London pre-open: FTSE to inch higher amid global tensions

21st Jul 2014 07:45

A small rise in predicted for the FTSE this morning, as investors gear up for a busy week of updates from London's blue chips.City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open around three points above Friday's close of 6,749.45.Investors will be keeping a close eye on retail giant Tesco, which has announced the departure of its Chief Executive Officer following a profit warning. Meanwhile, global conflict remains very much in focus as tensions continue to escalate between Israeli and Palestinian militants, and between Russia and Ukraine powers. Over the weekend, calls came from the UN Security Council for a ceasefire between Israeli and Palestinian forces, which are currently engaged in a deadly battle in Gaza. Meanwhile, the UK's Prime Minister, David Cameron, signalled his support for additional sanctions to be made against Russia, and will today inform MPs about the steps being taken to gain "unfettered access" to the crash site in Ukraine. Tensions between Russia and Ukraine have escalated as the two nations pointed blame towards each other over the downing of a Malaysia Airlines plane in Ukraine, on Thursday, which killed all 298 people on board. The White House thinks it likely that the passenger aircraft was brought down by a ground-to-air missile fired from within rebel territory. Some earlier speculation had even raised the possibility of the deadly shot having come from Russian anti-aircraft missile batteries located near the border between both countries. Back in the UK, and in this morning's company news, retail giant Tesco announced the resignation of its boss Philip Clarke as it issued a profit warning after a "challenging" second quarter. Clarke, who was appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in 2011 and has been on the board since 1998, "agreed [...] that this is the appropriate moment to hand over to a new leader with fresh perspectives and a new profile", the company said today. Tesco said that Dave Lewis, a director at BSkyB who is also the President of Unilever's Personal Care division, will succeed Clarke as CEO in October.Sage Group has agreed a deal to acquire Exact Software Deutschland, the German payroll business of Exact Holding, for £12.87m, a move that is expected to transform the group's own payroll business in Germany. The transaction is set to increase its payroll revenue to approximately €30m. NR