London pre-open: Stocks seen higher ahead of payrolls

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were set to rise at the open on Friday following a solid session on Wall Street, as investors eyed the release of the all-important non-farm payrolls report. The FTSE 100 was called to open 33 points higher at 7,479.

CMC Markets analyst Michael Hewson said: "Having seen such a strong US close, European markets look set to open higher as we look towards this afternoon's US jobs report.

"Expectations are for today's October payrolls to come in at 185k, which has been the estimate of choice over the last three months.

"Most of the new jobs being added have been in services over the last few months and today's ISM services data could well offer further insights into that after the payroll's numbers have been released."

The payrolls report, unemployment rate and average earnings are all due at 1230 GMT.

Before that, the S&P Global CIPS UK services PMI for October is scheduled for release at 0930 GMT.

Industry data out earlier showed that retail footfall fell sharply in October as heavy rainfall across the UK kept shoppers at home.

According to the latest BRC-Sensormatic IQ Footfall Monitor, total UK footfall fell 5.7% year-on-year in October, compounding September's 2.9% decline.

Within that, high street footfall was down 4.6%, while retail parks and shopping centres saw declines of 4.3% and 7.3%, respectively.

Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the British Retail Consortium, said: "Umbrellas were up as heavy rainfall descended across the UK in October, leading many shoppers to stay at home.

"As inflationary pressures on households begin to ease, some people are shopping around slightly less, braving the rain only to make their final purchases."

However, she added: "While consumer confidence may be higher than 2022, it is still very weak. The economic landscape remains tough, with input prices and cost pressures above normal levels."

Andy Sumpter, EMEA retail consultant at Sensormatic Solutions, said: "Shopper traffic regionally [was] impacted by Storm Babet, which delivered the most severe and widespread disruptive weather of the year to date.

"The ongoing cost-of-living pressure continues, despite inflationary easing.

"As we head into the critical Christmas purchasing period, the focus [for retailers] must be on optimising their online presence or creating engaging experiences that can entice passing trade in store to be converted into sales."

Corporate news was scarce, but consumer electronics retailer Currys said it has agreed to sell its entire Greek and Cypriot division for €200m (£175m), in a move which it says will simplify its business model and free up cash.

The company is selling Dixons South East Europe, trading as Kotsovolos, to Public Power Corporation.

The sale, which is still subject to approval by Currys' shareholders, "has strong strategic rationale and represents an attractive outcome", allowing the company to focus on its larger markets of the UK and Ireland, and Nordics regions.