected for June after legislators and the White House reached a deal to raise the federal borrowing limit at the eleventh hour.
US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a separate statement that she "strongly" disagreed with Fitch, calling the change "arbitrary and based on outdated data."
Asian markets fell with the Nikkei 225 in Tokyo down 2.2%, the Shanghai Composite in China down 0.9% and the Hang Seng in Hong Kong 2.1% worse off.
Shares in Nomura declined 7.8% after the Japanese investment bank posted disappointing earnings and declining wholesale revenues.