LONDON MARKET EARLY CALL: FTSE called down before UK chancellor speech

(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are set to open lower on Monday, as discontent mounts within ...

Alliance News 3 October, 2022 | 5:57AM
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(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are set to open lower on Monday, as discontent mounts within the Conservative Party, while in Europe, developments at Credit Suisse are in focus.

IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 index of large-caps to open down 58.3 points, 0.9%, at 6,835.51 on Monday. The FTSE 100 index closed up 0.2% at 6.893,81 on Friday.

At a speech at the Conservative Party Conference, UK Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng is expected to insist the Conservative Party must "stay the course" and back his plan for tax cuts in the face of a mounting Tory revolt.

Over the weekend, his budget plans came under fire from former cabinet ministers Michael Gove and Grant Shapps, with Gove dubbing the plans "not Conservative".

Prime Minister Liz Truss is now thought to be delaying the vote to approve the cut to the 45 pence rate of tax until the spring, a Cabinet minister told Sky News. On Sunday, the party had warned that any MPs who vote against the measures face having the whip removed - suspending them from the Conservative party.

Sterling continued its rebound. The pound was quoted at USD1.1252 early Monday, higher than USD1.1149 at the London equities close on Friday.

The euro traded at USD0.9829 early Monday, higher than USD0.9796 late Friday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY144.77, higher versus JPY144.68.

Credit Suisse moved to reassure its staff in the face of market turmoil and a stock price slide, Bloomberg reported on Friday.

In a memo, Chief Executive Officer Ulrich Koerner told staff that the Swiss bank has a "strong capital base and liquidity position".

Koerner told staff not to confuse its recent share price slide with a sign that the bank's day-to-day performance is weakening.

"We spent the weekend talking about whether Credit Suisse will finally go bust or not. And the bank's executives spent their weekend trying to reassure investors that the bank has a strong capital position and liquidity to avoid a fall. But the share price is down below 4 francs a share, and the credit default swaps are going through the roof. The 5-year CDS for Credit Suisse spiked to 250 from around 60 at the start of the year. It means that the market is aggressively pricing a default for one of the biggest Swiss banks," Swissquote analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya commented.

In the US on Friday, Wall Street ended lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average ending down 1.7%, the S&P 500 down 1.5% and the Nasdaq Composite down 1.5%

In Asia on Monday, the Japanese Nikkei 225 index was up 0.6%.

Japan's manufacturing sector remained in growth territory last month, but output and new order wins weakened, new figures showed.

The latest au Jibun Bank Japan manufacturing purchasing managers' index faded to 50.8 points in September, from 51.5 in August. Though still above the 50.0 no change mark, the figure suggests growth as slowed.

"The Japanese manufacturing sector came under further pressures in September as downturns in output and new orders accelerated. Demand for Japanese goods fell at the quickest pace in two years as high inflation and weakening economic conditions at key trading partners curbed client spending," S&P Global said.

Not helped by a weaker yen, inflationary pressures intensified.

In China, the Shanghai Composite is closed for National Day Golden Week. The Hang Seng index was open on Monday, however, and was down 1.7% in Hong Kong. The Hang Seng is closed on Tuesday.

The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney was 0.3% lower in late trade on Monday. 

Gold was quoted at USD1,664.70 an ounce early Monday, lower than USD1,672.50 on Friday.

Brent oil was trading at USD87.42 a barrel early Monday, higher than USD86.35 late Friday.

In Monday's corporate calendar, there are annual results from flooring manufacturer James Halstead and interim results from Tortilla Mexican Grill. Waste management firm Renewi will issue a trading statement.

In the international economic events calendar on Monday, there are a slew of manufacturing PMI figures due, with Germany at 0855 BST, eurozone at 0900 BST, the UK at 0930 BST and the US at 1445 BST. The ISM manufacturing PMI is due at 1500 BST.

By Elizabeth Winter; elizabethwinter@alliancenews.com

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Security Name Price Change (%) Morningstar
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Credit Suisse Group AG

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