FTSE 100 and Europe up as US builds on record rally in early trade

That's all from us for today. Head over to our US site for more market moving news.

From our US team:

Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell appeared before the House Financial Services Committee on Wednesday, following his testimony in the Senate on Tuesday.

The central bank leader largely stuck to his script, repeating the remarks he made to the Senate. Powell said he's encouraged by evidence of cooler inflation, but that the Fed still needs more "good data" to be confident that inflation is moving toward its 2% target.

He added that in order to cut interest rates, the Fed needs "greater confidence that inflation is moving sustainably towards 2%." Although data from the first half of the year didn't support that, more recent inflation readings have been encouraging.

Rate-cut hopes have remained intact as a result, with traders still placing bets that the Fed will lower interest rates twice this year. "We’re increasingly confident in our forecast that the Fed will cut rates in September," Oxford Economics chief US economist Ryan Sweet wrote on Tuesday.

From our US team:

Samsung on Wednesday took the wraps off of its latest foldable smartphones during its Unpacked event in Paris, France. The Google (GOOG, GOOGL) Android-powered phones, the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6, are a key differentiator for Samsung in its long-running battle with Apple (AAPL) for global smartphone supremacy.

Samsung, like Apple, is making its generative AI offerings a major selling point for both of the phones. Starting at $1,099 for the Z Flip 6 and $1,899 for the Z Fold 6, both phones are $100 more expensive than their predecessors, putting them squarely in the premium smartphone category. To put that into perspective, Apple’s iPhone 15 Pro starts at $999, while its larger Pro Max starts at $1,199. Samsung’s own S24 and S24+ start at $799 and $999, respectively. Its high-end S24 Ultra costs $1,299.

Samsung is marketing its Flip 6 and Fold 6 as more than just foldable phones. It’s positioning them as powerful generative AI-capable devices thanks to its Galaxy AI platform. The software, which Samsung debuted alongside its S24 lineup earlier this year, provides a host of generative AI features ranging from real-time translation and conversation capabilities to photo editing tools and productivity options.

Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG has the latest:

On the risk of a correction in financial markets, Pill says: "What goes up might come down".

"It's good to look at what the implications of that might be."

"I think the MPC, because of the wicked problem nature of the inflation challenge, we can't just look at the tail."

Pill cites Goldilocks again — getting the balance right is crucial.

Bank of England economist Huw Pill speaking at Asia house plans to say of inflation that meeting the CPI 2% target should be done in a way that lats. It is "not enough to meet the target in a transitory or fleeting way," he is set to say.

"Given the famous long and variable lags in monetary policy transmission, this requires that the MPC adopt a medium-term orientation and forward-looking approach in its formulation of monetary policy. That naturally points in the direction of placing an inflation forecast close to the centre of its policy discussion, as has indeed been the case for many years."

This, of course, isn't a new line. But notable that the BoE isn't looking for "quick wins" in bringing down the interest rate.

UK train station caterer SSP Group, which operates brands such as Starbucks (SBUX) and M&S (MKS.L), surged more than 11% in early trade in London on Wednesday, as the company reported a positive third-quarter trading update.

Group sales were up 16% on last year, with like-for-like sales growth of 6%, net contract gains of 5% and a contribution from acquisitions of 5%.

The sales bump was led by an increasing demand for leisure travel, and its full-year expectations remain unchanged.

Pub chain Wetherspoons said in quarterly results on Wednesday it would look to sell off more properties despite growing sales, as it adjusts its strategy towards larger, newer pubs.

It saw a bump in sales of 5.8% in the 10 weeks to 7 July 2024, compared to the same period last year. In the year-to-date, it said like-for-like sales increased by 7.7%.

It will look to sell 10 more pubs, on top of the 26 already sold from the estate.

"The gradual recovery in sales and profits, following the pandemic, has continued in the current financial year. Total sales are, again, at record levels, with fewer pubs," said CEO Tim Martin. "Sales per pub are approximately 21% higher than pre-pandemic levels, which has helped to compensate for the very substantial increase in costs.”

Martin also called on the government to implement "tax equality" between pubs and supermarkets.

Asian stocks were mixed on Wednesday, with the Nikkei (^N225) hitting record highs in Japan.

The Hang Seng (^HSI) dipped 0.3% in Hong Kong while the SSE Composite (000001.SS) fell 0.7%.

The moves came following mixed China CPI and PPI inflation data. Consumer inflation slowed, whilst producer prices slowed at the slowest rate in 16 months, CPI rose 0.2% vs 0.4% expected, PPI fell 0.8%.

Japanese PPI rose to 2.9%, though the month-on-month figure was a little below forecast at 0.2%. The yen weakened, edging down towards last week’s four-decade low.

US indexes painted a mixed picture overnight after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's testimony at the Senate on Tuesday. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) was in the green for a sixth consecutive session, while the Dow (^DJI) dipped 0.1% and the Nasdaq (^IXIC) rose slightly.

It was the S&P 500's longest winning streak since January, though, as Powell highlighted the cooling jobs market in questioning. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq rose to record highs.

Traders are now pricing in two US rate cuts in 2024.

Hello from London. Starting the blog slightly later today, so there are already a couple of hours of trading to look back at.

This morning we've had results from home developer Barratt and pub chain JD Wetherspoon.

Looking ahead, there's a speech by Bank of England chief economist Huw Pill on the slate.

Let's get to it.