Brand Architek. Share News (BAR)

LONDON (Alliance News) - UK shares have opened lower Monday, with the FTSE 100 adding to the losses posted on Friday, as talks between Greece and its international creditors broke down over the weekend.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker broke off high-level bailout talks with Greek officials on Sunday, after weekend negotiations failed to deliver progress on "significant gaps" in reform plans for the cash-strapped country.

Shares in Thomas Cook are up 0.9%, after the UK travel operator said it will establish a joint venture with new investor Fosun International to develop domestic, inbound and outbound tourism activities for the Chinese market under Thomas Cook brands.

Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: down 0.5% at 6,753.51
FTSE 250: down 0.7% at 17,821.19
AIM ALL-SHARE: down 0.1% at 773.52
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Hang Seng: down 1.5% at 26,875.34
Nikkei 225: closed down 0.1% at 20,387.79
DJIA: closed down 0.8% at 17,898.84
S&P 500: closed down 0.7% at 2,094.11
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GBP: down at USD1.5534
EUR: down at USD1.1230

GOLD: up at USD1,184.43 per ounce
OIL (Brent): up at USD64.56 a barrel

(changes since end of previous GMT day)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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Monday's Key Economic Events still to come
(all times in BST)

09:00 Italy Consumer Price Index
10:00 EU Trade Balance
13:30 US NY Empire State Manufacturing Index
13:30 Canada Manufacturing Shipments
14:15 US Industrial Production and Capacity Utilization
14:30 EU ECB President Draghi Speech
15:00 US NAHB Housing Market Index
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European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker broke off high-level bailout talks with Greek officials on Sunday, after weekend negotiations failed to deliver progress on "significant gaps" in reform plans for the cash-strapped country. Greek government Nikos Pappas met at the weekend with Juncker's personal representative, as well as members of the ECB and the IMF, in what the commission described as a last attempt to broker a deal before markets open on Monday. "While some progress was made, the talks did not succeed as there remains a significant gap between the plans of the Greek authorities and the joint requirements of Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund," a commission spokesperson said. Further talks are to take place at a meeting of eurozone finance ministers on Thursday.
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The average asking price for a house in the UK jumped 3.0% on month in June, property tracking website Rightmove said - coming in at GBP294,351. Analysts figure the jump was the result of last month's election results, which resulted in a Conservative victory - as well as a dwindling pool of available houses. Prices had slipped 0.1% in May. On a yearly basis, prices spiked 4.5% after gaining 2.5% in the previous month.
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Standard & Poor's Ratings Services late Friday downgraded its outlook for UK sovereign debt to negative from stable due to the government's decision to hold a referendum on membership in the European Union by 2017. "We believe that the UK government's decision to hold a referendum on EU membership by 2017 indicates that economic policymaking could be at risk of being more exposed to party politics than we had previously anticipated, similar to the situation in the US when we lowered that sovereign rating in 2011," S&P said. "A possible UK departure from the EU also raises questions about the financing of the economy's large twin deficits and high short-term external debt," the ratings agency added. At the same time as downgrading its outlook on the UK, S&P affirmed its AAA/A-1+ long- and short-term sovereign credit ratings.
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EU rules forcing Italy to look after all the boat migrants who land on its territory and stop them moving elsewhere in the bloc must be changed, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi said in an interview. The so-called Dublin II regulation is criticized for putting undue pressure on countries that serve as entry points for EU-bound migrants, such as Italy and Greece. Its prescriptions are often ignored, as many refugees still find their way to northern Europe. "In Europe we must change the principle set by Dublin II," Renzi told the Corriere della Sera newspaper, adding that he had an unspecified "plan B ready" if an upcoming EU summit does not deliver progress on such issues. Migration is expected to top the agenda at the June 25-26 meeting of EU leaders in Brussels. They are due to consider proposals to relocate 24,000 asylum seekers from Italy and 16,000 from Greece to elsewhere in the bloc, over the course of two years.
