FTSE 100 live: London in the green as higher-than-expected inflation reported

The latest updates on the FTSE 100 and London’s financial markets from City A.M.’s newsroom in the heart of the City of London.

Brits woke up to inflation figures from the Office for National Statistics, with the figure coming in higher than expected at 3.2 per cent.

According to figures from the ONS, inflation fell to 3.2 per cent last month, down from a previous reading of 3.4 per cent. Economists had expected it to fall to 3.1 per cent.

This meant the headline rate of inflation was at its lowest level in two and a half years.

Core inflation, which strips out volatile components such as food and inflation, fell to 4.2 down from a previous reading of 4.5 per cent. See below:

Commenting on March’s inflation figures, ONS Chief Economist Grant Fitzner said: “Inflation eased slightly in March to its lowest annual rate for two and a half years. Once again, food prices were the main reason for the fall, with prices rising by less than we saw a year ago. Similarly to last month, we saw a partial offset from rising fuel prices.”

It was a busy regulatory morning in the UK with results from Asos, Saga, Liontrust and Entain amongst other listed firms.

The FTSE 100 was called to open broadly unchanged from Tuesday’s closing level of 7,820.36 after a 1.8 per cent drop in the top-tier index was caused by a huge reduction in risk appetite across the board.

This comes after London markets had a bad day on Tuesday, finishing down by 1.82 per cent, to 7,820.36

Tuesday was a “torrid day for London markets with the FTSE 100 slumping by almost 2 per cent just days after flirting with record highs,” says Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell.

“Few companies managed to avoid the rout with blue sky optimism drowned out by a weakening labour market and geopolitical risk.

In the US, the NASDAQ closed on 15,865.25 down by 0.12 per cent.

Most US stocks slipped on Tuesday and Treasury yields rose on expectations that interest rates may stay high for a while, according to PA.

The S&P 500 fell 10.41 points, or 0.2 per cent, to 5,051.41.

The index deepened its loss from the day before, when it sank under the pressure brought by a jump in Treasury yields. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 63.86, or 0.2 per cent, to 37,798.97, and the Nasdaq composite fell 19.77, or 0.1 per cent, to 15,865.25.

But the majority of stocks fell as Treasury yields rose following comments by Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell.

Powell said at an event on Tuesday that the central bank has been waiting to cut its main interest rate, which is at its highest level since 2001, because it first needs more confidence inflation is heading sustainably down to its two per cent target.

Treasury yields climbed immediately after Powell’s comments.

Rising tensions in the Middle East and fading hopes of imminent interest-rate cuts in the UK and US were dampening sentiment across European stock markets.

Yesterday amid rising tensions in the Middle East, a barrel of Brent crude oil was up by 0.3 per cent to 90.13 US dollars as markets were closing in London.

On Wednesday, foreign secretary David Cameron landed in Israel, in a bid to calm regional tensions.