London pre-open: All eyes on the OPEC meeting, stocks inch higher
US markets might be closed together for Thanksgiving but those hoping for a quiet day could be disappointed with the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) set for a pivotal meeting in Vienna.
FTSE 100
8,042.22
09:40 23/04/24
FTSE 250
19,681.70
09:40 23/04/24
FTSE 350
4,419.42
09:40 23/04/24
FTSE All-Share
4,373.78
09:40 23/04/24
General Industrials
6,914.24
09:39 23/04/24
GSK
1,646.50p
09:40 23/04/24
Legal & General Group
252.60p
09:40 23/04/24
Life Insurance
5,844.40
09:40 23/04/24
Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology
21,828.06
09:39 23/04/24
RPC Group
792.60p
17:00 28/06/19
Stagecoach Group
104.70p
16:34 27/06/22
Travel & Leisure
7,665.11
09:40 23/04/24
City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open around eight points higher than yesterday's close of 6,729.17.
The Brent crude price tumbled below $78 a barrel on the eve of the OPEC meeting after Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates hinted that they had no intention of cutting production levels to prop up prices.
"Whether or not it will cut its output target to curb the downward pressure on oil prices looks to be a close call," said analysts at Danske Bank.
In other news, industrial profits in China slumped in October, according to the National Bureau of Statistics, as weak demand, rising costs of labour and falling product prices took their toll on companies' bottom lines.
Profits of Chinese industrial businesses fell by 2.1% over the year before to 575.47bn yuan (£59.4bn). This compared with 0.4% growth in September and was the worst annual decline registered in two years.
Stocks to watch
Glaxosmithkline said it is on track to complete its complex three-way £11bn deal with Swiss pharmaceutical peer Novartis next year after US regulators approved the first two parts of the transaction. The US Federal Trade Commission has now given the green light for GSK's acquisition of Novartis' vaccines business (which excludes its influenza vaccines) as well as the proposed creation of the consumer-healthcare tie-up.
Stagecoach Group's 90%-owned joint venture with Virgin Rail has won the contract to run the new InterCity East Coast franchise for eight years from March 2015. The franchise contract requires the pair to commit to paying the government £2.3bn in premium payments, which the companies said would be a higher return to the taxpayer than under the current arrangements.
Rigid plastic packaging supplier RPC Group said its revenue grew in the first half of 2014, courtesy of business acquisitions and satisfying progress in its existing programmes. Revenue in the six months to September rose 12% to £588.9m, with profit before tax increasing from £30.1m to £34.9m, while net profit went from £6m to £20.2m.
Insurance and investment services group Legal & General has won a £2.5bn bulk annuity contract with the UK pension scheme of US car-parts group TRW Automotive.