Equity rebound stalls after Trump comments

In mid-morning trading the FTSE 100 is down 60 points, while comments from President Trump have already started to unwind a small rebound in US futures.

• FTSE hit by trade war fears

• GBP bolstered by data and election polling

• Trump pushes back on trade deal hopes

The FTSE 100 stands out this morning, but for the wrong reasons, remaining firmly in the red while markets on the continent move higher. A slew of heavyweight stocks are on the back foot, with strength in sterling not helping matters either. The fall in global firms like BHP and Reckitt will be partly linked to the sudden outburst of trade tensions, with the US yesterday seemingly engaged in an attempt to annoy almost all its trade partners at once. This will revive fears of slowing global growth, with the FTSE 100’s mining contingent taking it on the chin as usual. Plus, we have a better-than-expected UK construction PMI figure, along with fresh indications that the Conservatives are retaining a solid lead over Labour in the polls. It wasn’t supposed to happen this way for Labour – by now a repeat of 2017 was supposed to be underway, but the average poll lead remains in double-digits. Anecdotal evidence from focus groups has also bolstered the Conservative cause, even if there is still all to play for over the next week or so.

Trade concerns will likely lead headlines for the rest of the week, and a nascent bounce in US futures has been hit by Trump comments already this morning. In classic Trump style, the president has argued that he might wait until after the US election for a trade deal, something likely to go down very badly in markets. Investors look to have been suckered into believing the trade deal rhetoric again, which raises the prospect that Monday’s sell-off may turn into something more substantial.

Ahead of the open, we expect the Dow to start at 27,751, down 32 points on last night’s close.