London pre-open: Stocks seen up as investors mull inflation data

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were set to rise at the open on Wednesday as investors mulled the latest UK inflation figures. The FTSE 100 was called to open around 28 points higher.

Data released earlier by the Office for National Statistics showed that inflation was unchanged in June, in line with consensus expectations and the Bank of England's target.

The consumer price index grew by 2% in the year to June.

The ONS said that hotel prices rose "strongly" and while second-hand car costs fell, it was by less than this time last year.

However, that was offset by widespread sales pushing down clothing prices.

In corporate news, HSBC announced that its finance chief George Elhedery will move into the chief executive officer position in September, replacing outgoing boss Noel Quinn.

Chairman Mark Tucker said Elhedery is an "exceptional leader" with a "track record of leading through change, driving growth, delivering simplification, containing costs and brings a strong focus on execution".

Quinn, who announced his retirement back in April, will remain on board and work with Elhedery to support a "smooth and orderly handover of responsibilities", the bank said.

Consumer goods group Reckitt Benckiser said a key US warehouse for its Mead Johnson Nutrition business was hit by a tornado on July 9, causing "significant" damage and putting it out of action and affecting sales in the short term.

The company said the warehouse in Mount Vernon, Indiana "is an important site for the Mead Johnson Nutrition business, containing a mix of raw materials and finished products".

"We first gained partial access to the facility on Saturday, 13 July and the warehouse is currently not operational. We have diverted all inbound deliveries to our other warehousing facilities in the US," it said in a statement, adding that all staff at the third-party owned site were safe.

Reckitt said it was working with customers and suppliers to minimise disruption, by leveraging its global supply chain and managing inventory at its other North American Nutrition warehouses and those used by retail partners.

"Additionally, Reckitt holds comprehensive property damage and business interruption insurance, which we currently expect will largely offset the impact on earnings."

Mitie said it has agreed to buy ESM Power, a high voltage electrical engineering business specialising in grid and power connections, for up to £8.5m.

Based in Lincolnshire, ESM Power has 20 years of experience in the design, delivery and maintenance of high voltage power connections across a broad range of sectors, including local authorities, commercial developments and power generation sites.

Mitie said the acquisition will enhance its expertise in the growing high voltage power connections market, "which continues to benefit from significant capital investment in energy networks for the UK to achieve Net Zero".