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The US presidential race is heating up. Former secretary of state Hillary Clinton pledged to fight for the middle class in her first major Democratic campaign rally before thousands of cheering supporters on New York City's Roosevelt Island. But on Monday, the centre-left politician will likely be overshadowed by the long-awaited formal announcement in Miami by Jeb Bush - son of one president, brother to another and former governor of the southern state of Florida.
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The number of people infected in South Korea's outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome has risen to 145, the Health Ministry said, after seven new cases were confirmed. So far 14 people have died of the dangerous respiratory illness, which erupted in the country in May. Most of the newly diagnosed patients contracted the virus at the Samsung Medical Center in Seoul. The hospital said that in order to focus on stopping the spread of MERS, non-emergency services were being suspended and no new patients would be accepted.
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The US launched an airstrike in Libya against al-Qaeda terrorist Mokhtar Belmokhtar, the Pentagon said. Belmokhtar has a long history of leading terrorist activities as a member of al-Qaeda in north-western Africa, and directed the 2013 attacks in Algeria that killed at least 38 people from 10 countries, including three Americans, it said in a statement. The "counterterrorism strike against an al-Qaeda-associated terrorist" was carried out Saturday, Colonel Steve Warren said earlier.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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HSBC RAISES BHP BILLITON TO 'HOLD' ('REDUCE') - PRICE TARGET 1300 (1260) PENCE
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DEUTSCHE BANK RESUMES IMPERIAL TOBACCO WITH 'BUY' - TARGET 4,000 PENCE
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TRADERS: HSBC CUTS TULLETT PREBON TO 'HOLD' ('BUY') - TARGET 420 (405) PENCE
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Rolls-Royce Holdings said it has won services contracts valued at up to USD224 million to support US military branches and global air forces supplied by the US Department of Defense. The contracts will support Rolls-Royce AE 2100, Adour (F405) and T56 engines across a variety of fleets, the company said. Services to be supplied by Rolls-Royce include logistics support, engineering, parts, repairs, field services and design modifications.
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Aberdeen Asset Management revealed plans to launch new investment funds after raising additional tier 1 capital by agreeing to issue GBP100 million of non-voting preference shares to top shareholder Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corp. In a statement, Aberdeen Asset Management said it is issuing the perpetual redeemable preference shares to Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corp, which owns about 17% of the asset manager, with a view to providing seed capital for the new funds.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Thomas Cook Group said it will establish a joint venture with Fosun International to develop domestic, inbound and outbound tourism activities for the Chinese market under Thomas Cook brands, a move that comes after the two companies in March formed a strategic partnership to look for opportunities in the Chinese market. The joint venture will be 51% owned by Fosun and 49% by Thomas Cook. The two companies will put a total of GBP1.6 million into the venture to support its start-up, roughly half each. Fosun International, chaired by Chinese billionaire Guo Guangchang, in March bought a 5% stake in the UK travel operator and said it plans to increase its stake to 10% by buying shares in the open market over time.
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Vedanta Resources said it is merging two Indian subsidiaries as it looks to simplify its structure. The move results in the combination of Vedanta Ltd and Cairn India. Minority shareholders in Cairn India will receive one equity share in Vedanta Ltd, as well as one redeemable preference share in Vedanta Ltd with a face value of INR10, implying a premium of 7.3% to the previous closing price. Chief Executive Tom Albanese said the combination of Vedanta Ltd and Cairn India will help to "unlock" India's energy and mineral resources. Following completion of the transaction, Vedanta Resource's ownership in Vedanta Ltd is expected to decrease to 50.1% from its current 62.9% shareholding. Cairn India minority shareholders will own 20.2% and Vedanta Ltd minority shareholders will own a 29.7% stake in the enlarged entity. London-listed Cairn Energy holds a 9.8% stake in Cairn India.
