Wealth Management news

Early Trading

UK stocks are expected to open lower this morning, following movements in Asian markets overnight, amid investor caution ahead of central bank meetings later during the week.

World Markets

Asian stocks fell overnight, as telecommunication companies led Japanese shares lower and investors awaited policy decisions this week from the Federal Reserve and the Bank of Japan.

US stocks ended the week mixed as disappointing results from Google owner Alphabet and Microsoft weighed on the technology sector. Alphabet shares were down 5.4% after the internet giant reported results on Thursday that missed expectations. Microsoft also declined, falling 7.1%, after the company reported a 25% drop in quarterly profit to $3.8bn.

UK stocks declined the most since April 5, the FTSE 100 Index fell 1.1% with 87 of its companies down. Rio Tinto Group and Glencore Plc slipped more than 2.9%, while J Sainsbury Plc advanced 1.3% after Deutsche Bank AG recommended buying shares of the grocer.

Headlines

The owner of BHS has told staff that the retailer will fall into administration today, leaving around 11,000 jobs at risk. Retail Acquisitions, the investor group that bought BHS for £1 from retail tycoon Philip Green little over a year ago, hasn’t been able to raise the £160m it had targeted to revive the fortunes of the struggling retail chain.

Almost eight decades after oil was first found in the country, officials are set to unveil Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s “Vision for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia”, a blueprint seeking to reduce the reliance on revenue from crude exports. Prince Mohammed is leading the biggest economic shakeup since the founding of Saudi Arabia in 1932, with measures that represent a radical shift for a country built on petrodollars.