(Sharecast News) - London stocks fell in early trade on Tuesday, having avoided the AI-fuelled weakness that hit European and US markets a day earlier, as investors mulled the latest UK jobs data and elevated oil prices.
At 0840 BST, the FTSE 100 was down 0.7% at 10,622.74, while Brent crude was up 1.7% at $107.36 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate was 1.7% higher at $103.11 following reports of further Houthi strikes on Saudi Arabia and Iranian attacks on ships in the Gulf.
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said: "After finishing as something of a global outlier in finishing higher yesterday, the FTSE 100 succumbed to some early weakness and erased those gains. There was little buying interest to support prices, while there was a broad markdown across the financials with the possibility of monetary tightening ahead and more challenging economic conditions generally which could feed through to customer loan defaults."
Figures from the Office for National Statistics showed the unemployment rate remained at 4.9% in the three months to July, versus expectations for an uptick to 5%.
Meanwhile, the number of payrolled employees fell by 26,000 between July and August and by 145,000 on the year, to 30.2m.
Total pay growth including bonuses eased to 3.9% in May to July from 4.2% in the previous three months, while regular pay growth excluding bonuses was unchanged at 3.5%.
Annual average regular earnings growth was 6.3% for the public sector and 2.9% for the private sector.
The data also showed that the number of vacancies in June to August 2026 fell by 8,000 to 702,000, compared with March to May.
Liz McKeown, director of economic statistics at the ONS, said: "The labour market remains broadly stable, with employment and unemployment rates largely unchanged in the latest period. However, payrolled employee numbers continue to edge down, with falls over the past year particularly evident in the retail and hospitality sectors.
"Regular wage growth has remained relatively stable in recent months, while total pay growth, which includes bonuses, has eased and was last lower nearly six years ago. There remains a notable difference between public and private sector pay growth, with public sector figures continuing to be affected by the timing of NHS pay awards this year."
McKeown said vacancies remain at their lowest level outside the pandemic period for more than a decade, with smaller businesses continuing to report that increased labour costs are affecting hiring decisions.
Richard Hunter said that as with the Federal Reserve, the last piece of the jigsaw for the UK central bank before its rate decision on Thursday will be the release of the consumer price index report tomorrow, where inflation is expected to have accelerated to 3.1% in August from 2.9% in July.
"Unlike the Fed however, where a hike is priced in as a done deal this week, the consensus remains that the Bank of England will stand pat at this meeting although a rise remains on the table before the year is out given relentless inflationary concerns emanating from energy prices in particular," he said.
In equity markets, Trustpilot tumbled despite hailing a strong first half, with some analysts pointing to potential disappointment over the lack of a guidance upgrade.
On the upside, GSK gained after saying it will pay up to $750m for an experimental cancer therapy from Chinese biotech firm Chimagen Biosciences.
DIY chain Wickes rallied after saying it was on track to meet expectations of a 10% jump in adjusted annual profit despite an uncertain consumer environment. The company posted a 1.1% rise in earnings to £27.6m for the six months to 27 June. Like-for-like sales rose 0.7%.
Kier Group also advanced as it said FY27 earnings were set to be at the top end of the board's expectations.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 10,622.74 -0.70%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 23,759.03 -0.32%
techMARK (TASX) 6,011.65 0.12%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RKT) 5,100.00p 2.16%
Kingfisher (KGF) 293.70p 1.94%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 77.50p 1.28%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 374.80p 1.08%
GSK (GSK) 1,872.00p 0.94%
BAE Systems (BA.) 1,954.50p 0.88%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 332.20p 0.82%
Next (NXT) 14,740.00p 0.65%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 12,142.00p 0.48%
Spirax Group (SPX) 6,740.00p 0.37%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Abrdn (ABDN) 239.20p -3.24%
Standard Chartered (STAN) 2,253.00p -2.52%
ICG (ICG) 1,826.00p -2.46%
Barclays (BARC) 468.10p -2.40%
St James's Place (STJ) 1,102.00p -2.18%
London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 8,346.00p -2.00%
Glencore (GLEN) 580.10p -1.94%
Lion Finance Group (BGEO) 13,170.00p -1.72%
Investec (INVP) 645.50p -1.68%
3i Group (III) 2,589.00p -1.67%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Wickes Group (WIX) 193.60p 6.68%
Kier Group (KIE) 257.80p 3.95%
IP Group (IPO) 68.40p 2.59%
Premier Foods (PFD) 197.50p 2.49%
Currys (CURY) 148.00p 1.86%
Partners Group Private Equity Limited. (EUR) (PEY) 7.28p 1.68%
ICG Enterprise Trust (ICGT) 1,404.00p 1.59%
HGCapital Trust (HGT) 414.00p 1.47%
Fidelity Emerging Markets Limited Ptg NPV (FEML) 1,462.00p 1.39%
Barr (A.G.) (BAG) 600.00p 1.35%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Trustpilot Group (TRST) 219.20p -15.97%
Pollen Street Group Limited (POLN) 768.00p -6.41%
Globaldata (DATA) 56.40p -3.75%
Jupiter Fund Management (JUP) 155.00p -3.74%
CMC Markets (CMCX) 716.00p -3.12%
Ashmore Group (ASHM) 204.20p -2.58%
Bridgepoint Group (Reg S) (BPT) 282.40p -2.34%
THG (THG) 26.14p -2.32%
Man Group (EMG) 299.40p -2.16%
Breedon Group (BREE) 310.40p -2.14%
37.57 (0.35%)
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