London pre-open: Stocks seen muted as investors await next catalyst

8th Sep 2026 07:36

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were set for a muted open on Tuesday as oil prices remained higher, and as investors eyed the next catalyst in the form of the US inflation reading due at the end of the week.

The FTSE 100 was called to open around six points lower. At 0730, Brent crude was up 1.8% at $98.77 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate was 2.9% higher at $94.09.

Investors will be mulling the latest trade figures from China, which showed that exports grew by 25% year-on-year in August, up from 23.9% in July and broadly in line with market expectations. Year-to-date, exports are now up 19.3% year-on-year to $2.92tn.

ING said "the data shows that external demand remains strong, especially in China's key export growth areas".

Import growth also ticked up slightly in August to 28.2% from a revised 27.6% year-on-year in July. ING said this was somewhat softer than expectations for 31% growth "but nonetheless remained strong".

On home shores, industry data released earlier showed that UK retail sales growth eased in August as summer spending cooled, with discretionary spending hit as consumers tightened their belts.

According to the latest BRC-KPMG retail sales monitor, total retail sales rose 0.7% year-on-year following 3.1% growth in August 2025. This was below the 12-month average growth of 1.6%.

Food sales were up 2.6% following 4.7% growth a year earlier, while non-food sales fell 0.8% year-on-year in August, versus 1.8% growth the year before.

In-store non-food sales declined by 1.2% last month following 1.3% growth in August 2025, while online non-food sales fell 0.2%, having growth 2.7% in August 2025.

Harvir Dhillon, lead economist at the British Retail Consortium, said: "August was a disappointing month for retail sales. Despite pockets of growth, particularly in some food categories, overall performance was below the average for the past year. With the cost of households bills rising, and set to rise further, many shoppers have clearly been tightening their belts. This was particularly true for discretionary spending, as big-ticket purchases like furniture and household appliances declined and consumers opted to instead treat themselves to smaller luxuries in health and beauty.

"As summer spending cools, all eyes turn to the Autumn Budget. Retailers are being hit by a double whammy of rising costs and slowing consumer demand. The new government has put high streets at the centre of their vision for better economic growth and the upcoming Budget is an opportunity to deliver on this commitment. Taking action on business rates and energy costs would help support retail investment in local communities while delivering value for consumers."

In corporate news, tech provider Computacenter said full-year earnings would be "significantly ahead" of forecasts after it almost doubled interim profits on the back of a strong performance in North America.

Pre-tax profit for the six months to 30 June rose 87% to £152.4m. The company now expects adjusted earnings to be at least £380m compared with a company compiled consensus of £341m.

Homeware retailer Dunelm posted a solid set of preliminary results for the 52 weeks ended 27 June, with the group highlighting resilient trading, strong cash generation and the launch of a new three‑year growth plan.

Dunelm said total sales rose 3.1% to £1.83bn, digital participation increased two percentage points to 42%, and gross margins edged up ten basis points to 52.5%. Pre-tax profits were unchanged at £211m, while free cash flow jumped £27.4m to £154.8m.