The FTSE 100 is trading 28 points lower on Wednesday, with investors sitting on their hands ahead of Chancellor John Healey's maiden Budget speech later in the day, where leaks suggest enhanced employer national insurance contributions and modest income tax changes are among the measures in the offing.
GSK and Unilever disappoint
GSK held its full-year guidance as specialty medicines drove sales growth, but a restructuring charge knocked profit and vaccine sales fell short of forecasts, sending the shares down 4% to 1,852p and leaving analysts divided on whether the business is turning a corner.
Unilever also traded lower despite a better-than-expected third-quarter update, with investors disappointed by the absence of a meaningful guidance upgrade and shares slipping around 2% into negative territory for the year.
Standard Chartered bucks the trend
Standard Chartered was an exception to the gloom, raising its income guidance after pre-tax profit jumped 29%, giving the emerging markets bank a rare day in the sun.
Hunting takes a hit
Hunting was the morning's sharpest faller, shedding 12% after the oil services group issued a profit warning, blaming the Middle East conflict for disrupting activity in the region.
Intertek and Aston Martin in line
Intertek reported 7% third-quarter revenue growth as its pending takeover by private equity firm EQT moves towards completion, while Aston Martin maintained its full-year guidance after deliveries of its Valhalla supercar pushed gross margin to 35%.
Asia surges on chips
Overnight, Asian markets provided a more upbeat backdrop, with South Korea's Kospi surging more than 6% as SK Hynix's strong earnings reinforced confidence in memory chip demand from the AI industry, dragging Japan's Nikkei to around 64,000.
Budget headlines and Alphabet's third-quarter results, due tonight, will set the tone for the rest of the week.