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NMC Health said it has agreed to acquire United Arab Emirates-based long-term medical care provider ProVita International Medical Center LLC for USD160.6 million in cash. The acquisition adds 120 beds to NMC's expected 2015 licensed bed capacity of 720, NMC said.
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Unite Group said the Unite UK Student Accommodation Fund, in which it has a 22% stake, has exchanged contracts to acquire a 2,100 bed student accommodation portfolio for GBP271 million. The student accommodation developer and manager said the fund will pay for the deal using the proceeds of last month's equity raise.
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COMPANIES - LONDON MAIN MARKET AND AIM
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Majestic Wine, reported its pretax profit for the 52 weeks to end-March fell to GBP18.4 million from the GBP23.8 million posted in the year before, even though revenue increased 2.3% to GBP284.5 million from GBP278.2 million. Chief Executive Rowan Gormley, formerly head of recent acquisition Naked Wines, said that required investments will suppress the company's profit in the short term.
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Emirates National Oil Co said it has reached a recommended deal to buy Dragon Oil for 750 pence a share in cash, valuing the whole of Dragon at GBP3.7 billion, an improvement on its initial approach. Emirates, which is owned by the government of Dubai, is already Dragon Oil's majority shareholder, and the offer for the stake it doesn't own is worth about GBP1.7 billion in total. It said its offer is 47.2% above Dragon Oil's share price on March 13, the day before it first approached Dragon Oil. The company first approached Dragon about a possible acquisition of the stake it didn't already own in March, and last month it put forward a 735 pence a share potential offer.
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Eclectic Bar Group said it is implementing a cost reduction programme, as it warned of continued competitive pressures in a number of its locations. The student bar chain also plans to raise GBP1.65 million in a share subscription and is appointing leisure entrepreneur Luke Johnson as its new executive chairman. Johnson, co-founder of the Strada restaurant chain, has agreed to subscribe for 3 million new shares in the company at a price of 50 pence each, and the SIPPs of its Chief Executive Officer Reuben Harley and Chief Financial Officer John Smith also plan to subscribe for 150,000 new shares each at the same price, raising GBP1.65 million in total. This will be used as working capital.
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COMPANIES - INTERNATIONAL
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Metro Group said it signed an agreement with Hudson's Bay Co to sell Galeria Kaufhof which includes the operational department store business both in Germany (GALERIA Kaufhof) and Belgium (GALERIA INNO) as well as the corresponding owned real estate portfolio. The purchase price (enterprise value) is EUR2.825 billion. The transaction has been approved by the board of directors of Hudson's Bay as well as the supervisory board of METRO AG.
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United Technologies announced it will pursue the separation of the Sikorsky Aircraft business, subject to final board approval. A decision on whether Sikorsky will be spun off or sold is expected by the end of the third quarter. "Our strategic review has confirmed that exiting the helicopter business is the best path forward for United Technologies," said Gregory Hayes, UTC President and CEO.
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Alibaba Group Holding, is planning to launch an online video streaming service in China called Tmall Box Office or TBO. Tmall Box Office will stream content bought from China and other countries and will also offer in-house productions. The service is expected to be offered in about two months via Alibaba's set-top box and smart televisions. "Our goal is to become like HBO in the US, to become like Netflix in the US," said Liu Chunning, president of Alibaba's digital entertainment business.
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Boeing Co and Airbus Group are poised to win at least 220 orders for competing narrow-body jets at the Paris Air Show, a haul of at least USD23 billion, Bloomberg reported citing people familiar with the matter. Single-aisle models such as the 737 and A320 are the workhorses of the global airline industry, carrying about 75% of passengers. The Max and neo are the latest, upgraded versions of each plane. Press conferences to unveil their orders are scheduled to begin on Monday, when the Paris event formally opens.
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Monday's Scheduled AGMs/EGMs

Kefi Minerals
President Energy
Netdimensions
P2P Global Investments
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite

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