Yahoo Finance FTSE 100 Live: Blue-chip shares close flat, oil price falls
FTSE closes flat, oil falls
16:51 , Simon Hunt
At the close of today’s trading session in London, the FTSE 100 has closed flat, while oil prices have pared back gains from earlier in the week.
Here’s a look at your key market data:
City Voices: New stores are sweet relief from Oxford St candy curse
16:18 , Simon Hunt
Adam Hug, head of Westminster City Council, writes in today’s paper.
Last week Dylan Jones was unsparing in his verdict on Oxford Street — “too much crime. Too many dodgy sweet shops and beggars” — and the colourful description “London’s biggest thoroughfare now looks like a disused dual carriageway in the wrong part of Eastern Europe.”
I agree with quite a bit of this analysis. It is beyond dispute that Oxford Street began to look tired even before lockdown and was struggling to preserve its much-quoted status as the nation’s high street.Is it dying? No. Has it been under the weather? Without question. However, I would argue the patient is now in recovery and with a brighter future ahead. Here’s why.
The Evening Standard reported earlier this year on council plans to spend £90 million in partnership with the New West End Company to overhaul Oxford Street.
I appreciate there may be a certain fatigue about “how it might look” artists’ impressions of Oxford Street schemes after years of abandoned plans. But the big difference is we are now making progress at pace in partnership with business and residents. We will make Oxford Street wider, greener, and more pleasant to spend time on. This programme is ambitious but deliverable, and we are committed to making it a reality by 2026.
Next eyes £100m deal to buy rival Fat Face – reports
15:41 , Simon Hunt
Next is closing on a deal to buy high street rival Fat Face, according to reports.
The FTSE 100 clothing giant is putting the finishing touches to a deal to acquire Fat Face for around £100 million, Sky News reported on Wednesday.
Next and Fat Face both declined to comment.
It comes around three years after Fat Face was taken over by its lenders.
Last year, it was reported that the retail business, which has around 180 UK shops, had hired investment bankers in order to strike a sale.
Wall Street ticks higher as traders wait for Fed minutes
14:58 , Michael Hunter
The main US stock index ticked up in early trade, with investors looking ahead to minutes from the Federal Reserve’s last rate-setting meeting.
The S&P 500 was up 12 points to 4,367.44 in morning trade. Treasury yields continued to ease back as demand for the safe haven asset picked up, easing conderns about the implications of a broad sell-off in the market which ended as crisis erupted in the Middle East.
Details from within the room when the US central bank kept rates on hold are due out in the New York afternoon. Attention will focus on signals over a potential further hike later this year, which the Fed inmplied may be necessary when it made the decision to hold off.
New York stocks on course for opening gains with Fed minutes in focus
14:02 , Michael Hunter
Wall Street stocks were on course for modest opening gains into a session likely to be defined by minutes from the Federal Reserve’s last rate-setting meeting due out in the New York afternoon.
Beforehand, futures trade expected an opening gain of 10 points for the S&P 500.
Oil major Exxon Mobil was down over 2% in premarket trade after confirming $60 billion plans to buy Pioneer Natural Resources in an all-stock deal. Pioneer was up just under 2%.
Offshore gas firm IOG enters administration
13:45 , Simon Hunt
London-listed offshore gas firm IOG has entered administration, the company confirmed this afternoon.
IOG had its shares suspended late in September as it warned it was preparing for the prospect of administration. Its share price had fallen some 95% since the start of the year.
Esa Ikaheimonen, Chair of IOG, said: "The Board are extremely disappointed to draw this unavoidable conclusion, having worked exhaustively to overcome the Company's financial circumstances.
“We have not found a viable solution that would provide a return to shareholders. We regret the impact this outcome will have on our many stakeholders. I want to thank everyone involved, especially the IOG team, for their efforts through this very challenging period."
City Comment
13:02 , Simon English
Every now and again you get, inadvertently, a look into how the City thinks, and it may not be entirely pretty.
Here is a note yesterday from one analyst, discussing the effect of the Hamas/Israel/Palestine disaster on the price of oil.
