- FTSE 100 opens up 0.7%
- British Chamber of Commerce warns 80% of firms affected by Iran conflict
- Brent Crude trading at $98.14 per barrel, after new US strikes on Iran
- Kingfisher and CVS Group report progress
Nicholas Hyett, lead alternatives analyst: Hargreaves Lansdown:
“The FTSE 100 is up a touch versus the end of last week – with declines elsewhere offset by a strong return from mining shares as copper set another record high.
New figures from the British Chamber of Commerce have found that 80% of UK firms either have been, or expect to be, impacted by the conflict in Iran, mostly as a result of higher energy and shipping costs. Manufacturing firms are being hit hardest, with 68% already seeing some knock-on effects and 23% expecting to feel the effects of the conflict soon. Over 40% of companies expect energy costs to rise by more than 20% in the next 12 months, coming on top of already higher energy costs in the UK and without the benefit of the price cap applied to consumers.
That will make new US strikes on Iran overnight particularly painful for UK plc, as oil continued its slip and slide journey over the weekend. Brent Crude, which had been trading down as much as 5% over the long weekend, has jumped this morning and is now trading in the region of $98 per barrel.
There was some positive news among company reports though. DIY giant Kingfisher is trading up 5.1% having hammered out some modest sales growth in Q1, underpinned by its Screwfix and Polish businesses, as a late spring resulted in a 4.1% fall in like-for-like sales at B&Q. Meanwhile, veterinary chain CVS Group is showing some bounce, up 5% at open, after it announced the refinancing of £350 million of debt, achieving a 0.2% saving, alongside further acquisitions in its Australian expansion and a £50 million share buyback programme.”
