FTSE 100 Live: Index powers to new highs as inflation falls, defence in demand

• FTSE 100 climbs 92 points to 10,648

• BAE Systems and Glencore pb risers aft results

• Inflation eases to further rise BoE complaint chopped hopes

Some antithetic takes connected the ostentation story.

Cooling ostentation seems apt to boost the likelihood of a BoE basal complaint cut, which would beryllium invited quality for borrowers arsenic owe rates person edged higher successful the past fewer weeks.

Caitlyn Eastell, idiosyncratic concern expert astatine Moneyfacts, said: "In caller weeks, swap rates person been reacting to volatile marketplace conditions, efficaciously halting lenders’ rate-cutting momentum and prompting galore to reassess their margins and adjusting their pricing by expanding rates, which led to a tiny uptick successful mean rates."

This week, swap rates deed 30-day lows pursuing yesterday's unemployment stats, "which means we whitethorn spot lenders opening to marque complaint cuts successful the adjacent fewer weeks", says Eastell.

CPI whitethorn beryllium astatine its lowest level for astir a year, but that header fig is "only portion of the story", says Stuart Morrison, probe manager astatine the British Chambers of Commerce.

"Firms volition beryllium hoping it strengthens the lawsuit for different involvement complaint chopped by the Bank of England soon," helium says, noting that 56% of firms cited ostentation arsenic a worry, with terms pressures "squeezing confidence, stalling concern and holding backmost recruitment".

He says that alongside adjacent month’s Spring Statement from Rachel Reeves, arsenic good arsenic providing the economical outlook from the OBR and the government, firms privation easing ostentation to beryllium "matched by enactment to chopped the outgo of doing business" specified arsenic concern rates betterment and enactment for exports. "Only then, volition businesses beryllium capable to afloat turbocharge economical growth."

Trade unions besides privation cuts, with TUC wide caput Paul Nowak saying the easing of ostentation is "welcome quality for moving people", with further softening expected successful coming months arsenic the authorities has provided enactment for vigor bills, obstruction fares and medicine charges.

"But aft years of falling surviving standards millions of families are inactive struggling to marque ends meet. With households squeezed there’s little wealth being spent connected the precocious thoroughfare - holding backmost businesses and choking disconnected growth.

"The Bank of England indispensable present act," helium says, calling for "a bid of speedy occurrence involvement complaint cuts" to "put wealth backmost into people’s pockets, springiness businesses the assurance to put and assistance Britain yet determination connected from a cost-of-living situation that has dragged connected for acold excessively long".