He writes: “Oil’s bounce at the start of the week’s trading was an essential step in correcting the short-term oversold condition, but it may only fuel the interest of new sellers.”
Now, our analyst, whose blushes we shall spare, is writing for the City. He is offering commentary on the oil price, not on the dark realities of global politics.
Still, his pleasure that “oversold” oil is now back up, but that sellers of the black gold could return now the price is higher, may lack for sensitivity.
We’ll remember his intended audience, forgive him and admit he has a point.
The wider issue here in terms of the City is that the awful Middle East situation has undermined a bounce in confidence from bankers and traders.
Clients who had been sitting on their hands for months, years even, due to uncertainty in markets foreign and domestic were showing signs of action.
There was clear vision on where inflation and interest rates were going. Deals could be priced with some certainty – let’s get rolling, some were saying to the higher end investment bankers at least.
That’s now gone, or at least on hold. The only people who were busy in the City on Monday were oil traders and others who dabble in energy.
That takeover deal the favoured client was ready to move on? Forget it. Let’s wait.
Now, the travails of the bankers, and the clients, are not significant compared to murder and kidnap.
But it is possible to have some sense of sympathy for those in the City and in politics who thought business was about to pick up, that their jobs were safe, as markets moved in positive ways and optimism was embraced.
That looks off the table now. The run into Christmas could be glum
WorldFirst founder quits
12:22 , Simon Hunt
The founder of London fintech WorldFirst has quit the firm days after telling the Standard he was satisfied with its risk management practices amid reports he questioned a governance shake-up by its Chinese owners.
Jonathan Quin, who launched the international payments business in 2004 and sold it to billionaire Jack Ma’s Ant Group in 2019 in a $700 million deal, departed its board this week to spend more time on “personal pursuits”, Ant said.
Earlier this year, Ant shifted the majority of WorldFirst’s business away from UK regulators in a major restructuring. WorldFirst Asia, a business unit which accounted for around two-thirds of the company’s revenues, was transferred to an Asian subsidiary of Ant, which it said was based on “the strategic alignment of the legal entities.”
At meetings of the firm’s risk committee, Quin is understood to have questioned the move of governance functions and roles from the UK to China.
But Quin told the Standard the discussions were in the “course of my duties as a director to report” and that he “wanted to make sure they understood the importance of sanctions regimes and compliance and risk matters.”
PageGroup: Pay offers are falling
11:46 , Simon Hunt
Pay offers are falling and job seekers are sticking with roles they already have as the jobs market tightens, PageGroup warned today.
Shares in the recruiter fell 14p to 410p as it reported a 10.5% drop in profits in the three months to September. The UK was among countries hit hardest, with gross profits tumbling 18.9%.
Nicholas Kirk, chief executive of PageGroup, said “tough market conditions affected our performances in Asia, the UK and the US.” The group made profits in 2022 of £196 million. They will fall far short of that this year, analysts say.
Upgrades boost FirstGroup and Mitie shares, FTSE 100 holds firm
10:18 , Graeme Evans
FirstGroup shares rose 5% today as it emerged that annual profits will be better than the City expected.
The upgrade follows a busy summer of leisure travel for FirstGroup’s open access rail services, Hull Trains and the Lumo operation between Edinburgh and London.
FirstGroup’s bus services have also reported stronger passenger numbers, with productivity gains also helping to overcome inflationary pressures.
The performance in the six months to 30 September means FirstGroup is on track for a full-year operating profit £14 million to £20 million higher than originally thought.
Shares jumped 6.9p to 153.4p, leaving them 50% better off than the start of the year. Alongside FirstGroup at the top of the FTSE 250 index, ticketing firm Trainline surged 3% or 9.2p to 271p amid the encouraging signs for rail travel.
The pair’s improvement came during a downbeat session for the wider FTSE 250, which followed yesterday’s 2.3% jump with a fall of 52.26 points to 17,915.41.
The FTSE 100 index added 8.15 points to 7636.36, consolidating the previous session’s 1.8% rise after risk appetite was fuelled by the prospect of a China stimulus plan and slight change in tone from Federal Reserve policymakers.
