UK GDP Beats Expectations as Investors Eye US Inflation Data

The FTSE 100 is expected to open around 10 points higher on Friday as investors react to better-than-expected UK GDP data.

The Office for National Statistics reported that the UK economy grew 0.4% in July, beating expectations of no growth.

The services sector drove this growth, with computer programming being the largest contributor, and research and development also making a significant contribution.

However, production and construction saw slower growth at 0.2% and 0.1%, respectively.

Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, noted that today's inflation data from the US will be the last in a series of numbers pointing to heated price pressures in the country.