FTSE 100 snaps three-day losing streak as oil rallies after Canadian wildfire disrupts production

BHP Billiton enjoyed a rare rating upgrade after Barclays said the oil and iron ore price recovery has granted the mining giant some “breathing room”.  

The bank hiked the stock’s rating to “equalweight” on the back of dividend cuts, reductions in capital expenditure and the recent oil price rally which it believes will continue into 2017. Although the miner remains in “cash preservation” mode, David Butler, of Barclays, believes BHP Billiton has “the right assets, still the best margins in the sector and no shortage of growth options to deliver increased returns”. 

However, Barclays reiterated its “neutral” rating on the wider mining sector as it believes commodity prices are at “an awkward point” due to its bearish forecasts for the Chinese economy, it expectations of two interest rate hikes in the US this year, and a “plentiful” supply of iron ore. Mr Butler said: “All these factors suggest a significant sell-off is potentially in store.” However, the industry experienced a similar rally in 2009, which lasted nearly two years. 

He added: “We believe the market’s view right now on the impressive performance of the mining sector year-to-date is that it is temporary.” Nevertheless, it hiked its 2016 earnings forecasts for Rio Tinto by 27pc, Anglo American by 16pc and BHP Billiton by 7pc. 

In a separate note from JP Morgan, analysts said they believe the bottom end of the iron ore trading range has lifted. In its wake, mining stocks recovered from hefty losses posted earlier in the week. Anglo American was 1.8pc higher at 654.6p, BHP Billiton advanced 0.8pc to 831.1p, Antofagasta rose 1.6pc to  442.3p, Rio Tinto added 0.6pc to £21.15 and Glencore edged up 0.3pc to 145.5p. 

On the broader market, London’s benchmark index edged away from one-month lows, buoyed by a bounce in oil prices. The FTSE 100 made modest gains of 5.23 points, or 0.09pc, to close at 6,117.25. However, Chris Beauchamp, of IG, said indices remained “under pressure” as the week enters its final session when “sellers will continue to dominate”. 

Meanwhile, a huge wildfire in the Alberta region of Canada disrupted oil sands production lifting Brent crude by as much as 4.8pc to $45.75. In its wake, Royal Dutch Shell B shares climbed 1.3pc to £17.45 and mid-cap producer Tullow Oil leapt 6.1pc to 257p. 

Away from commodities, BT unveiled a stellar set of first quarter results, beating market expectations. The telecoms giant posted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of £2.08bn, 3pc ahead of forecasts. It also announced plans to spend around £6bn on broadband and mobile upgrades. As a result, the FTSE 100 stock jumped 2.6pc to 451.1p. 

Elsewhere, shares in Centrica tanked to the bottom of the blue chip index, down 9.8% to 208.5p, after it announced its intention to raise funds via a placing. The funds raised will help fund two acquisitions and an additional £400m will be raised to pay down debt.  Peter Atherton, of Jefferies, said raising equity is “an expensive way of paying down debt”, and as such there was “some surprise” following the energy supplier’s announcement. 

Rolls-Roycedropped 2.3pc to 630p after it reiterated its full year guidance, but cautioned that the bulk of its profits would be weighted towards the second half of the year. 

Inmarsat was also among the laggards, slumping 7.2pc to 863p after it slashed its full-year revenue guidance amid a challenging trading environment. In the first three months of the year, the satellite firm posted a 2pc drop in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of $298.6m citing headwinds in its maritime unit. 

On the mid-cap index, investors gobbled up shares in Greggs after broker Investec began covering the baker with a “buy” rating. Analysts believe the FTSE 250 company is at “an interesting juncture”, having spent the last two-and-a-half years transitioning towards the food-on-the-go market and delivering a strong set of results.

Shares have tumbled 19pc so far this year, but Investec believes next week’s trading update may be a “potential positive catalyst”. The mid-cap stock leapt 4.4pc to £10.94. 

Elsewhere, an encouraging trading update boosted shares in Morrisons, up 2.4pc to 192p. The supermarket chain said like-for-like sales excluding fuel rose by 0.7pc in the 13 weeks to May 1. 

Despite posting a grim trading update on Wednesday, retailer Next enjoyed a rating upgrade, prompting a 2.5pc rise in shares to £52.80. Credit Suisse lifted its rating to “neutral” from “underperform” as it believes the FTSE 100 stock is “looking very oversold, and the worst of the news flow is behind it for now”.

