08:21 — FTSE 100 slips to 10472.8 as mining losses deepen despite Antofagasta's steady Q2
The FTSE 100 began Wednesday's session lower, losing aorund 0.4% to 10,472,
Miners were among the notable names. Antofagasta (LSE:ANTO)'s Q2 production report has confirmed copper output in line with the previous quarter and unchanged full-year guidance, with chief executive Iván Arriagada citing continued cash cost discipline and construction progress at the Centinela Second Concentrator Project.
Antofagasta traded down 1.43%, tracking Rio Tinto (LSE:RIO) which also had production numbers out today, and fell 1.73% in the market's opening exchanges.
Ashtead Technology has confirmed comfort with full-year market expectations after delivering roughly £100.2m in first-half revenue, offsetting delays tied to Middle East conflict and softer Taiwan renewables activity.
08:06 — Ashtead Technology confirms guidance despite Middle East disruption; Ferrexpo posts Q2 update
Scanning London's news burst shows a broad spread of announcements.
Ashtead Technology delivered first-half revenue of approximately £100.2m and confirms comfort with full-year market expectations, saying agile project execution and strict cost control offset delays tied to conflict in the Middle East and softer renewables activity in Taiwan.
Ferrexpo (LSE:FXPO) has published its second-quarter production report alongside a trading and corporate update, with the iron ore producer also flagging a rolling 12-month lost-time injury frequency rate of 0.18, below its five-year historic average of 0.44.
Supermarket Income REIT (FTSE:SUPR) has proposed an equity issue to fund further acquisitions, adding a real estate financing story to the morning's mix.
RTW Biotech Opportunities' monthly factsheet shows unaudited net asset value per share of $2.86 as at 30 June, up 9.7% on the month, in line with the Nasdaq Biotech Index's own 9.7% gain and behind the Russell 2000 Biotech Index's 15.8% rise over the same period. The fund has delivered an annualised 15.8% NAV return since its October 2019 launch.
Elsewhere, Hunting (LSE:HTG), B&M, Bloomsbury Publishing (LSE:BMY), Dr Martens (LSE:DOCS), Rio Tinto (LSE:RIO), Air China (LSE:AIRC), Getech (AIM:GTC), NextEnergy Solar Fund (LSE:NESF) and Audioboom (AIM:BOOM) have all issued trading or corporate updates this morning, adding to a dense start to London's reporting calendar.
07:25 — Cool US inflation print reshapes Fed bets ahead of London open
An apparently cooler inflation picture in the United States is a key factor in the evidently supportive market, despite the renewed escalations in the Middle East and the sporadic bubble warnings aimed at the AI sector.
On Tuesday, June's US CPI fell -0.4% versus an expected -0.1% decline, the largest moderation in American price growth in six years, and it has sharply cut the odds of a Federal Reserve rate hike this month.
Commentary from Capital.com suggests there's market-implied probability of a hike at around 82%, down from around 90% before the data, while market punditry from XTB's Kathleen Brooks estimates the chance of a 31 July hike has fallen to just 15%, from 40%.
Deutsche Bank's Jim Reid frames the print as the catalyst for a broad cross-market rally, with US Treasuries posting strong gains as traders priced out tightening risk.
The dollar has softened in response to the number, with the currency index down 0.13% at 100.79.
AJ Bell (LSE:AJB)'s Danni Hewson says cooler inflation gives the Fed "breathing room".
06:45 — FTSE 100 see softer ahead of Wednesday's open
London's FTSE 100 is seen softer ahead of Wednesday's open, with IG Market's early pre-market quote marked at 10,490, down 0.26% from yesterday's close.
It follows a stronger Wall Street close on Tuesday as cooler inflation data and strong bank earnings driving the Dow up 0.11% to 52,554, and the S&P 500 up 0.43% to 7,547.
New York's standout benchmark was the Nasdaq Composite, which added 0.94% to 26,116.
Broadly, there was a marked cooling in volatility, with the VIX easing 4.3%.
In Asia, overnight, Wednesday's session saw Japan's Nikkei 225 up 1.11% to 68,495.
In currencies and commodities, the dollar index softened 0.11% to 100.814 while cable is indicated up 0.15% at $1.3408.
Gold slipped nearly a full percent to $4,029 an ounce, and Brent crude is seen up 0.36% at $84.31 per barrel.
Bitcoin and Ethereum were both softer, down 0.45% and 0.86% respectively, at a contrast with the steadier equity markets.
