Must read: miners lead FTSE 100 lower, Rachel Reeves, gold
ii’s head of investment rounds up the morning’s big news.
4th November 2025 08:52
by Victoria Scholar from interactive investor
GLOBAL MARKETS
Risk-off sentiment is gripping markets at the European open, with the Stoxx 600 down over 1% and the DAX down 1.5%. This follows declines in Asia, with Nikkei shedding 1.7% and the Kospi snapping a four-day winning streak. Most stocks on the FTSE 100 are in the red, with miners Antofagasta and Anglo American leading the declines.
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In corporate news, Hugo Boss AG (XETRA:BOSS) reported a decline in third-quarter sales and anticipates full-year results at the lower end of its expectations. Shares are under pressure this morning, dragging other retailers like Frasers Group (LSE:FRAS) and JD Sports Fashion (LSE:JD.) with it.
In an unusual address ahead of this month’s Autumn Budget, Chancellor Rachel Reeves tried to prepare voters for tax hikes by laying out the UK’s economic challenges. She talked about how Tory-era austerity hurt years of capital investment and how productivity performance is weaker than previously estimated. She said inflation is still too high and interest rates are still a constraint and government borrowing costs have increased. Reeves also said her commitment to the fiscal rules is iron clad, pushing 10-year and 30-year bond yields lower.
In Asia, the Reserve Bank of Australia kept its cash rate at 3.6% in November, holding borrowing costs at a more than two-year low. Markets in Asia closed lower amid global risk-off sentiment.
US futures are pointing lower, with S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures down over 1% each, following gains on Monday. A tie-up between OpenAI and Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) fuelled the AI excitement. However, the US ISM manufacturing reading for October came in below expectations.
In commodities, gold has fallen below $4,000 an ounce after markets reduced their probability of a December Federal Reserve rate cut from 90% last week to around 65% this week. After rising yesterday after OPEC+’s announcement, oil prices are under pressure, with WTI and Brent both giving back some gains.
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