London pre-open: Stocks seen higher; Kingfisher narrows profit guidance

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were set to rise at the open on Monday, having racked up strong gains at the end of the previous week. The FTSE 100 was called to open around 11 points higher.

Looking to the rest of the week, Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, said the market "will get a timely update on retail sales".

"The CBI reported sales data for November will be released on Tuesday. The market is expecting a decline in reported sales, which suggests that retailers remain pessimistic in the important run up to Christmas," she said.

"The Lloyds Business Barometer is released on Friday. It is expected to decline further in November, as the business world gives a thumbs down to the UK's budget. Weak consumer confidence is proving to be a thorn in the UK economy's side. If the government wants to boost growth, then it may need to work on boosting business confidence."

In corporate news, Anglo American said it has agreed to sell the portfolio of steelmaking coal mines that it operates in Australia to Peabody Energy for $3.77bn in cash as part of its pivot to be a copper, premium iron ore and crop nutrients business.

The deal follows the mining giant's sale of its interest in the Jellinbah coal mine in Queensland, Australia for $1.1bn earlier this month.

B&Q and Screwfix owner Kingfisher nudged down the midpoint of its full-year profit guidance after a mixed third quarter, in which group sales fell 0.6%.

The company said 2024 adjusted pre-tax profit is expected to come in between £510m and £540m, compared with a previous forecast range of £510m to £550m.

AstraZeneca announced that a phase three trial showed that 'Truqap', or capivasertib, combined with abiraterone and androgen deprivation therapy (ADT), significantly improved radiographic progression-free survival in patients with PTEN-deficient metastatic hormone-sensitive prostate cancer.

The FTSE 100 pharmaceutical giant said it was the first AKT inhibitor combination to show clinical benefit in the specific cancer subtype. While overall survival data remained immature, it said early results suggested a positive trend, with the trial continuing to assess that key secondary endpoint.