An opening dip on Wall Street has taken some of the shine off the UK market, as any clarity over the exact nature of the EU's plan to save the Eurozone seems as far away as ever.
With the Dow Jones Industrial Average down around 25 points in early trading, the FTSE 100 is now up 18.03 points at 5428.38, having climbed as high as 5483 during the day.
As well as the Eurozone crisis - with investors wondering if the Euro bailout fund will be raised to €2trn or even more - there are also some US figures out. Inflation in the world's largest economy edged up from 3.8% to 3.9% in September, but core inflation was steady at 2%. Rob Carnell and Teunis Brosens at ING Bank said:
It is only a matter of time before base effects start to drag headline CPI lower. The fate of core CPI lies with the state of the US labour market, but we would not be surprised if, after a pause over coming months, it headed up towards a peak of 2.5% year on year by early next year.
Meanwhile US housing starts rose 15% in September, helped by a 50% month on month jump in the multifamily segment (apartment buildings). ING said:
With intense competition from cheap distressed sales continuing in the foreseeable future, construction activity will remain weak. One erratic jump in September multifamily starts does not change that judgement.