Meanwhile, a bullish broker note became the catalyst for Plus500’s share price jump. Broker Liberum issued a “buy” rating on the stock, describing it as an “income and volatility play”. Justin Bates, of Liberum, said that as equity, foreign exchange and commodity markets are prone to “increasing bouts of volatility”, the spread betting and CFD providers offer “a potentially attractive home for investors’ money.” Shares edged up 4.3pc to 595p. 

Publisher Pearson added 2.6pc by close on the back of positive read-across from US higher education provider Career Education, who reported better-than-expected sales in the first quarter. 

Finally, on Aim, Filtronic made impressive gains of 22.7pc, closing at 10p, on the back of a contract win valued at around $24.2m. 

That's it for today. I'm back again with more market movers tomorrow morning. 

Pearson was among the top FTSE 100 risers today, up 2.6%, after its US peer Career Education reported better than expected sales for the first quarter. 

The Q1 results beat suggest that the US higher education provider's self-help strategy is making progress. 

Analysts at Northern Trust said: "Career Ed reported new student enrolments overnight for Q1 of 10,620, a decline of -24% YoY. Comes after Strayer fell -7.5% in the U.S. On the back of disappointing new Spring student enrolments fell 7% YoY. There is still no end in sight for the declines in HE enrolment stats in the U.S.

"Pearson, on last week's call, attempted to refocus attention on fall enrolments rather than Spring enrolments due to the financial and seasonal skew towards H2. However, even here the forecast is for a "conservative flat enrolment" environment in 2016. We remain of the view the environment has not improved sufficiently (or at all) to support Pearson’s efforts to return to growth and there is no evidence to suggest it will. While the CEO has bought himself a little time with the restructuring plan and commitment to dividend, but the secular headwinds are far from over and the company’s execution has, to put it politely, been mixed. We remain sellers of any strength in Pearson."

European bourses buckled in afternoon trade but have managed to post small losses, buoyed by a rise in oil prices. 

• FTSE 100: +0.09%
• DAX: +0.18%
• CAC 40: -0.2%
• IBEX: +0.26%

Chris Beauchamp, of IG, said: "While markets have stabilised after days of losses, there seems little that can revive bullish sentiment as the day heads to its close. Despite an early attempt at a rally, indices remain under pressure, and it looks as if sellers will continue to dominate as the week enters its final session. Centrica has done its best to put a positive spin on matters, but the news clearly carries little weight with shareholders, who have continued to abandon the firm during the day. In a hangover from yesterday’s news, Next shares are 2.3% higher, as bargain hunters continue to intervene, while Centrica’s decision to tap shareholders has gone down predictably well. Stocks remain under pressure, and with  NFPs tomorrow the outlook remains resolutely grim." 

Despite posting a grim trading update yesterday, retailer Next enjoyed a rating upgrade, prompting a 2.4pc rise in shares to £52.78.

Credit Suisse lifted its rating to “neutral” from “underperform” as it believes the FTSE 100 stock is “looking very oversold, and the worst of the  newsflow is behind it for now”.

Yesterday, Next lowered its full-year guidance, as it now expects sales to fall by 1 to 4% more than the previous forecast indicated. 

In the 13 weeks to May 2, it said sales had fallen by 0.2%. 

Oil exports from Iraq's Kurdistan region through Turkey rose in April to an average of 511,888 barrels per day despite the ongoing suspension of flows from the disputed Kirkuk fields.

That's up from 327,371 in March - but still below its peak of 600,000 which it hit earlier this year. 

Brent crude has eased back from earlier highs this afternoon, but is still up by more than 3% at $46.03

The latest sharholder revolt comes courtesy of Ladbrokes. 

At betting giant's annual general meeting, just over 43% of shareholders voted against the directors' remuneration policy. 

Tim Wallace writes: 

Confident consumers ramped up borrowing from Shawbrook Bank in the first three months of 2016, helping drive the specialist lender’s profits up by 43pc year on year.

Shawbrook’s statutory pre-tax profit climbed to £19.6m in the first quarter, up from £13.7m in the same period of 2015.

The bank’s consumer loans arm, which provides credit for home improvements, holidays and retail purchases as well as personal loans, increased lending by 51pc to £61m in the quarter.

