Source: Sharecast
At 0825 BST, the FTSE 100 was down 0.6% to 7,014.07, while the pound was up 0.2% against the dollar at 1.4077 and flat versus the euro at 1.1418.
On Monday, China hit back at US President Trump's tariffs by imposing its own tariffs of up to 25% on 128 US imports including pork and wine. China said the tariffs, which affect around $3bn of imports, were introduced to "safeguard the interests of the country and its industry" and balance the losses caused by the US tariffs.
CMC Markets analyst David Madden said: "In the grand scheme of things, China’s response hasn’t been too aggressive, but dealers fear we could be starting a long trade war. The ball is now in Trump’s in court, and traders are waiting for the US President to make the next move."
As far as technology stocks are concerned, Amazon was under pressure overnight after Trump said the technology giant is not paying its fair share of taxes.
"Jeff Bezos is the CEO of Amazon, and is also the owner of the Washington Post - which has been critical support of the Trump administration. It is possible the pressure Amazon is coming under is due to the politics of it CEO, but while it remains on Mr Trumps radar it is likely investors will steer clear of the stock," said Madden.
On the data front, Markit's manufacturing PMI for the UK is at 0930 BST. Deutsche Bank forecasts activity in March to have fallen marginally due to adverse weather conditions disrupting factory output and supply chains.
"This recent dip in manufacturing activity was corroborated by the BoE's latest business conditions survey, released this past week. Overall, however, despite weakened domestic demand, we anticipate the manufacturing sector to remain relatively strong this year, fuelled by global growth and trade."
In corporate news, Sky was trading higher as Twenty-First Century strengthened its commitments to Sky News’s funding and independence and said Walt Disney is interested in buying the news broadcaster whether or not Disney’s proposed acquisition of Fox goes ahead.
Anglo American ticked a little higher despite suspending its Minas-Rio iron ore operation in Brazil after two pipeline leaks were found last month.
AstraZeneca slipped back despite saying that US and European regulators have accepted applications for its cancer treatments, moxetumomab pasudotox and lynparza. A report in The Times that it and Shire have made millions of pounds in “secret” payments to healthcare professionals and organisations was perhaps weighing on the shares.
3i Infrastructure edged down as it said it will invest €201m to buy a 50% stake in Dutch waste treatment and disposal company Attero.
Spectris retreated after announcing the acquisition of US-based automotive test system and service provider Revolutionary Engineering for $19m.
Petrofac was weaker after being awarded a lump-sum engineering, procurement and construction contract by Vedanta Limited valued at around $233m.
BGEO was also on the back foot after its subsidiary, M2 Real Estate, acquired an 8,512 square metre land plot in Telavi, Kakheti, for $1.5m in cash, on which it plans to develop a hotel.
In broker note action, Intertek and CMC Markets were both upgraded by Shore Capital, while Barclays was lifted to 'buy' at Investec and TP Icap was upped to 'outperform' at Macquarie.
Market Movers
FTSE 100 (UKX) 7,014.07 -0.60%
FTSE 250 (MCX) 19,334.01 -0.65%
techMARK (TASX) 3,238.05 -0.79%
FTSE 100 - Risers
Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 5,962.00p 1.36%
Micro Focus International (MCRO) 998.75p 1.21%
Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,648.00p 1.02%
Sky (SKY) 1,310.00p 0.96%
Glencore (GLEN) 357.00p 0.90%
Barclays (BARC) 207.85p 0.65%
Anglo American (AAL) 1,671.20p 0.61%
Antofagasta (ANTO) 925.80p 0.52%
Fresnillo (FRES) 1,274.00p 0.43%
BHP Billiton (BLT) 1,407.40p 0.27%
FTSE 100 - Fallers
Scottish Mortgage Inv Trust (SMT) 431.99p -2.31%
Standard Life Aberdeen (SLA) 351.90p -2.17%
Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,600.50p -1.99%
GKN (GKN) 453.80p -1.99%
Rentokil Initial (RTO) 266.90p -1.77%
Reckitt Benckiser Group (RB.) 5,928.00p -1.76%
Ashtead Group (AHT) 1,906.50p -1.73%
BAE Systems (BA.) 572.00p -1.62%
Smith (DS) (SMDS) 463.00p -1.61%
G4S (GFS) 244.10p -1.61%
FTSE 250 - Risers
Fisher (James) & Sons (FSJ) 1,604.00p 2.04%
Renewi (RWI) 76.50p 2.00%
NewRiver REIT (NRR) 292.79p 1.66%
TI Fluid Systems (TIFS) 266.00p 1.53%
McCarthy & Stone (MCS) 146.60p 1.45%
Rank Group (RNK) 209.50p 1.45%
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels (MLC) 544.00p 1.30%
Mitchells & Butlers (MAB) 252.22p 1.13%
Stobart Group Ltd. (STOB) 223.11p 0.95%
Riverstone Energy Limited (RSE) 1,203.00p 0.92%
FTSE 250 - Fallers
Hikma Pharmaceuticals (HIK) 1,172.00p -3.02%
Fidelity China Special Situations (FCSS) 232.95p -2.53%
BTG (BTG) 660.50p -2.29%
Capita (CPI) 140.80p -2.26%
Monks Inv Trust (MNKS) 745.95p -2.23%
Polar Capital Technology Trust (PCT) 1,064.00p -2.21%
Woodford Patient Capital Trust (WPCT) 78.76p -2.16%
JPMorgan American Inv Trust (JAM) 370.50p -2.11%
F&C Global Smaller Companies (FCS) 1,274.00p -2.00%
TR Property Inv Trust (TRY) 375.00p -1.96%