Good morning.
The FTSE is set to extend losses this morning after a 0.4pc drop yesterday, as Asian stocks declined overnight following the partial closure of two of the world’s busiest ports in China.
Markets fear a repeat of last year’s strangled supply chains following the move to shut down parts of Ningbo-Zhoushan port in a bid to contain the rapidly spreading delta variant. The infections risk reaching docks even as shipping rates surge amid huge demand to transport goods as economies reopen.
Jeffrey Halley, senior market analyst at Oanda, said: “The partial closure of two of the busiest ports in the world in China, Shanghai and Ningbo, is likely to be another blow to supply chain disruptions. Those ripples won’t just be felt in China but also globally. The impact has been most noticeable in regional stock markets with a high beta to trade and China.”
5 things to start your day
1) Sturgeon calls for crackdown on North Sea oil and gas: Scottish First Minister tells Boris Johnson that ‘we all have a moral obligation to act’ on fossil fuels to combat climate change.
2)
