UK shares were set to open lower on the last day of a tumultuous trading year as fears over the spread of Covid cases in China combined with a lifting of border restrictions by Beijing continued to spook investors.
With the local market set for a half-day ahead of the New Year holiday, the FTSE 100 was seen opening 0.29% lower to close out a 12 months that has seen Russia’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine, which in turn helped to fuel post-Covid pandemic inflation, which pushed global interest rates higher, which added up to a battering for equities. The Footsie is set to post a gain for the the year of around 1.7%.
US stocks thumbed their collective nose at 2022 with a rally on Thursday as investors went bargain hunting. Crude oil prices fell as a surge of Covid cases in China exacerbated fears of global economic downturn.
There was no major corporate news to report. The UK government was still prevaricating over whether to demand negative Covid test results from an expected influx of travellers from China. The US, Italy and Japan have already imposed the requirement.
