Ascential Share News (ASCL)

LONDON (Alliance News) - Stock prices were broadly higher at the start of the new week on signs of improved relations between the US and China, with President Donald Trump agreeing to delay the introduction of higher tariffs on Chinese goods.The mid-cap FTSE 250, however, slid on Monday amid a 20% drop for index constituent Centamin as the gold miner reported a fall in annual profit and slashed its payout.The FTSE 100 was 8.05 points higher, or 0.1%, at 7,186.65 Monday midday. The mid-cap FTSE 250 was down 65.64 points, or 0.3%, at 19,203.95, while the AIM All-Share index was up 0.1% at 910.97.The Cboe UK 100 index was flat at 12,206.20. The Cboe UK 250 was down 0.5% at 17,110.44. The Cboe UK Small Companies up 0.1% at 11,140.96.In mainland Europe, the CAC 40 in Paris and the DAX 30 in Frankfurt were both up 0.4% at midday. "Global markets are on the rise this morning, as markets celebrate the news of an indefinite delay to the deadline beyond which US will ramp up tariffs on Chinese imports," said Joshua Mahony, senior market analyst at IG.The US was set to raise tariffs on USD200 billion worth of Chinese goods from 10% to 25% on March 1.US President Trump praised "substantial progress" made between the two sides recently, including on intellectual property, forced technology transfer, currency valuations and other US concerns. "Assuming both sides make additional progress, we will be planning a Summit for President Xi and myself, at Mar-a-Lago, to conclude an agreement. A very good weekend for US & China!" Trump said on Twitter."As a result of these very productive talks, I will be delaying the US increase in tariffs now scheduled for March 1," Trump said.Trump also praised China for being "very helpful" on North Korea, just as he heads to Vietnam on Monday for a two-day summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.Stocks in the US are set for a higher start on the back of Monday's trade optimism, with the Dow Jones called up 0.6%, the S&P 500 seen gaining 0.5% and the Nasdaq on course for a 0.6% rise.Meanwhile, said IG's Mahony, the pound is "stuck in limbo".This comes after UK Prime Minister Theresa May admitted she will not get a Brexit deal in time for MPs to hold a "meaningful vote" this week.The prime minister, attending an EU-League of Arab States summit in Egypt, has said she will put her deal to Parliament by March 12 at the latest - just 17 days before Britain is due to leave the EU.The latest delay was greeted with anger by opposition parties who accused her of another attempt to "run down the clock" to force MPs to back her Withdrawal Agreement.A cross-party group of MPs seeking to block a no-deal break immediately confirmed they would be tabling an amendment giving the House the power to demand a delay to Brexit if an agreement is not in place by March 13.Sterling was quoted at USD1.3071 at midday, steady compared to USD1.3059 late Friday.In London, shares in Persimmon fell as the housebuilder's right to sell homes under the Help to Buy incentive scheme came under scrutiny amid UK government concerns over the FTSE 100 constituent's behaviour.An extension of contracts for the scheme from April 2021 is soon to be reviewed by Housing Secretary James Brokenshire."James has become increasingly concerned by the behaviour of Persimmon in the last 12 months," a source close to the minister told the Press Association."Leasehold, build quality, their leadership seemingly not getting they're accountable to their customers, are all points that have been raised by the Secretary of State privately."Launched in 2013, Help to Buy allows buyers to put down a 5% deposit on a newly-built home and get a government equity loan for up to 20%, or 40% in London, of the purchase price.Other UK housebuilders also were lower at midday, with Taylor Wimpey down 2.6% and Barratt Developments 1.5% lower. Bunzl fell 4.7% after the distribution firm said annual profit increased on acquisitions, as it announced another purchase on Monday, buying US-based safety gloves manufacturer Liberty Glove & Safety for an undisclosed sum.Liberty Glove & Safety is a California-based company which sells a range of personal protection equipment, primarily gloves, to US distributors. Liberty Glove & Safety recorded USD93 million in revenue for 2018.In 2018, Bunzl's pretax profit totalled GBP424.8 million, up 3.8% from GBP409.3 million in 2017. Revenue was GBP9.08 billion, rising 5.8% from GBP8.58 billion in 2017 and 9% on constant exchange rate.Associated British Foods was 1.8% lower after it reported a decline in first half same-store sales for its fashion clothing chain Primark and said that overall group first half earnings will be broadly in line with the comparative year-ago period.The FTSE 100-listed company attributed the 2% drop in Primark like-for-like sales for the 24 weeks to March 2 to a 3% decline in eurozone sales. For the core UK division, Primark like-for-like sales were level with last year in the first half, AB Foods said. "Sales at Primark are expected to be 4% ahead of last year in the first half, at both constant currency and actual exchange rates, driven by increased retail selling space partially offset by a 2% decline in like-for-like sales. With a much higher margin, profit is expected to be well ahead of the same period last year," AB Foods explained. For the full year, the company retained its adjusted operating profit and adjusted earnings per share outlook, both expected to be in line with last year.FTSE 250 constituent Centamin tumbled 20% as it slashed its dividend as annual earnings slumped on lower production. The miner recorded a pretax profit of USD152.7 million for 2018, down from USD207.4 million in the year-ago period. Revenue was USD603.2 million from USD675.5 million, respectively. Gold production, already reported by Centamin last month, came in at 472,418 ounces for 2018, down from 544,658 a year before, driven by lower than expected grades from both open pit and underground operations. Centamin has declared a final dividend of 3.0 cents per share, giving a total payout of 5.5 cents, down from 12.5 cents paid a year ago.Ascential was down 3.3% despite saying profit rose considerably in 2018 with the strongest growth delivered by its sales segment.The media firm's annual pretax profit was GBP28.9 million, rising 45% from GBP19.9 million in 2017. Revenue hit GBP348.5 million from GBP292.9 million, a 19% increase.Ascential's final dividend per share will be 3.9 pence, taking to the total for the year to 5.8p from 5.6p, up 3.6%.