The latest from London: A bit of respite this week

The LSE continued fell again Friday due to ongoing fears about a tightening of monetary policy across the globe. The FTSE 100 dropped 0.2% for the day and 0.6% for the week. Rising oil prices boosted energy stocks, while utilities and real estate were the worst performers.

The ECB and the Bank of England both voiced concerns about rising inflation and Friday's US job data did little to allay investor fears.

This week is rather uneventful in terms of data and will give time for investors to digest last week's speeches from central bankers. The UK GDP data for December will be this week's highlight, released on Friday. The consensus is for a 0.6% drop due to the Omicron spread. However, growth for the fourth quarter should be just above 1%.

The FTSE 100 was inching up 0.2% this morning. Water Intelligence said posted a rise in 2021 pretax profit and revenue. Lok 'n Store Group said Monday that its performance in the first half of fiscal 2022 was strong, with self-storage revenue up 34% on the previous year.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is facing a tough week after five top aides resigned from No10 and a vote of no confidence seems inevitable over the Partygate scandal.

 

Things to read today:

Fed and ECB still behind the inflation curve (Financial Times)

A Big Tech Trade is Losing its Lustre (WSJ)

Boris Johnson Seeks Reset Over ‘Partygate’ With Time Running Out (Bloomberg)