London stocks are expected to open lower on Monday as investors weigh further escalation in the Middle East and the arrival of Andy Burnham in Downing Street.
FTSE 100 futures point to a decline of around 30 points, or 0.3%, after the blue-chip index closed 0.3% higher at 10,600.37 on Friday.
Burnham is expected to enter No 10 promising to give households “breathing room” against the rising cost of living, while calling for more stable and responsible politics.
Geopolitical tensions remained firmly in focus after the US launched a fresh round of airstrikes against Iran, following the death of another American service member.
Iran responded by targeting Bahrain, home to the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet.
Brent crude rose sharply to US$90.41 a barrel from US$86.53 late Friday, while gold edged lower to US$4,009.35 an ounce.
Sterling was quoted slightly higher at US$1.3466, compared with US$1.3453 at Friday’s London close. Against the euro, the pound rose to EUR1.1766.
Wall Street closed weaker on Friday, with the Dow Jones down 0.8%, the S&P 500 falling 1.0% and the Nasdaq Composite dropping 1.4%.
Asian markets were mixed. China’s Shanghai Composite fell 0.5%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng rose 2.1% and Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.1% higher. Tokyo was closed for Marine Day.
The People’s Bank of China left its loan prime rates unchanged, keeping the one-year rate at 3.0% and the five-year rate at 3.5%.
In corporate news, Ryanair reported a 34% fall in first-quarter post-tax profit to EUR538 million, despite passenger numbers rising to 61.3 million.
The airline said operating costs increased to EUR3.81 billion from EUR3.42 billion.
In Monday’s UK corporate calendar, Big Yellow Group is scheduled to issue a trading update.
