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By Daniel Binns, business reporter
The Footsie is down again this morning as stock markets wobble over the state of the US economy – with JP Morgan predicting there is a 45% chance of a recession there next year.
The finance giant also upped its forecast for the chances of one happening this year in the world’s largest economy to 35%.
Markets around the world had been gradually recovering in recent days following Monday’s sharp falls, but the situation appears to be on the downward trend again on Thursday.
Asian markets also slumped earlier, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index – which was among the biggest losers on Monday – down 0.7% at the close.
This morning the FTSE 100 is down more than 1%, while the FTSE 250 has fallen 1.4%.
The top gainer is insurance company Beazley, which is up more than 14% after it upgraded its outlook for the year.
The firm, which commands almost a tenth of the global cyber insurance market, also reported a doubling of its pre-tax profits for the first half of 2024.
Another riser is Ladbrokes owner Entain, which has gained 7.5%.
It comes after the gambling firm, which also owns Coral, upped its annual forecast after receiving a boost from betting on the Euros and Premier League.
The worst-performing companies on the index on Thursday include manufacturing firm Spirax Group, which has slipped 9%, and BT Group, which has fallen 5%.
However, in contrast to the stock market, the price of oil is continuing to recover this week.
A barrel of the benchmark Brent crude is currently priced at $78 (£61), up from $76.5 (£60) this time yesterday.
On the currency markets, £1 buys $1.27 US or €1.16 this morning, similar to Wednesday’s rates.
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