London stocks were set to slide at the open on Tuesday following downbeat sessions on Wall Street and in Asia, with investors nervous ahead of this week's non-farm payrolls release and third-quarter earnings from US chipmaker Nvidia.
The FTSE 100 was called to open down around 125 points.
Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior analyst at Swissquote, said: "Nasdaq futures are leading losses again this morning - a pretty good signal that today's session may not offer relief.
"So let's pray that Nvidia gets something extraordinary out of its hat on Wednesday.
"When it reports its Q3 results tomorrow after the bell, analysts expect another stellar quarter: revenue of circa $54 bn (implying circa 50-60% YoY growth) and a gross margin guidance near 73.3%. But even with a blowout quarter, there's no guarantee that bulls come rushing back - especially after the news that big names like SoftBank and Peter Thiel are already scaling back their exposure."
In UK corporate news, Imperial Brands posted an uplift in sales and earnings, supported by higher prices and growing demand for the tobacco group's range of next general products.
Net revenues from tobacco and next generation products (NGP) rose by 4.1% on a constant currency basis, to £8.3bn in the year to 30 September. Operating profits were 4.6% stronger, at £4bn.
Greencore said it had struck a deal to sell its Bristol soups and sauces site to Compleat Food Group to meet regulatory conditions on its Bakkavor takeover as it also posted a jump in annual profit.
Adjusted core earnings at the convenience food producer rose 17.9% to £181m in the 12 months to 26 September. The company said it had made a positive start to current-year trading.
Industrial products group Diploma delivered better-than-expected results for the fiscal year to 30 September, with organic revenues and profit margins ahead of guidance, helped by higher volumes across all three divisions.
Revenues totalled £1.53bn, up 11% on an organic basis, beating the 10% target given in July. Adjusted operating margins improved 160 basis points to 22.5%, ahead of the 22% guidance, driving adjusted operating profits 20% higher to £342.7m.