The FTSE 100 Futures is trading at 7,374.20 up with +0.32% percent or +23.20 point. The CAC 40 Futures is trading at 6,083.00  up with +0.26% percent or +15.50 point. The DAX Futures is trading at 13,739.50  with +0.31% percent or +42.00 point. The EURO Stoxx 50 Futures trading at 3,849.00 with +0.23% percent or +9.00 point.

TODAY’S FACTORS AND EVENTS

Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at IG, said: “A warning from Apple has put the cat among the pigeons and provided the first real evidence that the coronavirus will have ramifications beyond China. Markets had been rubbing along in expectation that stimulus from China would smooth over any bumps in the road. But Apple’s warning upends those forecasts and suggests that we will see other companies reporting warnings.”

On home shores, sterling was up 0.26% against the US dollar at 1.2034 after data from the Office for National Statistics showed that employment rose to a record high in the fourth quarter of 2019 but wage growth slowed.

YESTERDAY ACTIVITY

For the day the FTSE 100 closed at 7,382.01  with a loss of –0.69% percent or –51.24  point. France’s CAC  40 closed at 6,056.82  with a loss of –0.48%percent or –29.12  point.Germany’s DAX closed at 13,681.19  with a loss of –0.75% percent or –102.70  point.

WORLD MARKETS

For the day the Dow is trading at 29,232.19 with a loss of –0.56% percent or –165.89   point. The S&P 500 is trading at 3,370.29   with a loss of –0.29% percent or –9.87 point. The Nasdaq Composite is trading at 9,732.74 up with +0.016% percent or +1.57 point.

In other parts of world, Japan’s Nikkei 225 is trading at 23,400.70 up with +0.89% percent or +206.90 point. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng is trading at 27,634.21  up with +0.38% percent or +104.01  point. China’s Shanghai Composite is trading at 2,975.40 with  a loss of –0.32% percent or ?9.57 point. India’s BSE Sensex is trading at  41,289.53 up with +0.97% percent or +395.15 point at 12:15 PM.