London pre-open: Stocks seen down as investors mull jobs data

(Sharecast News) - London stocks were set to fall at the open on Tuesday following a downbeat session in Asia, as investors mulled the latest UK jobs data. The FTSE 100 was called to open down around 35 points.

Figures released earlier by the Office for National Statistics showed the unemployment rate was steady in the three months to October, while pay growth picked up.

The unemployment rate came in at 4.3%, unchanged from the previous three-month period.

Meanwhile, average pay, including and excluding bonuses, rose 5.2% per year. This compares to 4.9% growth for regular earnings in the previous three months, and 4.4% for total earnings.

Ashley Webb, UK economist at Capital Economics, said: "Overall, today's data release will do little to shift the Bank's focus away from worrying about high inflation to more towards worrying about weak activity and leaves it looking even more likely that the Bank will keep interest rates on hold at 4.75% on Thursday.

"That will especially be the case if tomorrow's data release shows that CPI inflation rose further than the Bank expected in November as we anticipate."

In corporate news, Bunzl flagged 2024 revenue growth of about 3% at constant exchange rates, driven by acquisitions despite slight declines in underlying revenue, with adjusted operating profit set to show strong growth.

The FTSE 100 firm said in a trading update that for 2025, it anticipated robust revenue growth and a stable operating margin, supported by higher-margin acquisitions and modest underlying gains, while continuing its £700m annual investment strategy and expanding its share buyback programme.

It noted its recent acquisitions, including the UK-based C&C Group and France's Comodis, as strengthening both its pipeline and regional market presence.

Hollywood Bowl reported a rise in annual revenues, but took a £5m impairment on its mini-golf operations which hit profits.

The bowling centre operator said sales rose 7% to £230m while pre-tax profit fell 5.2% to £42.8m. It also expects a £1.2m hit from extra taxes introduced in the last Budget, but said it was "well placed" to mitigate the extra costs.