London open: FTSE gains as investors eye BoE announcement

17th Sep 2026 07:43

(Sharecast News) - London stocks gained in early trade on Thursday as investors eyed the latest policy announcement from the Bank of England and mulled the Fed's decision to hikes rates by 25 basis points, as expected.

At 0830 BST, the FTSE 100 was 0.6% firmer at 10,747.28, while Brent crude was down 1.8% at $103.93 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate was 1.4% lower at $101.03.

Danske Bank noted that Fed chairman Kevin Warsh highlighted that he and the monetary policy committee still see monetary policy as accommodating growth.

"The new 2026 dot points to one more hike, in line with consensus and our expectation, while the 2027 median signals no further tightening, although eight participants still see rates rising to 4.25-4.50%, consistent with our call," Danske said. "Growth was revised slightly higher for both this year and next, while inflation expectations were broadly unchanged. The statement was largely unchanged, with only a small addition noting that domestic spending has been resilient, and there were no changes to balance sheet policy as expected.

"The risk assessment was hawkish, as no participants now see risks tilted towards weaker GDP growth or labour markets, allowing the Fed to focus more clearly on upside inflation risks, which nearly all participants continue to highlight."

On home turf, the BoE is widely expected to stand pat on interest rates at 3.75% when it announces it decision at midday.

Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club, said: "The FTSE 100 is on the front foot in early trade, with investors taking some comfort from slightly lower crude prices and the prospect of the Bank of England keeping rates on hold later today.

"But the mood across broader markets is still set to remain cautious after the Fed took a tougher line on inflation, signalling that US borrowing costs could stay higher for longer. The focus will be on whether the Bank of England will keep holding its nerve as high energy costs work their way through the economy. The hope is that higher oil and gas prices won't fire up inflation even more, given demand is hardly racing away.

"However, a hike in November still looks highly possible given the energy crunch has now entered a chronic phase. The bank set out what is deemed an adverse scenario back in July and crude prices have hit that level. However, Brent has retreated slightly, edging below $105 a barrel, offering a few crumbs of comfort, amid hopes that the East West Saudi pipeline will be repaired more quickly. Yet with the possibility of fresh attacks by Iran on the US and its allies still clear and present, energy costs are set to stay elevated."

In equity markets, clothing and homeware retailer Next rallied as it lifted its full-year profit guidance by £12m to £1.25bn and said the first half was "much better" than it originally expected, both in the UK and overseas.

Bytes Technology surged as it raised its FY27 outlook following a better-than-expected performance in the first half of the year.

Galliford Try advanced as it announced the launch of a £15m share buyback and hailed a strong full-year performance, with profit ahead of market expectations.

Drax was also in the black as it said full-year adjusted EBITDA was set to be around the top of the range of consensus estimates of £680m to £711m.

Market Movers

FTSE 100 (UKX) 10,747.28 0.55%

FTSE 250 (MCX) 24,179.43 0.45%

techMARK (TASX) 6,161.08 0.97%

FTSE 100 - Risers

National Grid (NG.) 1,139.50p 2.61%

Next (NXT) 14,870.00p 1.94%

Kingfisher (KGF) 305.60p 1.90%

Relx plc (REL) 2,573.00p 1.82%

Rolls-Royce Holdings (RR.) 1,465.80p 1.80%

Melrose Industries (MRO) 486.10p 1.77%

The Sage Group (SGE) 1,023.50p 1.74%

Barratt Redrow (BTRW) 310.60p 1.73%

BAE Systems (BA.) 2,062.00p 1.72%

Abrdn (ABDN) 243.00p 1.51%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 366.40p -0.89%

JD Sports Fashion (JD.) 75.80p -0.84%

Reckitt Benckiser Group (RKT) 5,028.00p -0.55%

Shell (SHEL) 3,570.00p -0.42%

Haleon (HLN) 339.90p -0.09%

Autotrader Group (AUTO) 499.10p -0.08%

Compass Group 11 (CPG) 31.02p -0.06%

BP (BP.) 566.00p -0.04%

RELX FINANCE BV 3.375% GTD NTS 20/03/33 (BW73) 98.64p 0.00%

Intertek Group (ITRK) 5,875.00p 0.00%

FTSE 250 - Risers

Bytes Technology Group (BYIT) 429.60p 8.26%

Taylor Wimpey (TW.) 81.48p 6.29%

Man Group (EMG) 334.00p 5.56%

Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings (AML) 34.20p 4.40%

4Imprint Group (FOUR) 4,570.00p 3.96%

Pan African Resources (PAF) 125.30p 3.81%

Helios Towers (HTWS) 208.80p 3.26%

VinaCapital Vietnam Opportunity Fund Ltd. (VOF) 441.00p 2.92%

Rathbones Group (RAT) 1,646.00p 2.62%

Drax Group (DRX) 834.00p 2.52%

FTSE 250 - Fallers

Foresight Group Holdings Limited NPV (FSG) 444.50p -4.41%

Avon Technologies (AVON) 1,666.00p -4.36%

AO World (AO.) 87.60p -3.95%

JPMorgan Emerging Markets Dividend Income (JEMI) 201.00p -3.83%

Premier Foods (PFD) 186.00p -3.38%

Schroder Asian Total Return Investment Company (ATR) 680.00p -2.86%

FirstGroup (FGP) 173.50p -2.72%

Patria Private Equity Trust (PPET) 584.00p -2.67%

IP Group (IPO) 68.90p -2.47%

PPHE Hotel Group Ltd (PPH) 1,500.00p -2.47%