A gloomy outlook for the UK's economy

The FTSE100 fell 1% yesterday after Powell’s hawkish comments that the Fed won't hesitate to go beyond neutral rates if needed, to bring inflation down.

In addition, new data showed UK inflation hit a 40-year high in April, reaching 9% year-on-year.

The impact of such inflation on economic growth is weighing on investors' minds today, with the FTSE falling 1.7% in early trading.

And it seems that the situation may not improve this year if we're to believe the results of the latest MLIV Pulse survey, published by Bloomberg. More than two thirds of respondents forecast that the pound will fall 6% to $1.15, and that the 10-year gilt yields will rise to 3%. 

Consumer staples are among the worst-performing stocks today, after retail giant Target warned of a higher -than-expected margin hit. Commodities are holding up better, supported by high oil prices.

Among stocks, Royal Mail dropped 6.3% after posting profits below expectations.

 

Things to read today:

Asian Shares tumble after US stocks suffer steepest daily shock since 2020 (Financial Times)

Target, Walmart Earnings Selloff Puts Retailers Inflation Pains on Display (Wall Street Journal)

This Could Be A Lost Decade for Stocks (Wall Street Journal)