BON.L Share News (BON)

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London are set for a lower open on Wednesday as traders remain jittery ahead of the G20 summit later this week, which will include a meeting of the US and Chinese leaders, and as tensions between the US and Iran continue to mount. In early company news, BCA Marketplace and Bonmarche both recommended takeover approaches, while John Wood Group guided an interim performance ahead of a year before and Tullow Oil said it made "steady progress" in the first half.IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 index of large-caps to open 15.43 points lower at 7,407.00 on Wednesday. The FTSE 100 index closed up 5.74 points, or 0.1%, at 7,422.43 on Tuesday.Ipek Ozkardeskaya, senior market analyst at London Capital Group, said the current risk-off environment is being driven by tensions between the US and Iran as well as the upcoming G20 summit. "We can now guess that the latest sanctions on Iran may have successfully closed the door for any discussion soon," said Ozkardeskaya. "On the Chinese front, the US delayed the next round of tariffs on USD300 billion additional Chinese goods before the G20 meeting, but the probability of a trade deal between the two countries remains slim given that both presidents seem unwilling to compromise on their respective demands."In the US on Tuesday, Wall Street ended in the red, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average ending down 0.7%, the S&P 500 down 1.0%, and the Nasdaq Composite slipping 1.5%.Iran's president on Tuesday blamed Washington for a steadily escalating row with the US and said the situation will not be resolved unless US sanctions on the country are lifted.Rowhani told French President Emmanuel Macron in a phone call that Iran will "effectively counter further aggressions from the US against our borders, such as the shooting down of the US drone." He also said Iran has no interest in tensions in the region and particularly does not want a war, including with the US.Rowhani was responding to US President Donald Trump statement earlier calling Iran's reaction to new sanctions "very ignorant and insulting". Tehran had mocked the sanctions as "outrageous and a sign of mental retardation".The continued tensions between the US and Iran were not enough to sustain gold's rally overnight, however, with the precious metal quoted at USD1,408.21 early Wednesday versus USD1,428.08 an ounce at the London equities close TuesdayFocus remains on the G20 summit in the Japanese city of Osaka at the end of this week, where Trump and Chinese President Xi Jingping will hold a highly-anticipated meeting.In Asia on Wednesday, the Japanese Nikkei 225 index closed down 0.5%. In China, the Shanghai Composite is down 0.1%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong is up 0.3%.In early UK company news, distribution and services firm Bunzl said its annual expectations remain changed, with interim revenue to edge up. Bunzl said trading for the first half of 2019 has been consistent with the trend of slowing underlying revenue growth indicated at the time of its first quarter trading statement in April. Revenue for the half is expected to rise 4% at actual exchange rates, with constant currency, adjusted trading days revenue to increase 2%. The pipeline for acquisitions remains "active", said Bunzl, and with ongoing discussions taking place, the company expects to complete further transactions during the remainder of the year.Car seller BCA Marketplace reported a rise in annual profit and agreed the terms of a takeover by BBD Bidco. BBD Bidco - owned indirectly by funds managed by private equity firm TDR - is offering 243p in cash for each BCA Marketplace share held, representing a premium of 25% to the closing price on June 19. The deal values the FTSE 250 constituent at GBP1.91 billion.BCA Marketplace shares closed at 235.20p on Tuesday.BCA Marketplace directors intend to unanimously recommend the deal to shareholders, and BBD Bidco has received support from shares representing 44% of BCA Marketplace's share capital."In recommending this offer to shareholders, the board of BCA believes it is in the best interests of all stakeholders in the company. The offer from TDR gives shareholders the opportunity to receive cash at a significant premium to the prevailing share price and will allow BCA to develop its business as a private, unlisted company," said BCA Marketplace.Separately, BCA Marketplace said revenue for the year to March 31 rose to GBP3.03 billion from GBP2.43 billion the year before, with pretax profit up to GBP89.5 million from GBP75.9 million. BCA Marketplace raised its dividend for the year by 13% to 9.65p."BCA has delivered a good resilient performance in the year against the backdrop of a challenging new car market, subdued conditions in the more stable used car market and economic uncertainty created by Brexit," said Executive Chair Avril Palmer-Baunack."The new financial year has started well despite the continuing UK-specific, macroeconomic and political challenges. The automotive