London open: FTSE nudges up as investors eye central bank announcements
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Monday 15 Sep 2025
(Sharecast News) - London stocks nudged higher in early trade on Monday ahead of a busy week of central bank policy announcements.
At 0825 BST, the FTSE 100 was up just 0.1% at 9,289.96.
Patrick Munnelly at Tickmill Group said: "This week is pivotal for central bank meetings, featuring the Federal Reserve (Wed), Bank of Canada (Wed), Norges Bank (Thu), Bank of England (Thu), and Bank of Japan (Fri), listed in descending order of market-implied rate cut probabilities. While the Fed is expected to deliver a 25bp rate cut, the updated Summary of Economic Projections may carry a stagflationary undertone.
"For the Bank of England, attention will centre on the annual quantitative tightening (QT) vote, with expectations of a reduction in gilt holdings to approximately £75bn, down from £100bn this year. The Bank of Japan is unlikely to raise rates this time, but markets will closely watch for stronger signals of a potential hike in October.
"In addition to central bank decisions, the UK will release a slew of data. Labour market figures (Tue) may take a backseat to August inflation data (Wed), given both data quality concerns and the Monetary Policy Committee's focus on near-term CPI trends. A headline inflation undershoot below 3.8% y/y could sustain hopes for a November rate cut.
"Retail sales (Fri) and public finances data (Fri) will also be in focus, with the deficit for 2025-26 so far tracking close to Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) projections."
Investors were mulling the latest data out of China, which showed the economic slowdown deepened in August. Figures from the National Bureau of Statistics revealed that growth in industrial output slowed to 5.2% from 5.7% in July, while retail sales growth slowed to 3.4% from 3.7%.
Economists were expecting industrial output growth to be unchanged and retail sales growth of 3.9%
Fixed-asset investment expanded by 0.5% year-on-year in January to August, down from 1.6% growth in the January to July period.
On home shores, the latest house price index from Rightmove showed that prices ticked modestly higher in September on the back of improved affordability.
The national average asking price rose 0.4% on the month to £370,257. It was the first monthly increase since May and a notable improvement on August's 1.3% decline.
Rightmove said the market was being supported by improved buyer affordability, sensible pricing and a high choice of property.
However, year-on-year and prices softened by 0.1%, driven by London and the south. The number of homes for sale in the south of England jumped 9% in September, compared to a more moderate 2% rise elsewhere.
The number of sales agreed was up 4% year-on-year.
Rightmove's Colleen Babcock said: "We expect to see a slight uptick in new seller asking prices in September, with the traditionally back-to-school season boosting activity heading into autumn.
"This year's price rise is a little lower than the average of 0.6% for this time of year...after a summer of competitive pricing by sellers. It's the south which is driving this small dip.
"Static house prices, rising wages and lower mortgage rates all assist buyer affordability, which has led to an increase in the number of sales agreed compared to a year ago."
In equity markets, Sainsbury's rallied as it said talks with China's JD.com over the potential sale of Argos have collapsed.
In a brief statement, the retailer said JD.com was now only prepared to engage on a "materially revised" set of terms and commitments, which were not in the best interest of shareholders.
Electrical retailer AO World surged as it lifted the lower end of earnings guidance and announced its first-ever share buyback on the back of strong cash generation.
Full-year adjusted profit before tax is now expected to be £45m to £50m, up from prior guidance of £40m to £50m. Group revenue is expected to be up 13%.
The company said it would buy back £10m in shares after generating £70m in cash with a revolving credit facility of £120m still undrawn.
On the downside, BT Group fell as it said two representatives from major shareholder Bharti Global - Sunil Bharti Mittal and Gopal Vittal - have joined the board as non-executives directors.
AstraZeneca lost ground after announcing a pause in plans to invest £200m at its Cambridge research site.
Richard Hunter, head of markets at Interactive Investor, said this was "hot on the heels of other pharmaceutical strategic withdrawals given the perceived lack of interest from the government".
He added: "Despite the dip, the shares are up by 21% so far this year, but from a UK perspective such moves add to the possibility that Astra could seek to reflect its US exposure by switching its primary listing, which would be a major reputational blow."
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 9,289.96 0.07%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 21,659.10 0.16%
techMARK (TASX) 5,442.55 -0.27%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) 317.00p 3.19%
Beazley (BEZ) 832.00p 2.15%
Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,149.00p 1.68%
Pershing Square Holdings Ltd NPV (PSH) 4,742.00p 1.32%
Smurfit Westrock (DI) (SWR) 3,330.00p 1.25%
Centrica (CNA) 162.20p 1.15%
NATWEST GROUP (NWG) 534.60p 1.02%
Hiscox Limited (DI) (HSX) 1,318.00p 0.92%
Glencore (GLEN) 306.25p 0.91%
Lloyds Banking Group (LLOY) 83.34p 0.90%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
BT Group (BT.A) 201.50p -2.04%
AstraZeneca (AZN) 11,562.00p -1.97%
CRH (CDI) (CRH) 8,376.00p -0.78%
GSK (GSK) 1,493.00p -0.70%
Unilever (ULVR) 4,601.00p -0.63%
Haleon (HLN) 359.80p -0.58%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,623.00p -0.55%
Unite Group (UTG) 706.00p -0.49%
JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 90.10p -0.46%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 227.40p -0.44%
FTSE 250 - Risers
RS Group (RS1) 578.00p 2.66%
SDCL Efficiency Income Trust (SEIT) 56.90p 2.34%
Trustpilot Group (TRST) 203.80p 2.26%
Hill and Smith (HILS) 2,155.00p 2.13%
Computacenter (CCC) 2,348.00p 1.73%
Edinburgh Worldwide Inv Trust (EWI) 197.20p 1.54%
TBC Bank Group (TBCG) 4,500.00p 1.35%
Vistry Group (VTY) 597.00p 1.32%
Close Brothers Group (CBG) 498.00p 1.30%
Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 74.50p 1.29%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Elementis (ELM) 158.00p -3.89%
SSP Group (SSPG) 151.80p -2.38%
Ibstock (IBST) 133.00p -1.63%
Carnival (CCL) 2,122.00p -1.44%
Pets at Home Group (PETS) 224.20p -0.89%
IP Group (IPO) 56.10p -0.88%
C&C Group (CDI) (CCR) 164.60p -0.84%
Marshalls (MSLH) 171.00p -0.81%
Diversified Energy Company (DEC) 1,156.00p -0.77%
PRS Reit (The) (PRSR) 104.00p -0.76%
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