Companies also got in on the act, with loans to businesses rising by 5pc to £177m.

Read more here

US stocks opened higher this afternoon thanks to a bounce in oil prices, which have jumped following a huge wildfire in Canada that has disrupted production in the Alberta region. 

At the opening bell: 

• Dow Jones industrial average: +0.15%
• S&P 500: +0.21%
• Nasdaq: +0.35%

London's FTSE 100 has turned negative this afternoon, down just 3.56 points, or 0.06%, at 6,108.27. 

Centrica is the biggest faller, down almost 12%, after it announced it would raise funds through a placing to fund acquisitions and slash its debt. 

Reports this afternoon are suggesting that Saudi Arabia is going to raise its pricing by the most in 14 months. 

Bloomberg has the details: 

"Saudi Arabia was said to raise its pricing for June oil sales to Asia by the most since April 2015, in a sign that the world’s biggest exporter is expecting demand to recover as the global crude market rebalances.

"State-owned Saudi Arabian Oil Co. increased its official selling price for Arab Light crude to Asia by $1.10 a barrel to 25 cents more than regional benchmarks Oman and Dubai, said people with knowledge of the matter who asked not to be identified because the information is confidential. The company, known as Saudi Aramco, was predicted to raise its pricing for the grade by 65 cents a barrel, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of five refiners and traders." (Read more here)

Data from the Labor Department has showed that the number of people filing for unemployment benefits increased by more than expectations, marking its biggest weekly gain since February 2015. 

Jobless claims rose by 17,000 to a seasonally adjusted 274,000 last week, the data showed. 

Analysts had forecast it would hit 260,000.

Pantheon Macroeconomics said: "The rebound in claims over the past couple of weeks strongly supports our view that the very low numbers in previous weeks    were the result of seasonal adjustment problems caused by the    very early Easter. Claims have now reverted to the pre-Easter trend, and we see no reason now to expect much change over the   next few weeks. The trend in claims is still extremely low, but  it was never likely that they'd be sustained below 260K. At      their current level, claims are comfortably consistent with payroll growth of 200K-plus."

More bad news from the US. This time data from Challenger, Gray and Christmas on job cuts. 

The number of workers laid off last month hit a seven year high. The outplacement firm tracked 65,141 layoff announcements in April - the most job cuts announced for any April since 2009, when it hit 132,590.

On the month, layoffs were up by 35.1%. The data will certainly be seen as a negative ahead of tomorrow's employment report in the US. 

In London this afternoon, the boss of Reckitt Benckiser has apologised for its South Jorean unit's sales of water sterlizers for humidifier devices that claimed 96 lives. 

Ashley Armstrong writes: 

Rakesh Kapoor, the chief executive of Reckitt Benckiser, issued a personal apology for 96 deaths in South Korea, one day after the region's biggest retailer called for a boycott of the consumer goods giant.

South Korea's supermarket chain Lotte Mart has cleared the company's products from its shelves amid a growing backlash in the country, which is a major source of growth for Reckitt Benckiser's emerging markets business.

The move comes the same week as the company admitted for the first time selling a humidifier disinfectant that killed 96 people and caused illness for a further 400.

Read more here

Rhiannon Bury writes: 

Kennedy Wilson Europe Real Estate has bought two regional office developments to bolster its "robust" portfolio outside London.

The company bought Towers Business Park in Manchester, which is made up of ten offices, for £82m. The park is home to John Lewis and British Airways, among others.

Kennedy Wilson Europe also bought two offices in Dublin, The Chase and three buildings at Blackrock Business Park, for £60.8m.

Peter Collins, chief operating officer and head of Ireland for Kennedy Wilson Europe, said that “significant improvement” in rental prices and the value of buildings in Dublin over the last two years made the offices a good investment.

Read more here

European bourses have trimmed earlier gains, but remain in positive territory thanks to a slew of robust corporate results and an uptick in oil.

• FTSE 100: +0.05%
• DAX: +0.14%
• CAC 40: -0.08%
• IBEX: +0.79%

Investors gobbled up shares in Greggs today after broker Investec began covering the stock by issuing a "buy" rating. 

Analysts said they see scope for more for Greggs after it spent the last couple of years transitioning to a food-on-the-go market and has delivered strong results. 

