London pre-open: Stocks seen down on weak US cues

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were set to drop at the open on Monday following a weak finish on Wall Street at the end of last week. The FTSE 100 was called to open 28 points lower at 7,248.

CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson said: "Despite a marked deterioration in economic data at the end of last week, European stock markets saw a positive week, with the FTSE 100 and the DAX both closing at a six-week high.

"US markets also finished the week higher, however a disappointing set of numbers from social media minnow Snap, as well as a sharp drop in the July services PMI, saw stocks there finish the week on the back foot. This late slide looks set to translate into a slightly lower European open later this morning.

"This late Friday weakness appears to have sharpened concerns that it might be a forewarning of similar disappointments as we look towards the likes of Google owner Alphabet, and Facebook owner Meta Platforms who report their numbers later this week, starting with Alphabet tomorrow."

In corporate news, telecommunications group Airtel Africa's Kenyan subsidiary has purchased 60-megahertz of additional spectrum for $40.0m as part of an effort to support its 4G network capacity expansion in the market for both mobile data and fixed wireless home broadband capabilities.

The FTSE 100 group said the licence acquired by its Airtel Kenya Networks subsidiary from the Communications Authority of Kenya was in the 2,600-megahertz band. The licence will be valid for a period of 15 years, starting in July.

Telecoms group Vodafone reported a rise in first quarter revenues, driven by growth in the UK.

The company said group service revenue increased by 2.5% to €9.5bn, despite a fall in Germany of 0.5%.