London open: Stocks slide on US inflation fears
(Sharecast News) - London stocks slid in early trade on Tuesday, taking their cue from a US tech selloff overnight as US inflation fears rattled markets.
At 0840 BST, the FTSE 100 was down 1.8% at 6,997.99.
Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell said: "A late collapse from the Nasdaq led to a nasty session for the Nikkei led to a really rough start for Europe on Tuesday.
"The tech slide not only gave the Nasdaq its worst day since March but prevented the Dow Jones from closing above 35,000 for the first time in its history.
"Ahead of Wednesday's US CPI reading, it appears that investors' inflationary fears have been reignited by surging commodity prices (something that won't necessarily be reflected in tomorrow's figures). It'll be interesting to see how much the markets are reassured if Wednesday's number does fall from 0.6% to 0.2% month-on-month as forecast.
"The impact on Europe was swift, undoing much of the growth managed this May. For example, after tickling a fresh 14-month peak on Monday, the FTSE found itself desperately paddling to stay above 7,000 as it plunged 1.9%. This was accompanied-slash-prompted by a stark reversal from its previously buoyant mining sector."
In equity markets, engineer Renishaw - which put itself up for sale last month - was under the cosh following a report the company is struggling to attract takeover interest due to a hefty price tag and list of ownership demands. According to Bloomberg, rival engineering firms Hexagon, Schneider Electric and Siemens all decided against pursuing Renishaw.
NatWest was also sharply lower after the government kicked off the sale of a further stake in the bank.
UK supermarket Morrisons bucked the trend as it reported a rise in first-quarter sales and reiterated guidance for higher full-year profits and reduced debt as the economy rebounded from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 6,997.99 -1.76%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 22,338.48 -1.58%
techMARK (TASX) 4,269.00 -1.56%
FTSE 100 - Risers
RSA Insurance Group (RSA) 683.80p -0.03%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 4,867.00p -0.61%
Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 179.85p -0.66%
National Grid (NG.) 923.80p -0.67%
United Utilities Group (UU.) 981.40p -0.67%
Pearson (PSON) 836.00p -0.74%
Severn Trent (SVT) 2,479.00p -0.76%
Vodafone Group (VOD) 141.28p -0.80%
Imperial Brands (IMB) 1,599.50p -0.87%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 2,329.00p -0.89%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Renishaw (RSW) 5,690.00p -5.64%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 200.05p -4.67%
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 1,094.00p -3.99%
NATWEST GROUP PLC ORD 100P (NWG) 190.45p -3.35%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 887.60p -3.10%
Melrose Industries (MRO) 161.40p -3.06%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 6,468.00p -2.85%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 106.62p -2.79%
Rightmove (RMV) 572.20p -2.72%
Whitbread (WTB) 3,104.00p -2.63%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Greencore Group (CDI) (GNC) 166.20p 2.59%
Pantheon International (PIN) 2,735.00p 1.11%
Premier Foods (PFD) 98.50p 0.51%
Chrysalis Investments Limited NPV (CHRY) 199.00p 0.51%
Morrison (Wm) Supermarkets (MRW) 183.80p 0.41%
VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Ltd. (VOF) 448.50p 0.34%
Gamesys Group (GYS) 1,927.00p 0.26%
Signature Aviation (SIG) 395.70p 0.05%
FirstGroup (FGP) 73.45p 0.00%
Hipgnosis Songs Fund Limited C Shs NPV (SONC) 112.50p 0.00%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Baillie Gifford US Growth Trust (USA) 269.50p -6.10%
Allianz Technology Trust (ATT) 250.00p -5.30%
Edinburgh Worldwide Inv Trust (EWI) 302.00p -4.28%
Virgin Money UK (VMUK) 199.65p -3.97%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 476.20p -3.91%
Wizz Air Holdings (WIZZ) 4,724.00p -3.81%
Impax Environmental Markets (IEM) 450.50p -3.64%
BlackRock World Mining Trust (BRWM) 666.00p -3.62%
Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) 384.50p -3.51%
JPMorgan Japanese Inv Trust (JFJ) 612.00p -3.47%
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