Alistair Davies, of Investec, said: "We see upside risk from successful execution on store recycling, IT upgrades and manufacturing modernisation, with scope for further capital returns."

The stock is now on track for its biggest one-day gain in two months, changing hands at £11.11 - up 6% so far today. 

Shares in Trinity Mirror jumped by almost 7% to 120.8p after it announced that it would shut the New Day newspaper it launched just nine weeks ago. 

Marion Dakers writes: 

Trinity Mirror is pulling down the shutters on the New Day, in an abrupt reversal just 10 weeks after launching the first new national paper in Britain for 30 years. 

The company confirmed the closure as part of a trading update on Thursday morning. The final edition is likely to be on Friday.

The company said: "Although The New Day has received many supportive reviews and built a strong following on Facebook, the circulation for the title is below our expectations.

"As a result, we have decided to close the title on 6 May 2016. Whilst disappointing, the launch and subsequent closure have provided new insights into enhancing our newspapers and a number of these opportunities will be considered over time."

Full report here

Shares in BT leapt to the top of the blue chip index, up 2.9% to 452p, on the back of a robust set of first quarter results which came in ahead of analysts' expectations. 

Kate Palmer writes: 

Ten million homes and businesses are set to receive faster broadband, with two million in line for fibre-optic connections, as part of a three-year investment programme unveiled by BT today.

BT will plough £6bn into the project to upgrade both its broadband and mobile network, building on a pledge by EE to cover the entire country with 4G mobile services.

By 2020, ultrafast broadband will be deployed to a minimum of ten million homes and businesses, with an ambition to reach 12m, BT said. Two million of these households will be given fibre-optic connections, while 4G mobile services will cover 95pc of the country.

Read more here

Shares in grocery chain Morrison jumped 2.2% to 191.7p after it released an encouraging trading update. 

Jon Yeomans writes: 

Morrisons is making progress towards its recovery, its chief executive said, after reporting a second consecutive quarter of like-for-like sales growth.

The UK’s fourth biggest supermarket chain said that like-for-like sales excluding fuel rose by 0.7pc in the 13 weeks to May 1. Like-for-like sales strip out stores that have been closed or opened during the last year, to give a more accurate measure of the business.

Total sales excluding fuel slipped 1.8pc, hit by the impact of store closures during the year. Morrisons has shut a number of loss-making stores and last year sold off 140 M Local convenience stores.

David Potts, chief executive, said he was “encouraged” by the company’s progress.

“There is still much to do and our colleagues are working very hard to improve the shopping trip and save customers every penny we can,” he said.

Full report here

Here's my colleague Szu Ping Chan's full report: 

The UK economy is close to stalling, experts said, after a closely-watched survey of Britain's dominant services sector showed activity dropped to a three-year low in April.

Markit said the slowdown in activity reflected uncertainty over the EU referendum next month and greater costs due the introduction of a higher minimum wage last month.

Business optimism was the joint weakest in more than three years, while the pace of job creation was the weakest in two-and-a-half years.

The Markit/CIPS services purchasing managers' index (PMI) fell to 52.3 in April, from 53.7 in March.

Read more here

Kallum Pickering, Senior UK Economist at Berenberg: " The lowest reading for the UK services PMI since February 2013 makes for three in a row after construction and manufacturing indices also came in below expectations earlier in the week. The headline index for services was 52.3 in April, below the consensus of 53.5.  Firms attributed slower growth to uncertainty about the forthcoming EU referendum on June 23. They reported that clients were delaying new contracts until after the vote. This is consistent with the commentary in the other April PMI surveys. There was evidence as early as Q4 last year that businesses were starting to pause investments ahead of the vote - business investment declined by 2.0% qoq. So far, consumers have been surprisingly resilient. But, with consumer-oriented services showing signs of slower growth, it looks like Brexit jitters are being felt by households now too."

Michael Hewson, of CMC, Markets, said: "This trifecta of disappointment could well see the Bank of England revise down its growth forecasts for the UK economy when it meets next  week for its latest policy meeting and quarterly inflation report.

"The current forecast for 2016 is for the UK economy to grow at 2.2%, which at this point looks like it could be difficult to achieve given the 0.4% expansion seen in Q1, and the likelihood that Q2 could well fall significantly short of that.

