UK stocks steady ahead of c. bank meetings; Wizz Air slips

Signage is seen outside the entrance of the London Stock Exchange in London, Britain. Aug 23, 2018. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls/

June 8 (Reuters) – London’s blue-chip index was little changed on Wednesday, as gains in energy stocks were offset by expectations of aggressive central bank tightening, while Wizz Air fell after the budget airline forecast a first-quarter operating loss.

The commodity-heavy FTSE 100 (.FTSE) was up 0.1%, driven by gains in Shell (SHEL.L) and BP (BP.L), which rose 0.8% and 1.1% respectively.

These stocks tracked crude prices , , which advanced in anticipation of a report of low U.S. oil inventories and solid demand in the upcoming driving season.

The domestically focussed midcap index (.FTMC) was flat.

On Thursday, markets expect the European Central Bank to lay the groundwork for rapid rate rises. Money markets ramped up their rate hike bets on Wednesday to price in 75 basis points of hikes from the ECB by September. ECBWATCH

Among stocks, Wizz Air (WIZZ.L) fell 2.5% after the airline forecast an operating loss for the first quarter of the current fiscal year and reported a bigger annual loss due to staff shortages at airports and supply-chain snags. read more

Reporting by Anisha Sircar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shailesh Kuber

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