Welcome back to the City AM’s FTSE 100 liveblog.
The UK’s blue-chip index is set to open flat on Tuesday morning, according to futures from investment platform IG.
Oil prices continued to march upwards in early trading. Brent crude – the international benchmark for oil prices – gained another 0.5 per cent as it neared $98 per barrel.
Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz slowed further at the start of this week after Iran set out plans to tighten its control over the vital shipping lane. Tehran has announced plans for a new “restricted zone” outside the Strait, which will hike sanctions on ships attempting to use the waterway.
Danni Hewson, AJ Bell’s head of financial analysis, said that the latest flare-ups in the Middle East are weighing on the FTSE 100. She said: “Energy giants BP and Shell helped mitigate some of the day’s downward pressure on London’s blue-chip index, but UK markets showed little of the optimism that was laced through John Healey’s first major speech as chancellor.”
Chancellor John Healey delivered his first major speech as Chancellor on Monday, as he pledged to stimulate economic growth in the UK’s regions.
Speaking from a manufacturing plant in Coventry, he said: “The prime minister and I are in lockstep in our commitment to meeting the fiscal rules at the upcoming budget, to balancing the books with a buffer to protect against uncertainty.
“To controlling borrowing to bear down on inflation and reducing long-term pressures on our public finances.”
Pressure is building on the government to slash the rising cost burden facing businesses at next week’s Budget. Retail sales growth slipped in August, fresh figures have revealed, as the heatwave boost enjoyed by retailers cooled.
We’ll be bringing you the latest market updates and analysis.