The FTSE 100 moved higher on Wednesday morning, with today’s trading session in London sandwiched by strong gains on Wall Street overnight and the US Federal Reserve’s decision on interest rates later.
AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould said: “A lot is riding on the Fed dialling back the pace of rate hikes to 25 basis points and there will also be plenty of attention on the surrounding messaging from chair Jerome Powell and his colleagues. Helping the market’s mood on Tuesday was data that revealed slowing US wage growth, another signal that inflationary pressures have peaked.
“Investors clearly hope we are getting closer to the point at which the Fed pivots away from rate rises and that it does so before too much economic pain has been inflicted.
“Entain was among the top gainers on the FTSE 100 as a winter World Cup helped draw in punters and drive earnings upgrades – though, given this is a one-off benefit, investors will want to see further progress on tapping the opportunity in North America and dealing with regulatory pressures.”
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