"There has been some speculation that these poor numbers, if sustained could prompt speculation about the need for further stimulus, or a rate cut, however this seems premature at a time when inflation is showing some signs of picking up and wage growth still remains above the level of inflation." 

Following another round of disappointing economic data from the UK, Joshua Mahony, of IG, comments: "Nothing quite puts the buffers on market conviction like the hugely unpredictable US jobs report, due tomorrow. The shadow cast by tomorrow’s volatile payrolls figure was always going to cause hesitancy among traders who know only too well the impact a jobs report can have upon market sentiment and direction. With payroll-fuelled uncertainty, coupled with national holidays in Japan, Belgium, France, Germany and the Netherlands, it is no wonder why we are seeing this week’s selling pressure unwound at the start of today’s trading.

"Today’s disappointing UK services PMI wraps up a hat-trick of weak numbers this week, providing the clearest indication yet that UK growth is moving in the wrong direction in Q2. With the services sector making up 79% of UK GDP, today’s three-year low for the services PMI indicates that not only will expectations of growth be lower, but the chance of a 2016 rate hike just fell further."

The pound fell to 1.4467 against the dollar after UK services sector PMI missed expectations, stalling to a more than three-year low. 

It has since regained some ground, trading at 1.4498 against the USD. 

Here's a look at how it performed so far today: 

Chris Williamson, Chief Economist at Markit, said: “The slowdown in the service sector follows similar weakness in manufacturing and construction to make a triple-whammy of disappointing news on the health of the economy at the start of the second quarter.

“The PMI surveys are collectively indicating a near stalling of economic growth, down from 0.4% in the first quarter to just 0.1% in April.

“Some of the slowdown may be attributable to the early timing of Easter, though April also saw an increase in the number of companies reporting that uncertainty about the EU referendum caused customers to hold back on purchases, exacerbating already-weak demand linked to global growth jitters and ongoing government spending cuts.

 “The deterioration in April pushes the surveys into territory which has in the past seen the Bank of England start to worry about the need to revive growth, either by cutting interest rates or through non-standard measures such as QE.”

The UK economy all but stalled in April as consumers fret about the referendum on European Union membership, a survey of the services sector showed this morning. 

The British services sector grew at its weakest level since February 2013. According to Markit's services activity index, it fell from 57.3 in March to 52.3 in APril. 

A reading above 50 marks expansion, while a reading below this level marks contraction. 

 Firms commented on prevailing economic uncertainty, partly linked to the forthcoming referendum on EU membership.

Hotel Choclat has prices its IPO, giving it a market value of £167m. 

Retail correspondent Ashley Armstrong writes: 

Hotel Chocolat's founders are to share a £40m payday after their upmarket chocolate company successfully priced its stock market flotation at £167m.

The business is one of few companies to brave choppy markets ahead of the EU Referendum.

Angus Thirlwell, the son of Prontaprint and Mr Whippy founder Edwin Thirlwell, and Peter Harris started the business in 1993 as a chocolate gifting service before opening their first shop in Watford 10 years later. 

Since then, the company has grown to 84 shops and employs more than 1,200 people.

The stock market listing has raised £55m, of which Mr Thirlwell and Mr Harris will net £20m each with the remaining £12m going towards the company's expansion plan. A further £3.5m will be split between Hotel Chocolat staff and other management.

Read more here

The eurozone's economic recovery is expected to continue, but risks to growth in the region remain tilted to the downside, the European Central Bank said in its latest economic bulletin. 

In the statement, which was broadly consistent with its outlook at its April 21 interest rate meeting, it said: "The economic recovery in the euro area is continuing, driven by domestic demand, while foreign demand growth remains weak."

The ECB said domestic demand continues to be supported by monetary policy measures, adding that their "favourable impact" on financial conditions is benefiting investment. 

"The risks to the euro area growth outlook remain tilted to the downside," the ECB added. 

The ECB also said the market turbulence which wreaked havoc on global markets at the beginning of the year has now "subsided and global economic activity is showing signs of stabilisation". 

It added: "World trade has been resilient at the start of the year, although its growth rate is expected to remain moderate. Risks to the outlook for global activity, most prominently for emerging market economies, remain on the downside and relate in particular to policy uncertainty, financial turbulence and geopolitical risks. Global headline inflation has remained at low levels as past energy price declines continue to weigh on price increases."

