The FTSE 100 is expected to open slightly higher, with spread-betters calling the index up by around 3 points as traders look ahead to next week’s US Federal Reserve meeting, where another rate cut remains firmly in view.
The UK benchmark closed 18 points higher on Thursday at 9,710.
Overnight, US markets delivered a mixed performance: tech and growth stocks helped the Nasdaq edge up 0.2%, the S&P 500 added 0.1%, while the Dow slipped 0.1% as industrial and blue-chip names lagged.
Analysts point out that the day’s data calendar contains little likely to drive meaningful market swings, with outdated US PCE numbers due alongside German factory orders and eurozone GDP.
Currencies and commodities saw only marginal moves: the pound drifted slightly lower, gold edged up, and Brent crude slipped. US Treasury yields were stable.
Asian trading is mostly positive. Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 is the outlier, down 1.1%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng and Shanghai’s SSE Composite both added 0.7%. In India, the BSE Sensex is up 0.6% late in the session, and Australia’s ASX 200 advanced 0.2%.
