Tuesday, October 10: Once again it was a quiet start to the day, with little moving the needle overnight. Spain is still up in the air, although there is a pivotal parliamentary meet going on right now which may shed some light on what will happen for Catalonia over the coming days. BAE as expected gave more insight into the job cuts it plans, expecting to cut almost 2,000 positions from their military, maritime and intelligence services. The main brunt of these issues derives from the order gap for its Typhoon jet, for which they’re hoping for renewed business from Qatar. Shares closed the day 0.36% lower.

We did have some data released in the UK this morning, which showed higher prices for food and clothes fuelled retail sales growth last month. LFL retail sales grew 1.9% as costs have started to eventually work their way down to the consumer. The FTSE was nudged higher after the figures this morning, albeit not very far. The trade deficit was seen to be wider than expected over the three months to August, expanding £6.2bn to £13.2bn. The ONS put this largely down to erratic commodity movements which in turn makes the headline figure difficult to translate. UK industrial output also rose in line with forecasts at 0.2% last month. Overall the pound was quick to move higher after the raft of data releases, moving over $1.32 against the US dollar. On the day the FTSE closed 0.4% higher at 7538.27.

In other companies news, the proposed takeover from the Co-op Group for Nisa saw progress today after the board recommended their bid. The Co-op’s offer of £143m for Nisa does still need to be approved by shareholders but this vote of confidence should help the move. Amazon’s ability to take charge of shifting consumer habits has forced the likes of the Co-op and Tesco to look to wholesalers. Tesco and Booker’s proposed deal is still under review by the CMA.

I don’t want to take credit where it’s due but, Domino’s 21% sales increase isn’t a surprise to myself. Online orders have propelled sales in the period to £261.6m, which on a like for like basis is still 8% higher. Digital sales grew 17.4% in the UK and 84% in Switzerland. Shares closed the day almost 9% higher.