FTSE slides with trading knocked after latest price growth figures

“Fragile nature of this week’s rebound has been laid bare today

The FTSE 100 closed in the red after traders digested another 40-year high for UK inflation levels.

A consumer price index (CPI) inflation reading of 9.1% was in line with expectations for May, but rocketing producer prices showed inflationary woes are not likely to reverse any time soon.

Nevertheless, London’s index of top stocks finished the day with a slight improvement on early trading after growing positivity on Wall Street.

The FTSE 100 ended the day down 62.83 points, or 0.88%, at 7,089.22.

Michael Hewson, chief market analyst at CMC Markets UK, said: “The fragile nature of this week’s rebound has been laid bare today, with a sharp slide in oil prices in Asia, spilling over into broader market weakness, with the Dax sliding below last week’s lows, before rebounding, while the FTSE has also slipped back sharply.

“Today’s inflation numbers from the UK came across as rather mixed in the same way as the US inflation numbers a couple of weeks ago, with core prices softening, however (Producer Price Index) prices continued to push higher, suggesting that there is still a lot of price pressure still in the pipeline.”

Other key markets followed the Asian markets lower.

The German Dax decreased by 1.02% by the end of the session, while the French Cac fell 0.77%.

In the US, the main markets opened lower but crept steadily to gains as Fed chair Jerome Powell sought to allay concerns.

The pound was down 0.21% against the dollar at 1.228 and dropped by 0.11% against the euro at 1.16 after the significant inflation reading.

In company news, JD Sports investors had a positive day after the high street retailer unveiled plans to overhaul its corporate governance and internal controls as it looks to “draw a line in the sand” after the departure of its long-term boss and a string of competition probes.

Interim bosses unveiled an 18-month plan as the group revealed a record £947.2m annual profit, double the £421.3m seen the previous year. Shares rose 7.05p to 113.85p.