London pre-open: Stocks to fall as Brent crude nears $100 a barrel

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were set to fall at the open on Wednesday as Brent crude came within touching distance of $100 a barrel.

The FTSE 100 was called to open around 50 points lower. At 0725 BST, Brent crude was up 1.3% at $99.20 a barrel while West Texas Intermediate was 1.2% higher at $94.10.

Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, said: "Risk appetite remains weak as rising oil prices occupy the headlines - and investors' minds. US crude is consolidating above the $95pb mark this morning, while Brent crude is a few cents below the psychological $100pb mark, on news that the US hit targets near Iran's Kharg Island, as several Saudi energy facilities halted operations due to Houthi attacks.

"The latest news fuels short-term supply worries, and we can see that across oil futures: spot prices are again rising faster than futures prices as buyers want their oil today, rather than risk waiting until tomorrow. We continue to be in a classic supply-shortage pricing environment. Short-term risks remain tilted to the upside across energy markets."

In corporate news, polymer solutions firm Victrex lifted its fullyear pretax profit guidance as strong trading momentum continued into the final quarter.

Victrex now expects underlying pre-tax profits of £45m to £47m for FY26, ahead of its previous £42m to £44m range, after Q4 delivered further yearonyear growth across aerospace, valueadded resellers and electronics.

The FTSE 250 firm said all regions were performing well, with AsiaPacific showing particularly strong progress, while initial benefits from its completed 10% headcount reduction were beginning to flow through, supporting at least £10m of annualised savings from FY27.

Israel-focused oil and gas producer Energean posted a fall in half-year profit as a result of a 41-day production suspension due to the US-Israeli war on Iran.

The company said core earnings fell 5% to $478m in the six months to 30 June and reiterated guidance for the full year. However, it cut exploration expenditure forecasts to $5-10m from $10-15m.