With Brent Crude at $88 a barrel on fears of supply disruptions in the Middle East, BP shares lifted 6.2p to 531.3p near the top of the FTSE 100.
GSK shares rose 0.5% or 7.6p to 1529p, although they initially added 2% on a confidential settlement in relation to claims linking Zantac heartburn medication to cancer.
The company said the move ahead of a court case due to start in California next month avoided the distraction of protracted litigation but that it will continue to vigorously defend itself “based on the facts and the science in all other Zantac cases”.
In the FTSE 250, facilities management firm Mitie jumped 4% or 4.2p to 103.2p after it reported half-year revenues about 11% higher at £2.1 billion and upgraded its guidance for full-year operating profits to at least £190 million.
London landlords eye shift into commercial property
09:55 , Michael Hunter
London’s volatile private lettings market is pushing landlords into investing in commercial property instead, according to new research.
Leases for shops and offices can often be longer and the turnover of tenants lower, making them look appealing in a difficult time for housing after a series of interest rate rises.
Findings from specialist financial services firm Shawbrook — seen exclusively by the Standard — show almost a third of landlords in the capital who intend to add to their portfolio are considering a switch from residential to commercial property.
Retail space is in the lead, with 39% of those looking at commercial property thinking of buying larger shops; 38% are considering smaller shops. Office space is just behind that on 37%, with industrial space on 29%.
And more than a third of investors already in the commercial property sector are planning to expand their portfolios.
Emma Cox, head of real estate at Shawbrook, said: “As cities and towns adapt to changing post-pandemic dynamics, people are once again frequenting local businesses and returning to offices. When compared to residential properties, commercial properties often feature longer term leases at higher rental yields.”
The research also found that investors keen to buy into shops saw it as a chance to help the high street evolve, with a rise in tenancies from local, independent, and experiential stores.
Marston’s cuts dozens of jobs in efficiency drive
09:00 , Simon Hunt
Marston’s has cut dozens of staff in an efficiency drive as the pub chain hailed a boost in sales.
The firm, which owns the Fire Station pub in Waterloo and the Pitcher & Piano in Cornhill, said the move to slim down its head office headcount would help save the business around £5 million in costs.
Sales rose 11.3% in the year to end-September, with drinks sales falling behind food sales in the summer months due to the inclement weather.
CEO Andrew Andrea told the Standard: “From a cost perspective, compared to a year ago, we have a much higher degree of confidence – food and energy costs seem to have stabilised quite a lot.
“We’ve not seen any change in consumer behaviour over the year despite cost-of-living pressures – customers are still buying premium beers and not shifting down to cheaper lagers.”
Marston’s shares held flat at 28p.
GSK settlement boosts shares, Kingfisher down 3% after Travis Perkins warning
08:50 , Graeme Evans
A profits warning by building supplies firm Travis Perkins today meant a weak session for Howden Joinery and B&Q owner Kingfisher, with their shares down 3% in the FTSE 100.
Travis Perkins, which is listed in the FTSE 250, tumbled 11% or 85.4p to 720.2p on the back of its update and Wickes dropped 3p to 132p.
The FTSE 100 recovered from a weak start to stand 2.55 points higher at 7,630.76, with GSK up 19.8p to 1541.2p after revealing that it had reached a confidential settlement in relation to a Zantac case due before a California court next month.
The company, whose shares are near their high for the year, said the move avoided the distraction of protracted litigation but that it will continue to vigorously defend itself “based on the facts and the science in all other Zantac cases”.
In the FTSE 250 index, shares in FirstGroup and outsourcing firm Mitie rose 5% and 3% after they upgraded earnings guidance in their respective trading updates. The FTSE 250 stood 20.08 points lower at 17,957.59.
FTSE steady after markets open
08:40 , Simon Hunt
A few minutes into the day’s trading session in London, the FTSE 100 has opened steady while oil prices continue their upward march, up a further 0.6%.
Here’s a look at your key market data this morning.
