Source: Sharecast
At 0840 BST, the FTSE 100 was flat at 8,605.43.
Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "Stocks stateside have gone on a run as more trade deals are inked, but the baton hasn’t been passed to the FTSE 100, which is flat in early trade.
"The more cautious sentiment may partly have been prompted by concerns that interest rates look set to stay higher for longer in the UK. Bank of England policymakers have been striking notes of wariness about the risk that inflation may stay stubbornly above target. Market expectations for further rate cuts this year have cooled off, with only one to two further reductions being priced in.
"Decision makers are worried that pay growth remains steamy, which could have a knock-on effect on broader price rises. In the three months to March, pay growth including bonuses, came in at 5.5%, above market forecasts. Huw Pill, the chief economist at the Bank of England, voted against cutting rates last week, favouring keeping them unchanged, and other members have stressed they are wary about going too fast."
In equity markets, Mondi surged after an upgrade to ‘overweight’ from ‘neutral’ at JPMorgan, while Hikma rallied after an initiation at ‘outperform’ by BNPP Exane.
Burberry jumped as investors welcomed the luxury brand’s turnaround plans. Burberry said it swung to a full-year loss amid a slump in revenue and that 1,700 jobs could be at risk as part of its ongoing turnaround plan.
On the downside, Imperial Brands tumbled as its first-half adjusted operating profit missed expectations and the company announced the retirement of chief executive Stefan Bomhard, who will be succeeded by Lukas Paravicini.
Spirax was also in the red as the manufacturing group delivered a cautious outlook, saying that the uncertainty caused by trade tariffs is impacting customers' capital investment decisions.
Compass fell as the catering firm held on to full-year guidance, which points to a slight slowdown in underlying revenue and profit growth, despite a strong first half.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 8,605.43 0.03%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 20,845.33 0.41%
techMARK (TASX) 4,688.43 0.34%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Mondi (MNDI) 1,222.00p 2.82%
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,998.00p 2.62%
BAE Systems (BA.) 1,710.50p 2.21%
Entain (ENT) 780.80p 2.20%
Kingfisher (KGF) 312.30p 1.76%
Marks & Spencer Group (MKS) 351.40p 1.74%
Airtel Africa (AAF) 171.90p 1.66%
Beazley (BEZ) 886.50p 1.37%
M&G (MNG) 219.70p 1.29%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 354.30p 1.29%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,695.00p -6.75%
Spirax Group (SPX) 6,255.00p -5.01%
Compass Group (CPG) 2,514.00p -3.53%
CRH (CDI) (CRH) 7,384.00p -2.17%
Flutter Entertainment (DI) (FLTR) 18,120.00p -1.63%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 4,393.00p -1.33%
Croda International (CRDA) 3,130.00p -1.14%
Experian (EXPN) 3,943.00p -0.98%
Pearson (PSON) 1,170.50p -0.85%
easyJet (EZJ) 540.00p -0.74%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Burberry Group (BRBY) 893.80p 8.10%
AO World (AO.) 99.20p 4.42%
Volution Group (FAN) 641.00p 4.23%
Senior (SNR) 166.00p 4.14%
Lancashire Holdings Limited (LRE) 618.00p 3.69%
Trainline (TRN) 262.00p 3.39%
Foresight Solar Fund Limited (FSFL) 78.70p 2.61%
Ferrexpo (FXPO) 68.10p 2.41%
Ithaca Energy (ITH) 143.30p 2.36%
Ibstock (IBST) 192.60p 2.34%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Pacific Horizon Inv Trust (PHI) 580.00p -2.85%
HarbourVest Global Private Equity Limited A Shs (HVPE) 2,460.00p -1.80%
Hochschild Mining (HOC) 276.00p -1.36%
C&C Group (CDI) (CCR) 147.00p -1.34%
Endeavour Mining (EDV) 2,102.00p -1.22%
Allianz Technology Trust (ATT) 397.00p -1.12%
TP Icap Group (TCAP) 265.00p -1.12%
BlackRock World Mining Trust (BRWM) 483.00p -1.02%
JPMorgan European Discovery Trust (JEDT) 526.00p -0.94%
Hilton Food Group (HFG) 868.00p -0.91%