Link to full report: ECB economic bulletin 

Shares in Centrica tanked to the bottom of the blue chip index this morning, down 8% to 212.5p, after it announced its intention to raise funds via a placing. 

The funds raised will help fund two acquisitions and slash debt. The energy supplier said it will place around 350m shares. 

Peter Atherton, of Jefferies, said: "Centrica's two proposed acquisitions are in line with its strategy of strengthening its mid- and downstream operations. Raising a modest amount of equity to fund these acquisitions is understandable. Where there is some surprise with today's announcement is with the additional c.£400m being raised to pay down net debt.

"Raising equity is an expensive way of paying down debt. Nevertheless Centrica will clearly be in a modestly stronger financial position post the placing, albeit with existing shareholders facing a c.7% dilution. Centrica's new management have been trying to establish a reputation for tight capital management; it is difficult to say whether today's announcement enhances or diminishes that reputation."

Oil prices leapt this morning as a huge wildfire in the Alberta region of Canada which began yesterday disrupted oil sands production. 

In Alberta's oil sand fields, some pipelines have been shut as a production while output at other facilities has been disrupted. However, at present, the volume of the reduction remains unclear. 

According to Reuters, CNOOC Nexen shut down its 72,000 barrels per day facility due to the threat posed from the wildfire. 

Separately, escalating tensions in Libya threatened to reduce its output. A standoff between eastern and western political factions prevented a Glencore cargo from loading. 

It is thought the country's production could fall by as much as 120,000.

This morning Brent crude spiked by as much as 2.87% to $45.90 a barrel. 

Here's a look at its performance so far today: 

Ahead of the services sector PMI due for release in the UK at 09:30, Michael Hewson, of CMC Markets cautions the sector "appears to have hit a bit of a pothole in April". 

Mr Hewson said: "Both manufacturing and construction PMI’s came in short of expectations with manufacturing slipping into contraction territory for the first time since early 2013.  

"Given how important the services sector is to the UK economy we really need to see a decent number here or run the risk that we see a growth downgrade next week from the latest Bank of England inflation report. Expectations are for a slight decline to 53.6 from 53.7."

European stocks retreated from three-week lows in early trade buoyed by an uptick in oil prices which lifted oil majors and a raft of robust corporate earnings. 

• FTSE 100: +0.43%
• DAX: +0.06%
• CAC 40: -0.02%
• IBEX: +0.86%

Mike van Dulken, of Accendo Markets, said: "The positive opening call comes in spite of another down day in the US and a lacklustre Asian trading overnight as investors adopt their monthly cautious stance ahead of the US jobs report. A weak US ADP print yesterday has heightened concerns about a poor US jobs report while a slightly softer Caixin China PMI Services survey overnight maintains global growth jitters and extends the region’s losing streak to seven sessions." 

Overnight, China's stock markets managed to claw their way into positive territory amid fresh signs the economy may not yet be in recovery mode. 

A survey showed that activity in the country's services sector expanded in April. However, the gains were less than posted in the previous month. 

The government said it will take measures to halt a slow down in private-sector investment. It followed the release of data which showed that fixed-asset investment by private company rose by just 5.7% in the first three months of the year. 

In its wake, the CSI300 inched up 0.14% and the Shanghai Composite index rose 0.22%.

Meanwhile, Japanese stock markets have been closed since Tuesday and they will reopen tomorrow. 

Good morning and welcome to our live markets blog. 

For those who missed it, US stocks ended the day in the red last night, with the Dow Jones down 0.6% and the S&P 500 also off by 0.6%. It followed a raft of economic data, where the ADP April jobs report fell short of expectations and the ISM non-manufacturing report came in ahead of forecasts. 

On the agenda today: 

Interim results: Sage Group, Inmarsat, Millennium & Copthorne Hotels, Lancashire Holdings, BT Group

Trading update: esure Group, Wm Morrison, Provident Financial, Derwent London, RSA Insurance Group, Smith & Nephew, IMI

AGMs: Gulfsands Petroleum, Rightmove, GlaxoSmithKline, Reckitt Benckiser Group, Real Estate Investors, Trinity Mirror, Costain Group

Economics: unemployment claims (US), ECB economic bulletin (EU), retail PMI (EU), services PMI (UK)