Market Analysis

London's FTSE opened slightly lower on Friday following a strong British retail sales report, but remained on track to achieve its first weekly gain in six weeks.

By 7:10 GMT, the FTSE 100 had dipped 0.1%, while the mid-cap FTSE 250 rose 0.1%, poised to record its first weekly gain in four weeks.

British retail sales volumes surged by 2.9% in May, sharply recovering from a revised 1.8% decline in April. Economists had predicted a 1.5% increase in sales volumes.

This data underscored the resilience of British consumers, leading traders to take a cautious stance ahead of the purchasing managers' index (PMI) figures expected later in the day.

Meanwhile, investor sentiment in the UK is gradually improving after the Bank of England suggested on Thursday that an interest rate cut in August is a possibility. Markets are currently pricing in a 50-50 chance for such a cut.

Among individual stocks, United Utilities (OTC) climbed 2.1% following an upgrade by J.P. Morgan from "neutral" to "overweight."

Britvic soared 15.2% after the soft drinks maker rejected a revised unsolicited cash offer from Carlsberg (CSE) Group.

Paraphrasing text from "Reuters" all rights reserved by the original author.