London pre-open: Stocks to fall after Asian selloff

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were set to fall at the open on Friday following a heavy selloff in Asia, as investors mulled escalating geopolitical tensions and the latest results from Netflix.

The FTSE 100 was called to open around 55 points lower

Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, said the technology selloff is not the only reason markets are in a sour mood.

"Developments in the Middle East are getting worse by the hour. Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen to wartime levels. There is no easy resolution in sight, and the weekend could bring further escalation. All of that spells trouble," she said.

"The good news is that, so far, the reaction in the oil market has been more contained than during the early weeks of the Iran war. US crude continues to consolidate just below the $80-per-barrel mark, while Brent is holding near $85 per barrel. This relatively muted reaction is helping keep US Treasury yields under control. The US two-year yield, for example, has fallen for a fourth consecutive session, thanks to softer-than-expected CPI and PPI figures released this week. And that remains a critical factor for financial markets.

"The bad news is that we know the inflation relief cannot last if energy prices continue to climb. June's softer inflation was largely driven by lower energy prices. Those prices are now rising again."

Netflix was also in focus as its shares tumbled in after-hours trading after the streaming giant's third-quarter revenue guidance disappointed.

UK corporate news was scare, but luxury brand Burberry reported a 5% rise in first-quarter sales driven by strong performances in the Americas and China which offset a decline in Europe and the Middle East due to the Iran war.

Sales in the 13 weeks to 27 June came in at �455m. Burberry said it expected to deliver full-year revenue growth and margin expansion but was still ""mindful of the uncertain geopolitical and macro-economic environment and its potential impact on consumer confidence".

Investment manager NinetyOne said assets under management had hit �184bn as of 30 June, up from �139.7bn a year earlier and �171.8bn at the end of the previous quarter on 31 March.