The British economy likely maintained its growth momentum during the third quarter, underpinned by a rebound in manufacturing and construction. Tuesday’s figures from the Office for National Statistics revealed that industrial production gained 0.20% in August from the prior month, while construction output grew 0.60% during the same period.
However, the one disappointment metric was the country's August trade deficit ballooning to GBP 5.63 billion from an upwardly revised GBP 4.24 billion shortfall in July. Separately, a survey conducted by the British Retail Consortium found that same store retail sales increased 1.90% year-over-year in September, supported by higher food and clothing prices.
FTSE 100 futures broke above the key resistance at 7500 on greater-than-average volumes in late Tuesday trading, with the benchmark last seen around 7510.
FTSE 100 Climbs to 4-Month High
Daily Analysis - 11/10/2017