London open: Stocks edge down ahead of payrolls

(Sharecast News) - London stocks edged lower in early trade on Friday as investors eyed the latest US non-farm payrolls report. At 0835 BST, the FTSE 100 was down 0.3% at 7,166.80.

Sophie Lund-Yates, lead equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said global markets were "hotly anticipating" the US jobs report.

"This is likely to be a double-edged sword for investors. While the data is expected to show another round of strong hiring, which is inherently positive, it also paves the way for policymakers to hike interest rates even more aggressively. This is an upside-down situation whereby the announcement of a stronger economic foundation could be viewed as a catalyst for increased market jitters," she said.

She added: "Boris Johnson's departure hasn't been viewed as a catastrophe for UK markets, and instead has largely been shrugged off. The

"The bigger question now is who the next prime minister will be. Traders will want to know if a new leader is likely to lend support to the idea of further tax hikes. On the other hand, a reduced tax environment may well be expansionary for the economy, but does pose the risk of inflation lingering for longer. Either way, it would appear that as Boris shut the door to Number Ten after his speech yesterday, the door also slammed shut on the potential for market panic."

The US payrolls report is due at 1330 BST, along with average earnings and the unemployment rate.

In equity markets, miners were in the red as metals prices fell, with Antofagasta, Anglo American and Rio all lower.

Marks & Spencer was also weaker after a downgrade to 'sell' at Goldman Sachs.

On the upside, JD Sports rallied as it announced that former Morrisons chair Andy Higginson had been appointed chairman.

Housebuilder Vistry also gained as it said it expects price rises to drive margins above full year targets following a first half driven by strong demand.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,166.80 -0.31% FTSE 250 (MCX) 18,824.24 -0.27% techMARK (TASX) 4,334.77 -0.17%

FTSE 100 - Risers

Harbour Energy (HBR) 327.20p 2.57% Ashtead Group (AHT) 3,785.00p 1.69% Unite Group (UTG) 1,122.00p 1.45% Burberry Group (BRBY) 1,647.50p 1.14% JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 123.20p 0.78% WPP (WPP) 790.20p 0.71% Croda International (CRDA) 6,868.00p 0.59% BAE Systems (BA.) 820.80p 0.54% London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) 7,616.00p 0.45% Shell (SHEL) 2,040.50p 0.34%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Antofagasta (ANTO) 1,091.00p -2.28% Prudential (PRU) 1,002.50p -2.24% Anglo American (AAL) 2,753.00p -2.24% Ocado Group (OCDO) 833.40p -2.11% Melrose Industries (MRO) 151.70p -1.84% Persimmon (PSN) 1,740.00p -1.83% Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 112.80p -1.78% Intertek Group (ITRK) 4,224.00p -1.56% Rio Tinto (RIO) 4,787.50p -1.49% Intermediate Capital Group (ICP) 1,346.50p -1.39%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Tullow Oil (TLW) 43.28p 3.05% Energean (ENOG) 995.00p 2.52% Countryside Partnerships (CSP) 240.60p 2.12% Centamin (DI) (CEY) 81.46p 2.11% Petrofac Ltd. (PFC) 111.30p 1.64% Vistry Group (VTY) 825.50p 1.48% BH Macro Ltd. GBP Shares (BHMG) 4,410.00p 1.38% Vivo Energy (VVO) 151.00p 1.34% JTC (JTC) 605.00p 1.17% Beazley (BEZ) 493.40p 1.15%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

XP Power Ltd. (DI) (XPP) 2,660.00p -6.67% Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 133.40p -3.82% Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 176.50p -3.39% Travis Perkins (TPK) 943.40p -3.00% Bridgepoint Group (Reg S) (BPT) 216.80p -2.78% Bankers Inv Trust (BNKR) 99.10p -2.46% Bellevue Healthcare Trust (Red) (BBH) 160.20p -2.44% Hochschild Mining (HOC) 81.70p -2.33% Ferrexpo (FXPO) 119.70p -2.21% HICL Infrastructure (HICL) 171.00p -1.95%