FTSE 100 rises as markets brace for another week of omicron volatility

Good morning. 

The FTSE 100 is expected to open greater this morning even as the distribute of the omicron strain of the coronavirus keeps traders in a careful mood. 

Buyers are braced for another week of volatility right after worries about the new variant led to the blue chip index’s worst month for more than a year.

It shed more than 2pc in November, with airline shares hit notably difficult. This morning the Footsie is expected to open forty eight points, or about .7pc greater at seven,170. 

Traders will also be trying to keep an eye on a speech by Ben Broadbent, Deputy Governor of the Financial institution of England, for hints about whether an interest fees rise is on the playing cards this month. 

five points to get started your day 

one) Financial institution of England poised to loosen home finance loan lending guidelines: Officials consider softening affordability checks as critics alert it challenges housing bubble.

two) Recruiters wrestle to recruit recruiters amid ‘Great Resignation’: Headhunters widen their research for workers amid popular shortages

3) Crackdown on crypto corporations needed to ‘wreck’ ransomware, says ex-GCHQ manager: Robert Hannigan mentioned there is have to have for ‘greater cryptocurrency regulation’ to make the hacking approach a ‘poor enterprise model’.

four) No progress manufactured on closing gender shell out hole in 25 several years, warns IFS​: Results suggest minimal progress in wage gulf when accounting for ‘rapid improvement’ in women’s instruction.

five) As well couple mechanics for UK’s electrical car ambitions, warns Halfords manager: Graham Stapleton mentioned he is ‘very concerned’ that ample methods are not getting taken to deal with the ‘skills gap’.

What transpired overnight 

Asian marketplaces broadly fell in morning trading on Monday, monitoring uncertainty in excess of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 as perfectly as disappointing US jobs details and the upcoming of Chinese tech corporations on Wall Road. Tokyo, Seoul, Hong Kong and Australia fell in morning trading. 

Coming up 

• Corporate: Paragon, Renew Holdings, CareTech (Total year final results) Babcock, Supreme, Mercia Asset Management (Interims) Ashtead, BAT, Ferguson (Trading update)
• Economics: Kantar grocery store sales (Uk), ONS M&A (Uk), Client credit rating (US)