Markets Overview: (Source: Bloomberg, FT, Reuters, DJ Newswires)

  UK 100 called to open flat at 6795, after a subdued trading session yesterday which saw the UK 100 Index acquire just 3pts.

Bar the best and worst performers, stocks registered shallow gains or losses of up to 2% with 58 stocks rising and 42 falling.

The best performer was Capita (CPI.L), shares climbed to the highest price in at least 25 years after reporting revenue that beat analysts’ estimates to close the session up 4.76%.

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK.L) was awarded the wooden spoon for the day as shares slid by 4.73%, the most since 2008 as second-quarter earnings missed projections.

Rio Tinto (RIO.L), Glencore (GLEN.L) and BHP Billiton (BLT.L) enjoyed positive sessions with gains of as much as 1.60%, traders picking up stock ahead of last night's Chinese manufacturing data.

The Chinese manufacturing gauge rose to an 18-month high in July, bolstering the government’s chances of meeting its 2014 economic-growth target of about 7.5%. The preliminary Purchasing Managers’ Index from HSBC Holdings Plc and Markit Economics was at 52.0, topping the 51.0 median estimate of analysts in a Bloomberg News survey and June’s final 50.7 reading.

International Consolidated Airlines (IAG.L) and EasyJet (EZJ.L) added around 0.5% ahead of this morning's Q3 trading update from EasyJet.

EARNINGS WATCH:

• EasyJet (EZJ.L) said it was on track to grow annual profit by at least 14% assuming no further significant disruption over the next two months. EasyJet expects to grow profit before tax to a range of £545m to £570m for the year to 30 September vs £478m year earlier. Consensus FY pretax profit £572m according to Bloomberg.
• Unilever (ULVR.L) reported a lower-than-expected increase in second-quarter sales on Thursday, citing a slowdown in emerging markets and continuing malaise in developed markets.
• Kingfisher (KGF.L) says Q2 trading worse than expected - notably in June, had been slower than anticipated particularly in France and Poland.
• Tate & Lyle (TATE.L) said it had missed its expectations for first quarter adjusted operating profit due to the severe weather in the United States and the unexpected shut down of one of its factories.

 U.S. stocks endured a mixed session. The Dow Jones fell 26pts to 17,086 but the S&P500 managed to add 3.5pts to notch a record closing level of 1987pts.

Shares in Apple Inc (AAPL) advanced 2.6% as the market digested it's second straight quarter of double-digit percentage growth in iPhone sales.

Asian stocks were buoyed by the better-than-expected Chinese manufacturing data. Gains were registered across the region. Hong Kong stocks rallied to the highest this year.

In focus today, we have a raft of Manufacturing PMI data from the Euro-zone released from 8am onwards. UK retail sales are released at 9:30am with US PMI at 14:45pm.

In commodities, gold fell to lowest levels in a week breaking $1300 again as traders looked for alternative investments amid concern that physical consumption is faltering. Goldman Sachs also reiterated a call for gold to drop below $1050 by end of 2014. In industrial metals, copper rose for the fourth day, the longest rally in three weeks as Chinese PMI data came in better than expected. WTI had a volatile session after US government data showed crude supplies shrank to the lowest levels since 2008, to finish broadly higher at $103.10 a barrel.

For any help you may require placing trades or in terms of market information, put a call in to our trading floor – all part of the service.

Key Overnight Macro Data: (Source: Reuters/DJ Newswires)

• CH                          HSBC Manufacturing PMI                             BETTER

See Live Macro Calendar for full data line-up, incl. consensus expectations

UK Company Headlines: (Source: Reuters/DJ Newswires)

• Electrocomponents says Q1 underlying sales rise 3 pct
• SABMiller reports higher sales
• De La Rue reaffirms expectations for financial year
• easyJet sees annual profit rising at least 14 pct
• Close Brothers Group says outlook for the year is unchanged
• Kingfisher says Q2 trading worse than expected
• Nichols H1 sales up 3 pct
• Daily Mail publisher's underlying revenue up 3 pct in Q3
• Unilever sales growth hurt by slowing emerging markets
• Tate & Lyle misses first-quarter profit target
• Howden Joinery Group says well placed to achieve its expectations for full year
• Aquarius Platinum says attributable production up 4 pct
• Rathbone Brothers agrees to take 15 mln stg legal case hit
• Britvic says FY profit to be towards top of guidance
• CSR Q2 revenue falls 26 pct, sees return to growth in core business in H2
• Lancashire Holdings Q2 pretax profit $41.5 million