FTSE 100 Falls Ahead Budget
The FTSE 100 traded 0.4% lower on Wednesday, extending a 0.8% fall in the previous session, as investors assessed corporate earnings and positioned ahead of the UK government’s budget announcement. GSK dropped around 4% following its third-quarter results, while Unilever lost 3.5% despite slightly upgrading its annual sales growth forecast. Standard Chartered bucked the broader weakness, rising 4.5% after beating third-quarter profit expectations, with record wealth inflows supporting trading activity. Meanwhile, oil prices added to market uncertainty, with Brent crude climbing above $115 a barrel following reports that the US could resume military strikes against Iran after next week’s midterm elections. In the UK, attention is firmly on Chancellor John Healey’s first budget, due to be delivered around 12.30 p.m. London time, with investors watching for measures that could affect economic growth, public finances and business sentiment.
The FTSE 100 traded 0.4% lower on Wednesday, extending a 0.8% fall in the previous session, as investors assessed corporate earnings and positioned ahead of the UK government’s budget announcement. GSK dropped around 4% following its third-quarter results, while Unilever lost 3.5% despite slightly upgrading its annual sales growth forecast. Standard Chartered bucked the broader weakness, rising 4.5% after beating third-quarter profit expectations, with record wealth inflows supporting trading activity.
Meanwhile, oil prices added to market uncertainty, with Brent crude climbing above $115 a barrel following reports that the US could resume military strikes against Iran after next week’s midterm elections. In the UK, attention is firmly on Chancellor John Healey’s first budget, due to be delivered around 12.30 p.m. London time, with investors watching for measures that could affect economic growth, public finances and business sentiment.