sector does not stand still and neither will BCA in providing integrated services to support it," he added.Transport operator Stagecoach reported a slip in revenue, but annual profit nonetheless managed to grow. Revenue for the year to April 27 fell to GBP1.88 billion from GBP2.82 billion the year before, but pretax profit rose to GBP101.2 million from GBP77.6 million. The firm kept its dividend for the year flat at 7.7p.Turning to current trading, Stagecoach said it has made a "satisfactory" start to the new financial year. UK rail operating profit is expected to be "minimal" in the current year, reflecting the end of the East Midlands franchise. "Over more than 20 years, we have delivered industry-leading performance, record passenger growth, excellent industrial relations, and the highest levels of customer satisfaction in the sector. We will continue to focus on delivering high quality services for our customers at our existing rail businesses. However, we have no intention to bid for new UK rail franchises on the current risk profile offered by the Department for Transport," said Stagecoach.Oilfield services firm John Wood Group said its interim performance is ahead of the prior year, with "significant growth" in operating profit. Revenue is in line with the first half of 2018, the company said, while earnings growth and margins have improved. John Wood said its outlook for the year is unchanged despite a number of disposals being completed in the half.Asset Solutions Americas revenue is higher than a year ago, while earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation is down slightly due to cost overruns in heavy civils and pipeline work.Asset Solutions Europe, Africa, Asia & Australia has generated revenue in line with the first half of 2018 and "good" Ebitda growth. Specialist Technical Solutions has seen revenue and earnings in line with a year ago, while Environment & Infrastructure Solutions delivered good growth in both revenue and margins. Tullow Oil said it has made "steady progress" in the first half of the year.The firm expects to report revenue of around USD900 million for the first half of 2019 and a gross profit of USD500 million. In west Africa, working interest production is expected to average around 89,000 barrels of oil per day. Tullow is currently producing around 95,000 barrels a day and net oil production is expected to rise towards 100,000 barrels in the second half as further wells are brought on stream in Ghana. The full year forecast remains unchanged at 90,000 to 98,000 barrels of oil per day.Womenswear retailer Bonmarche said it still believes Spectre's takeover offer undervalues the business, but now recommends shareholders accept the deal. In April, Spectre - a Dubai-registered company 100% owned by Edinburgh Woollen Mill owner Philip Day - approached the fashion retailer with a GBP5.7 million offer.This change in heart from the struggling retailer comes as Bonmarche reported a "poor" performance in the first quarter of the year due to continued weakness in the underlying clothing market and a lack of seasonal weather. "It is early in the financial year, and the achievement of a PBT result which is in line with the board's expectations is possible, but there is a significant degree of uncertainty attached to this, and risks are more heavily weighted towards the downside," the retailer cautioned.In light of this uncertainty, Bonmarche's auditor, PricewaterhouseCoopers, suggested during "informal" discussions that without a clear indication of an improvement in trading prior to the date the 2019 accounts are due to be signed, it "may include an emphasis of matter reference in its audit report due to the uncertainty with regard to going concern".While Bonmarche said it continues to believe Spectre's takeover offer "does not adequately reflect the potential longer term value of the business", heightened uncertainty makes the "certainty" presented by the deal more attractive in the short term. As a result, Bonmarche said it is now of the view, supported by advisor Investec, that the terms of the offer are fair and reasonable, and recommends shareholders take up the deal. In the economic calendar on Wednesday, BBA mortgage approvals in the UK are at 0930 BST and Bank of England Governor Mark Carney appears in front of the Treasury Select Committee at 1015 BST in a hearing on the May Inflation Report. In the US, durable goods orders are at 1330 BST.As the Conservative leadership battle continues in the UK, Boris Johnson and Jeremy Hunt clashed over their plans for delivering Brexit as a former head of the civil service warned against making "straight jacket" promises to leave on Halloween.In an open letter, Johnson challenged his rival to commit to taking Britain out of the EU on October 31 "come what may", warning not doing so would have "devastating" consequences for the Conservative Party and the country.However, Hunt hit back, calling it a "fake deadline" which - if adhered to - could lead to a general election which would hand power to Labour and derail Brexit altogether.