LONDON MARKET EARLY CALL: FTSE 100 seen up amid Hormuz talks

(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are set to open marginally higher on Thursday as investors monitored developments around the Strait of Hormuz while assessing another busy slate of corporate earnings.

IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 to open 10.4 points higher, 0.1%, at 10,898.70 on Thursday. The index of London large-caps closed up 0.1% at 10,888.30 on Wednesday.

Iran and Oman have agreed a route for ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz and are putting the final touches on arrangements for jointly managing the strategic waterway, Tehran's foreign ministry said.

However, officials briefing Iranian media stressed that any reopening of the strait would depend on the US fulfilling what Tehran sees as its commitment to end its naval blockade of Iranian ports.

According to state news agency IRNA, Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baqaei said talks with Oman were progressing, but cautioned that even if an agreement is reached, it would not necessarily mean the strait was safe for all vessels.

Brent oil was trading at USD79.13 a barrel early Thursday, lower than USD79.47 late Wednesday.

Sterling was quoted at USD1.3461 early Thursday, slightly lower than USD1.3466 at the London equities close on Wednesday. Against the euro, sterling fell to EUR1.1654 from EUR1.1663 a day prior.

The euro traded at USD1.1549 early Thursday, higher than USD1.1545 late Wednesday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY157.74 versus JPY157.58.

In the US on Wednesday, Wall Street ended mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.5%, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite fell 0.2% and 0.8%, respectively.

In Asia on Thursday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo was down 0.8%. In China, the Shanghai Composite slipped 0.1%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong fell 1.8%.

The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney rose 0.4%, after Australia's trade balance returned to surplus in June as exports rebounded.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, the seasonally adjusted goods trade balance swung to a surplus of AUD1.93 billion, around USD1.36 billion, from a revised deficit of AUD2.37 billion in May. The result comfortably beat the FXStreet-cited consensus forecast for an AUD1.10 billion deficit. Exports rose 9.6% to AUD47.70 billion, while imports edged down 0.2% to AUD45.77 billion.

Gold was quoted at USD4,265.90 an ounce early Thursday, higher than USD4,255.64 on Wednesday.

In Thursday's corporate calendar, a busy day of results includes full-year earnings from Diageo and Persimmon, half-year results from Admiral Group, Hikma Pharmaceuticals and WPP, and first-quarter results from Wizz Air Holdings, among others.

In the economic calendar on Thursday, Germany releases factory orders, while construction PMI data are due from Germany, the eurozone and the UK.

The eurozone also publishes retail sales figures, Ireland reports unemployment, and the US releases weekly jobless claims and wholesale inventories.

By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News senior economics reporter

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