BT Share News (BT.A)

LONDON (Alliance News) - UK shares have opened mostly higher Thursday ahead of interest-rate decisions by the Bank of England and European Central Bank and amid tentative signs of reduced tensions in Ukraine.

BT and Barclays lead the FTSE 100 at the open, up 3.5% and 3.2%, respectively. BT reported flat full-year pretax profit, but promised higher dividends and said it is growing faster than Sky in the broadband market. Barclays unveiled its long-awaited restructuring plan, saying it would cut headcount in its investment bank by 7,000 by 2016.

Here is what you need to know at the UK market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: up 0.3% at 6,819.56
FTSE 250: up 0.5% at 15,960.49
AIM ALL-SHARE: down 0.1% at 810.20
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Hang Seng: up 0.2% at 21,799.13
Nikkei 225: closed up 0.9% at 14,163.78
DJIA: closed up 0.7% at 16,518.54
S&P 500: closed up 0.6% at 1,878.21
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GBP-USD: up at USD1.6964
EUR-USD: up at USD1.3925

GOLD: up at USD1,291.45 per ounce
OIL (Brent): down at USD107.80 a barrel

(changes since end of previous GMT day)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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Thursday's Key Economic Events still to come
(all times British Summer Time)

11:00 Ireland Consumer Price Index
12:00 UK BoE Interest Rate and Asset Purchase Facility Decision
12:25 US Fed's Evans Speech
12:30 US Fed's Tarullo speech
12:45 EU ECB Interest Rate Decision
13:15 Canada Housing Starts
13:30 EU ECB Monetary policy statement and press conference
13:30 US Jobless Claims
13:30 Canada New Housing Price Index
14:30 US Fed's Yellen Speech
15:30 US EIA Natural Gas Storage change
18:00 US 30-Year Bond Auction
19:00 US Fed's Bullard speech
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The average asking price for a house in the UK was down in April, the latest survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors revealed. The RICS house price balance came in with a score of 54 in April - missing forecasts for 56 and down from 57 in March. By region, house prices moved higher in the South East and in East Anglia, while they were down in the London area.
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German industrial production decreased unexpectedly in March, official data showed. Industrial production fell 0.5% in March from February, Destatis reported. This was the first decrease in five months. Production advanced 0.6% in February and 0.4% in January.
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Defying expectations for a decline, China's exports as well as imports increased in April, vindicating the government's resistance to introduce more stimulus to cushion the recovery. Exports gained 0.9% in April from last year, data published by the General Administration of Customs showed. Shipments were forecast to fall 2% after declining 6.6% in March. Likewise, imports rose 0.8%, confounding expectations for a 2.1% drop. The increase reversed some of the 11.3% fall in March.
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Neither NATO nor the US could confirm Wednesday that Russian troops have moved away from the border with Ukraine as Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed. NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, speaking in Warsaw, said there was no sign of a withdrawal. The US echoed his comments, saying there was no evidence that Russian troops had been pulled back.
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EU ministers were set Thursday to assess Japan's progress in opening up its markets to European products, amid hopes that the two sides can move forward on a free trade deal. An ambitious agreement could boost both sides' economy and exports. Growth and job creation are key priorities in the EU, which is emerging from a deep economic crisis. "Continued trade liberalization is crucial for keeping our economic recovery on track," EU President Herman Van Rompuy said Wednesday, during a visit to Brussels by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. The two sides agreed to accelerate negotiations on the free trade agreement, with the aim of reaching a basic deal in 2015.
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US President Barack Obama plans to remove certain trade benefits for goods imported by the US from Russian under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) programme. Obama notified Congress that he is taking the action because Russia is "sufficiently advanced economically" and no longer warrants preferential treatment under the GSP programme, a White House statement said Wednesday. Once Russia's eligibility is withdrawn, US imports of GSP-eligible goods from Russia will be subject to normal duty. White House spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden told dpa that Russia's actions regarding Ukraine are not directly related to Obama's decision. But she added they "make it particularly appropriate to take this step now."
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A US congressional committee Wednesday gave uncharacteristically unanimous support to a law to reform the National Security Agency (NSA) and its massive collection of intelligence data. The House of Representatives' judiciary committee voted 32-0 for a bill that will reform the nation's intelligence gathering, "including ending the bulk collection of data," the committee said in a press release. With minority Democrats backing the bill, it would seem poised for passage in the House of Representatives, but there is a competing bill in the House Intelligence Committee that will be considered Thursday.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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BERNSTEIN CUTS BHP BILLITON TO 'MARKET-PERFORM' (OUTPERFORM) - PRICE TARGET 2000 (2250) PENCE
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BARCLAYS INITIATES PETRA DIAMONDS WITH 'OVERWEIGHT' - TARGET 210 PENCE
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BERENBERG INITIATES BODYCOTE WITH 'HOLD' - TARGET 759 PENCE
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BARCLAYS INITIATES GEM DIAMONDS WITH 'OVERWEIGHT' - TARGET 200 PENCE
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UBS INITIATES BRIT PLC WITH 'BUY' - TARGET PRICE 232 PENCE
