Oil is crashing. Brent is down 1.16% to $49.38 and
US crude is down 1.37% to $47.44 at the time of writing (6.30
a.m. BST/1.30 a.m. ET). Prices are falling after an unexpected
build in US crude stocks and amid fears that Chinese crude demand
could falter as Beijing clamps down on alleged tax evasion in the
oil industry.

Mortgage approval numbers are coming. The
British Bankers Association (BBA) will announce the number of UK
mortgages approved in July at 9.30 a.m. BST (4.30 a.m. ET),
giving another signal of how the UK property market has fared
post-Brexit vote. Economists are expecting a fall from 40,100 in
June to 38,500.

Asian markets are mixed. China's benchmark
Shanghai Composite is down 0.04% at the time of writing (6.30
a.m. BST/1.30 a.m. ET), while Japan's Nikkei is up 0.60%, and the
Hong Kong Hang Seng is down 0.76%. US
stock markets were quiet overnight.