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The FTSE 100 pulled back at the end of a turbulent week as traders await the latest US labour market update.
In the currency space, eyes were on the euro as it slipped below the $1.01 mark, edging ever-closer to parity with the US dollar.
The euro stood at $1.0082 early Friday in London, down from $1.0172 at the European equities close on Thursday.
A strong US jobs report later could see the euro slip below dollar parity for the first time since 2002.
‘$1.00 is probably the biggest psychological level around in FX and fireworks look likely. The options market would size up a worst-case outcome as something like $0.95 over the next month,’ said ING in a recent note.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 index was down 12.71 points, or 0.2%, at 7,176.37. London's flagship index is up 0.1% so far this week, with strong gains on Wednesday and Thursday reversing a hefty sell-off on Tuesday.
The mid-cap FTSE 250 index was down 54.05 points, or 0.3%, at 18,821.48. The AIM All-Share index was flat at 880.47.
The Cboe UK 100 index was down 0.4% to 715.11. The Cboe 250 was down 0.1% at 16,384.51, while the Cboe Small Companies was 0.1% higher at 13,214.28.
In mainland Europe, the CAC 40 stock index in Paris was down 0.2%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was down 0.3%.
In China, the Shanghai Composite ended down 0.3%, while the Hang Seng in Hong Kong was 0.3% higher. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney ended up 0.5%.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 closed 0.1% higher, well off session highs.
‘Former prime minister Abe was shot at around 11:30 am,’ in the country's western region of Nara, chief cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters.
‘One man, believed to be the shooter, has been taken into custody. The condition of former prime minister Abe is currently unknown.’
Local media including national broadcaster NHK and the Kyodo news agency said the former prime minister appeared to be in ‘cardiorespiratory arrest,’ a term often used in Japan before a feared death can be officially confirmed by a coroner.
Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JP¥135.86 early Friday UK time, down from JP¥135.91 late Thursday, but up from an overnight low of JP¥135.36.
The pound was quoted at $1.1984 early Friday in London, down from $1.2002 late Thursday.
The economic events calendar on Friday has the closely-watched US jobs report for June at 1330 BST.
Employment growth has been forecast to slow to 268,000 jobs in June, from 390,000 in May, according to consensus cited by FXStreet.
Focus elsewhere remains on politics in the UK, as would-be contenders to claim the Tory crown assess whether they have the support to mount leadership bids following the dramatic resignation of Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday.
With no clear frontrunner, around a dozen potential candidates including backbenchers as well as ministers are thought to be weighing a challenge.
Meanwhile, there is growing pressure from senior Conservatives for Johnson to immediately step down as prime minister and not wait for the election of a new leader.
At a meeting of the Cabinet on Thursday, Johnson sought to reassure ministers he would not seek to implement any new policies in his remaining time in office and would leave any major tax and spending decisions to the next prime minister.
But after he made clear his frustration at the way he had been forced out by an unprecedented wave of ministerial resignations, many in the party remain deeply suspicious of his intentions.
In London, Anglo American lost 0.9% in early trade, Antofagasta gave back 1.0% and Rio Tinto shed 0.8% as miners held back the FTSE 100.
Unite Group rose 1.1% after it said room sales for the upcoming academic year are ahead of pre-virus levels at this stage.
Unite hailed its ‘good progress in sales’ during the second quarter, noting decent demand from both domestic and international students.
Unite said 90% of its rooms are now sold for the 2022/23 academic year, compared to 81% at this stage a year earlier. It is also ahead of the 89% at this stage ahead of the 2019/20 year, prior to the onset of the pandemic.
Unite added: ‘We have also seen positive progress in pricing, particularly in the second half of the sales cycle as concerns around the impact of the Omicron Covid-19 variant have eased. This progress has been driven by inflation-linked rental uplifts for our multi-year nomination agreements and the strength of demand for direct-let beds. Given the strong sales performance to date, we are increasingly confident in delivering occupancy of 97% for the 2022/23 academic year and achieving rental growth at or just above the top end of our guidance of 3.0-3.5%.’
The company is mindful of the Covid-19 situation in China and the potential of tighter travel curbs for international students. At the moment, however, there are no Covid-19 restrictions in UK higher education.
Vistry added 1.3% as it reported a strong first half, though it cautioned on planning worries.
‘Demand has been strong across all areas of the business and our forward sales positions further strengthened,’ Chief Executive Greg Fitzgerald commented.
‘Whilst mindful of the wider economic uncertainties, we are positive on the outlook for the group and expect to see significant margin progression in the full year.’
Adjusted pretax profit is expected to be at the top end of market forecasts, around £417.0 million. Its adjusted gross margin is expected to be ahead of its 23% target.
First half completions increased to 3,219 units from 3,126 a year earlier.
Vistry said planning ‘remains the single most significant constraint on the business’. It noted a tricky political and regulatory environment, particularly around nutrient neutrality.
At the other end of the FTSE 250, Marks & Spencer lost 3.4% after Goldman Sachs cut the high street retailer to 'sell' from 'neutral'.
Science in Sport shares fell 25% as the sports nutrition firm said revenue growth in the first half of 2022 was slower than expected.
Revenue for the half-year period climbed 12% year-on-year. It expects growth to improve in the second half, due to ‘improved pricing’ and as investments in its brands and digital channels start to pay off.
It also added that it expects to be hit by £3.2 million of costs or margin loss, based on its current assessment of external factors.
‘This includes raw material price increases, fuel and logistics costs, people retention costs, and closure of our Russian business,’ the company explained.
Brent oil was quoted at $104.50 a barrel, down from $105.66. Gold stood at $1,741.32 an ounce, down from $1,742.44.
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