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Barclays Will Be Repositioned, Simplified And Rebalanced To Improve Returns; Will Have Four Core Businesses; Announces Creation Of Non-Core Unit; Non-Core Unit To Include Assets For Exit Or Run Down; Non-Core Contains About GBP90B Investment Bank RWAs; Non-Core Contains About GBP115B Of RWAs; Says Investment Bank Plans To Reduce Gross Headcount By 7,000 By 2016; Targets Leverage Ratio Higher Than 4.0% For 2016; Targets 40-50% Dividend Payout For 2016; Targets Core Return On Average Equity Higher Than 12% For 2016; CEO: Sale Or IPO For European Retail Assets Possible; CEO: Outlook For FICC Challenged Going Forward
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BT FY Reported Pretax Profit Flat At GBP2.31B; FY Dividend 10.9p Vs 9.5p; CEO: We're Growing Faster Than Sky In Broadband Market; Expects 2014/15 Dividend Per Share Up 10-15%, Share Buyback Programme Around GBP300M
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Standard Chartered PLC reported a fall in operating profit for the first quarter, amid a challenging external environment. Group income dropped during the period, hurt by local currency weakness.
Peter Sands, Group Chief Executive, said, "Despite a somewhat challenging external environment, we continue to support our clients' growth, whilst managing tightly our costs, risks and capital. Our performance so far this year is in line with our expectations.''
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Glencore Confirms Ex-BP Chief Tony Hayward Named As Permanent Chairman
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Wm Morrison Q1: Like-For-Like Sales Down 7.1%, 8.2% Incl Fuel; Cut Prices Permanently On 1,200 Products On May 1; On Schedule To Have 200 Convenience Stores By Year-End
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Sage Group Chief Executive Guy Berruyer To Retire No Later Than March 2015; Successor Sought; H1 Pretax Profit GBP164.5M Vs Pretax Loss GBP7.7M; Revenue GBP656.5M Vs GBP708.1M; Interim Dividend 4.12p Vs 3.88p; Remains Confident Strong First Half Will Be Carried Through To Full Year
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Barratt Development Says Net Private Reservations Up In 2014; Total Forward Sales Up 47% In 2014
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IMI: Severe Service Arm Saw Lower Order Intake In 2014; Revenue Down 4%
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Randgold Resources Reports Robust Q1 Performance, Set To Reach Million-Ounce Production Mark For FY
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RSA Insurance: Q1 Underlying Profit Trends Broadly In Line With Our Expectation
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Centrica Reduces Outlook For Earnings In 2014 But Earnings Growth Expected In 2015; Says Market Conditions Challenging For Group In Year To Date
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Supergroup Q4: Group Revenue Up 12% At GBP97.8M Vs GBP87.1M; Retail Sales Up 13% To GBP54.6M Vs GBP48.2M; Like-For-Like Sales Down 3.1%, Affected By Late Easter And Product Mix
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Intu Properties Says Occupancy High At 95%
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Derwent London Says EPRA Vacancy Rate Remains Low At 0.9% In 2014
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Perform Group Names Ashley Milton As CFO From GroupM EMEA, Part Of WPP; Q1 Revenue GBP56.9M Vs GBP43.0M; On Track To Meet Full Year Expectations
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Beazley 3-Mo To March-End Gross Written Premium USD516M Vs USD518M; Overall Premium Rates On Renewal Business Unchanged
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COMPANIES - ALL-SHARE AND AIM
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Xcite Energy Names Timothy Jones As Non-Exec Chairman, Harry Wilson As Non-Exec Director
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Hume Capital Securities CEO Nitin Parekh Resigns; Non-Exec Director Jonathan Freeman Named Interim CEO; Says In Advanced Discussions With Group Of Investors Willing To Provide Funding
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Morgan Sindall Says Q1 Trading In Line With Expectations; Says Committed Order Book At Q1 Up 9% From Year-End Position
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Stellar Diamonds Raises GBP1.9M Gross From Placing Of Of 148.2M Shares At 1.25p
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Promethean World Maintains Full Year Outlook; Q1 Revenues GBP20.7M Vs GBP27.8M
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Poundland Says Sales Up 13% Year On Year To GBP997.8M; Says Margin Held Up In Year To March 30; Says FY Underlying Profit To Be In Line With Market Consensus
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Charles Taylor Performing In Line With Expectations In 2014; Adjusted Services Arm Had Slow Start To Year; Insurance Support Services Had Strong Start To The Year
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Edge Resources Says Value Of Proved+Probable Reserves Increased By 44% To CAD129.0M As Of March 31; Says Increase Follows Competent Person's Report, Driven By 72% Increase In Proved Reserve Value
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Petards Chairman To Tell AGM: Traded Strongly And Profitably In Q1; On Track For FY Outcome In Line With Market Expectations
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MartinCo Chairman: We Contine To Pursue Organic And Acquisition-Based Opportunities; Current Trading In Line With Expectations
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Vitec Group Says It Made Solid Progress In First Four Months; Maintains Full Year Expectations
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Cineworld Says Group Revenue Up 34% In 18 Weeks To May 1; Trading In Line With Expectations
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Thursday's Scheduled AGMs/EGMs

IMI
Kazakhmys
Serco
Cineworld Group
Provident Financial
Resolution
Premier Energy & Water Trust
BlackRock World Mining Trust
Avocet Mining
Charles Taylor
Intu Properties
Promethean World
Standard Chartered
Arbuthnot Banking Group
British Polythene Industries
Howden Joinery Group
Morgan Sindall Group
Plant Health Care
William Hill
Hutchison China Meditech
The Vitec Group
Laura Ashley Holdings
Plus500
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite

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