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* FTSE 100 down 0.6%, FTSE 250 off 0.5%
Jan 5 (Reuters) – The UK’s FTSE 100 fell on Friday, set
to mark losses in the first trading week of 2024, owing to
aggressive repricing of early rate-cut bets, while investors
looked ahead to U.S. jobs data for clues on the future path of
interest rates globally.
The blue-chip FTSE 100 was down 0.6% by 0810 GMT, on
track to snap a five-week winning streak. The mid-cap FTSE 250
index eased 0.5%.
Precious metal miners led the losses among
sectors, falling 6.5% to a nearly two-month low on broad
selloff. The index is set to log its worst day in 20 months, if
losses hold.
Money markets are now pricing in 130 basis points of
interest rate cuts by the Bank of England in 2024, compared with
150 basis points last week.
Shares of Endeavour Mining dropped 9.6% to a near
three-month low after the miner removed CEO Sebastien de
Montessus with immediate effect, citing “serious misconduct”.
Investors are now focussed on the U.S. non-farm payrolls
data, due at 1330 GMT, to get more clues on when the Federal
Reserve will start trimming rates, while also keeping an eye on
the S&P Global/CIPS UK construction PMI.
(Reporting by Shubham Batra in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry
Jacob-Phillips)
