Must read: FTSE 100 airlines a drag, Diploma, Ocado, UK jobs
ii’s head of investment rounds up the morning’s big news.
17th July 2025 08:41
by Victoria Scholar from interactive investor
GLOBAL MARKETS
The FTSE 100 is staging gains, with Diploma (LSE:DPLM) leading the charge after it upgraded its full-year organic growth outlook to 10%. However, the airlines are weighing on the blue-chip index with easyJet (LSE:EZJ) at the bottom of the basket, dragging International Consolidated Airlines Group SA (LSE:IAG) down with it.
Within the FTSE 250, Ocado Group (LSE:OCDO) is at the top of the mid-cap basket, with a double digit percentage gain after reporting a rise in underlying first half earnings and reiterating its guidance.
- Invest with ii: What is a Managed ISA? | Open a Managed ISA | Transfer an ISA
US futures are pointing to a mixed open after markets see-sawed on Wednesday after Trump suggested he could fire Federal Reserve Chair Jay Powell but later went back on the idea. Earnings continue to dominate, with Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) kicking off results from the tech sector today. The big surprise from the financial sector so far this earnings season has been an improvement in investment banking fees, particularly for The Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) and JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM).
UK UNEMPLOYMENT
In the three months to May, the UK unemployment rate hit 4.7%, ahead of expectations and its highest since 2021. Regular pay excluding bonuses rose by 5% year-on-year to a near three-year low. The number of payrolled employees decreased by 0.1% in June, down by 41,000 and the number of vacancies fell by 56,000 on the quarter to 727,000 in April to June, the 36th quarterly drop in vacancies.
Amid the domestic and international economic uncertainty, employers are taking a cautious approach, refraining from taking on the fixed costs of extra staff where possible. Data this week paints a rather gloomy picture for the UK economy with disappointing GDP, inflation and employment data.
Although inflation came in hotter-than-expected, the Bank of England is expected to look through this, focusing instead on the deteriorating growth outlook and jobs market weakness, with the central bank still likely to cut rates by 25 basis points next month and the same again before year-end.
These articles are provided for information purposes only. Occasionally, an opinion about whether to buy or sell a specific investment may be provided by third parties. The content is not intended to be a personal recommendation to buy or sell any financial instrument or product, or to adopt any investment strategy as it is not provided based on an assessment of your investing knowledge and experience, your financial situation or your investment objectives. The value of your investments, and the income derived from them, may go down as well as up. You may not get back all the money that you invest. The investments referred to in this article may not be suitable for all investors, and if in doubt, an investor should seek advice from a qualified investment adviser.
Full performance can be found on the company or index summary page on the interactive investor website. Simply click on the company's or index name highlighted in the article.