London Stocks Set for Slide as Wall Street Losses Linger

London stocks are set to slide at the open on Thursday following heavy losses on Wall Street. The FTSE 100 is called to open down around 77 points. This comes after the US Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged at 3.5% to 3.75%, as expected, but with three policymakers voting for a 25 basis point hike.

Rabobank says speculation about a rate hike will resurge in the coming weeks, but still thinks the most likely outcome is that the Fed remains on hold through 2026.

The Bank of England is expected to leave its base rate unchanged at 3.75% when it makes its policy announcement later today. ING says the rise in energy prices poses a fresh dilemma for the BoE, but doesn't think the bar for a rate hike has been met.