(Sharecast News) - London stocks edged lower on Monday as investors eyed this week's policy announcement from the US Federal Reserve amid expectations of a 25 basis point cut, with key UK data releases also due.
The FTSE 100 closed down 0.2% at 9,645.09.
Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "On the domestic front, key UK data points to look out for this week include November's retail sales figures which are scheduled Tuesday. The previous month saw sales contract by 1.2% and with pre-budget caution likely to have dominated in November and accountants BDO playing down the success of Black Friday promotions, tomorrow's numbers could struggle to get back into positive territory.
"Turning to the wider economy, GDP numbers for October are expected to land on Friday. Forecasts are looking for a 10-basis point acceleration in monthly growth to 0.2% after a cyber-attack at Jaguar Land Rover weighed on the September numbers.
"But it's events in the United States that will take centre stage this week. Anything other than a quarter point cut to Fed Funds Rates on Wednesday will come as a big surprise but cast your eyes forward 12 months and the waters become much muddier.
"Markets see two further quarter point cuts as the most likely outcome but the probability of a doveish third cut, or just a hawkish single cut isn't that far behind. It's commentary for 2026 and beyond that's likely to be the key focus for markets."
Rate announcements are also due this week from the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Bank of Canada and the Swiss National Bank, all of which are expected to keep rates unchanged.
In equity markets, Unilever slumped as it completed the demerger of its ice cream business. Trading in The Magnum Ice Cream Company got underway in Amsterdam on Monday, with secondary listings in New York and London.
Housebuilder Barratt Redrow fell after Citi cut its price target on the stock to 506p from 530p, while Berkeley was weaker ahead of half-year results on Wednesday.
Admiral and M&G lost ground after JPMorgan downgraded the shares to 'underweight' from 'neutral' and to 'neutral' from 'overweight', respectively.
SDCL Efficiency Income Trust tumbled after it reported a drop in net asset value per share to 87.6p as at 30 September from 90.6p at the end of March and said that gearing had exceeded the investment policy limit of 65%.
The company has a continuation vote at its AGM next year but said on Monday that it was unlikely to recommend investors vote in favour without some "material" success in making disposals.
Rotork was knocked lower by a downgrade to 'equalweight' at Morgan Stanley.
On the upside, building materials group CRH shot higher after S&P Global announced on Friday as part of its quarterly rebalancing that it was among the companies set to join the S&P 500 index.
Defence firms Babcock, Rolls-Royce and BAE Systems were among the top performers.
David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation, said: "Geopolitical tensions remain a background risk, particularly around Ukraine, where US-led negotiations continue, though Moscow's tone has grown increasingly sceptical."
Prudential rose after it confirmed plans over the weekend for a potential initial public offering of its Indian joint venture.
Kainos surged after an upgrade to 'buy' from 'underperform' at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, which hiked the price target to 1,290p from 960p. It said better growth momentum can help drive a further re-rating for the IT services provider.
Oxford Nanopore Technologies rose as it appointed Francis Van Parys as chief executive, succeeding Gordon Sanghera, who has led the company since its inception in 2005. Van Parys is currently president and CEO of acute care diagnostics company Radiometer, part of Danaher Corporation.
Medical devices group Smith & Nephew ended flat, giving up gains made earlier after it unveiled plans to downsize its portfolio, alongside an increase in full-year guidance.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 9,645.09 -0.23%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 21,921.28 -0.65%
techMARK (TASX) 5,586.22 0.03%
FTSE 100 - Risers
CRH (CDI) (CRH) 9,494.00p 4.88%
Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,176.00p 2.62%
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 1,094.50p 2.34%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,107.00p 2.07%
Prudential (PRU) 1,097.50p 1.81%
Pershing Square Holdings Ltd NPV (PSH) 5,090.00p 1.60%
International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (CDI) (IAG) 391.00p 1.37%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,656.00p 1.32%
WPP (WPP) 298.50p 1.08%
BAE Systems (BA.) 1,691.00p 1.08%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Unilever (ULVR) 4,160.00p -6.64%
Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 363.20p -3.97%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 79.60p -3.77%
Persimmon (PSN) 1,298.50p -3.46%
Entain (ENT) 735.20p -3.16%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 325.80p -2.66%
Berkeley Group Holdings (The) (BKG) 3,616.00p -2.64%
Land Securities Group (LAND) 604.00p -2.27%
Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,204.00p -2.15%
Relx plc (REL) 2,972.00p -2.08%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Kainos Group (KNOS) 1,155.00p 6.65%
PayPoint (PAY) 461.00p 5.13%
Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) 130.50p 4.65%
Baltic Classifieds Group (BCG) 183.40p 4.56%
Trustpilot Group (TRST) 152.40p 4.10%
Oxford Biomedica (OXB) 644.00p 4.04%
SSP Group (SSPG) 178.40p 3.54%
Trainline (TRN) 215.40p 3.06%
Oakley Capital Investments Limited (DI) (OCI) 564.00p 2.55%
Lion Finance Group (BGEO) 9,400.00p 2.51%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
SDCL Efficiency Income Trust (SEIT) 52.50p -16.53%
Future (FUTR) 585.50p -7.65%
Vistry Group (VTY) 614.00p -4.18%
Pagegroup (PAGE) 226.80p -3.90%
Unite Group (UTG) 510.00p -3.77%
Rotork (ROR) 328.40p -3.70%
Ceres Power Holdings (CWR) 330.00p -3.68%
B&M European Value Retail S.A. (DI) (BME) 160.80p -3.57%
Oxford Instruments (OXIG) 2,075.00p -3.49%
Frasers Group (FRAS) 655.00p -3.46%
21.92 (0.23%)
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