Samsung profits plunge 78% amid weak demand for gadgets
07:49 , Simon Hunt
Samsung profits plunged as much as 78% amid soft demand for its chips and gadgets.
Spot prices of D-Ram chips, which are used in its PCs and servers, have fallen close to 30% so far this year.
Shares rose 4.4% as investors had predicted an even sharper profits drop.
Travis Perkins issues second profit warning in three months as house building slowdown persists
07:49 , Michael Hunter
The UK’s biggest building products chain, Travis Perkins, issued another profit warning this morning, after the slowdown in the housing market outlasted the summer.
The 700-branch company cut its outlook for annual adjusted operating profit to a range between £175 million and £195 million, down from £240 million, a forecast issued in July, that was itself lower than one of £272 issued in April.
It said “challenging market conditions with the pronounced slowdown in new build housing and domestic RMI [repairs, maintenance and improvement] activity” persisted into the third quarter.
September “saw a notable deterioration in market activity and sentiment”, it added,
Falling prices for some building products also took a toll.
Nick Roberts, Chief Executive, said: “Market conditions remain challenging with continued weakness across new build housing and domestic RMI. Deflation on commodity products has also been greater than we had anticipated. “
Ashley’s Frasers takes stake in Norwegian retailer XXL
07:32 , Simon Hunt
A spending spree at Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group shows no signs of abating as the firm today confirmed it had acquired a stake Norwegian retailer XXL.
The firm has bought 117m shares and now owns a 9.75%.
Yesterday it confirmed it had upped its stake in Asos to 10.65%.
Sales slip at Sanderson Design Group but profits improve
07:23 , Joanna Bourke
Upmarket wallpaper company Sanderson Design Group today said the UK market has been challenging as it posted a first half dip in revenue.
However, the luxury interior design and furnishings group said there was strong growth in North America and total group revenue for the six months to July 31 declined 2.1% to £56.7 million.
Pre-tax profit improved to £6.2 million from £5.5 million and full year trading remains in line with board expectations.
Dianne Thompson, Sanderson Design Group’s chairman, said: “We are focused on growth opportunities in the US, where we are currently under indexed, on driving licensing income internationally and on mitigating the softness in the UK market through cost saving measures. Our licensing activities had an outstanding first half and continue to drive the group’s profit growth in the current year.”
Asia markets higher, FTSE 100 steady after big rise
07:14 , Graeme Evans
The FTSE 100 index is set for a session of consolidation after yesterday’s jump of 1.8% or 136 points to 7628.1, the top flight’s highest level since the end of September.
The boost was fuelled by the prospect of a China stimulus plan as well as a slight change in tone from Federal Reserve policymakers on the next move for interest rates.
The US rates outlook will remain in focus as the minutes of the Fed’s September meeting are due to be published later, with US inflation figures due tomorrow.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed 0.4% higher and the Nasdaq Composite lifted 0.6% by last night’s close, while the China stimulus hopes have contributed to a 1.5% rise for Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index.
CMC Markets expects the FTSE 100 index to open nine points lower at 7619 this morning.
The price of Brent crude, meanwhile, has held firm at $87.64 a barrel after surging earlier in the week on fears of supply disruptions in the Middle East.
Recap: Yesterday’s top stories
Tuesday 10 October 2023 22:05 , Simon Hunt
Good morning. Here’s a summary of our top headlines from yesterday:
Virgin Active taps shareholders for £70m as it battles to keep finances in check as the cost-of-living crisis sees gym goers depart premium clubs for cheaper options.
Food price inflation cools in sunny September, according to Kantar. Bargain-hunters push grocery price inflation down for the seventh consecutive month -- to 11%, and the lowest rate since July 22. Lidl is the fastest growing retailer, with sales up over 15%.
Facebook's tilt away from news hits Reach, the publisher of the Daily Mirror and the Daily Express, with the number of links to its stories down as Zuckerberg's social network "deprioritises news". Year-on-year pages views down by over a fifth for the nine months to the end of Q3.
Speedy Hire buys environmentally friendly battery specialist Green Power Hire for £20 million as customers become more choosy over what kind of back-up power they use.
