Last checked at 
(Alliance News) - London-listed companies continue to pull their dividends on Friday to preserve cash during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Blue-chips cancelling or postponing payouts included Rightmove, Meggitt and Flutter Entertainment. But Coca-Cola HBC and SSE said they will continue to pay theirs.
Among mid-caps, Domino's Pizza Group, Essentra, Hill & Smith, Marshalls, Provident Financial, FDM Group and Coats Group all cancelled their 2019 final dividends on Friday.
Balfour Beatty said it is reviewing the "appropriateness" of paying its final dividend.
Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
----------
MARKETS
----------
FTSE 100: down 3.1% at 5,634.22
----------
Hang Seng: down 0.1% at 23,372.96
Nikkei 225: closed down 3.9% at 19,389.43
DJIA: closed up 1,351.62 points, 6.4%, at 22,552.17
S&P 500: closed up 6.2% at 2,630.07
----------
GBP: up at USD1.2188 (USD1.2132)
EUR: firm at USD1.1021 (USD1.1004)
Gold: down at USD1,614.10 per ounce (USD1,627.35)
Oil (Brent): down at USD26.14 a barrel (USD27.06)
(changes since previous London equities close)
----------
ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
----------
Friday's Key Economic Events still to come
1200 GMT UK Bank of England Quarterly Bulletin
0830 EDT US personal income & outlays
1000 EDT US University of Michigan survey of consumers
----------
UK government ministers have urged house buyers to put their imminent property moves on hold during the UK lockdown designed to stem the tide of coronavirus. Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick said those due to move house should rearrange to a new date and delay the process of changing property. He said even those scheduled to move on Friday should rethink plans to bring in the removal vans. Lenders on Thursday gave home movers the option to extend their mortgage offer for up to three months to make it easier to shift their move date.
----------
One million home testing kits for coronavirus could be sent out in a matter of weeks, according to UK public health officials. Public Health England appeared to provide hope that the UK lockdown could be scaled back after announcing that testing kits were being assessed for household use. People are currently having to obey strict rules about remaining indoors in a bid to stall the spread of coronavirus. But testing kits could allow those who have had the deadly virus to return to their normal routines because health experts believe there is a period of immunity after having contracted the disease.
----------
UK car production fell by 0.8% in February, although the industry accepts this was the "calm before the storm". The Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders said the sector was bracing itself for the coronavirus impact, as car plants are effectively on shutdown. New analysis suggested the current crisis could wipe around 200,000 cars off the UK's output in 2020, said the SMMT, which urged the government to accelerate access to emergency support for all businesses. Around 1,000 fewer cars were built last month even though output for the UK market increased by 7.8% compared to February last year. Exports fell by 3.1%, to just under 95,000, said the SMMT.
----------
The Liberal Democrats have suspended their leadership campaign for a year so the party can focus its full attention on the "fallout" from coronavirus. The UK opposition party had been due to start the process for replacing Jo Swinson, who was forced to step down as leader after losing her seat at the December general election, in May and announce a successor in July. But the pro-EU outfit said it was putting the country first while the UK was going through its "biggest crisis" since the Second World War by postponing until May 2021. Education spokeswoman Layla Moran announced this month she plans to run for leader and acting leader Ed Davey is also expected to stand in the postponed contest.
----------
The coronavirus death toll in Ireland has more than doubled after 10 further victims lost their lives to the virus. A total of 19 people infected with Covid-19 have now died in the country. The latest update from the National Public Health Emergency Team came on the same night TDs passed emergency coronavirus legislation in the Dail.
----------
So-called coronabonds are not the best way of shoring up Europe's economy in the current Covid-19 crisis, said German Chancellor Angela Merkel following a protracted video call with her EU counterparts, who are divided on the issue. "For me, the European Stability Mechanism is the preferred instrument because it was truly created for times of crisis," Merkel said, in reference to the eurozone bailout fund. Other leaders shared her point of view, she added. "I think that with the ESM we have a crisis tool that opens many possibilities and does not put into question the basic principles of our joint - but individually responsible - action," Merkel noted.
----------
BROKER RATING CHANGES
----------
BERENBERG RAISES AB FOODS TO 'BUY' ('HOLD') - TARGET 2180 (2700) PENCE
----------
BERENBERG RAISES WIZZ AIR TO 'BUY' (HOLD) - PRICE TARGET 3200 (4000) PENCE
----------
JPMORGAN RAISES DIPLOMA TO 'OVERWEIGHT' ('NEUTRAL') - TARGET 1760 PENCE
----------
COMPANIES - FTSE 100
----------
Flutter Entertainment said it is suspending dividend payments going forward, and has decided its 2019 final dividend will be issued in shares instead. Flutter, however, is still pressing ahead with its Stars Group tie up in the US, believing the merger still holds "strategic rationale" despite the ongoing uncertainty caused by Covid-19. "The Flutter board believes that the combined group will have a robust financial profile given its strong cash generation in conjunction with expected cost, revenue and financing synergies," the gambling firm said.
----------
Coca-Cola HBC said its intention remains to distribute the EUR0.62 final payout promised to shareholders. "Our strong balance sheet and liquidity position, our leading market shares and largely variable cost base, together with our unique portfolio of brands and resilient and talented people will allow us to weather this unprecedented crisis," Coca-Cola HBC said.
----------
SSE said it intends to pay its previously stated 80p full year dividend, but warned this could change. In terms of liquidity, SSE has GBP1.5 billion of committed bank facilities. The utility firm said that for its 2020 financial year, ending March 31, adjusted earnings are expected at the lower end of its 83p to 88p guided range. Looking ahead, SSE said it is "much too early" to forecast with accuracy its financial 2021 expectations. SSE said it will be delaying its annual results until the second half of June, following advice from UK regulators.
----------
Miner Anglo American said the 21-day national lockdown in South Africa will hit its 2020 production guidance. Based on the 21-day lockdown period in South Africa and allowing for a safe ramp-up of operations thereafter, Anglo American would expect a 2020 production volume impact of 2 million to 3 million tonnes at Kumba Iron Ore and 1.5 million to 2 million tonnes of export thermal coal.
----------
Next, one of the UK's biggest fashion chains, has been forced into a U-turn over its decision to keep warehouses open and ask workers to travel into stores for picking online orders. The company now has shut its online operations, from Thursday evening, and stopped taking orders. Next has faced pressure from politicians and staff, who felt like they were being pressured into stores. On Wednesday, it was revealed that the company had offered a 20% pay rise to any worker willing to continue picking jumpers, socks and other clothes for customers. In a statement late Thursday, Next said it "has listened very carefully", adding: "It is clear that many increasingly feel they should be at home in the current climate. Next has therefore taken the difficult decision to temporarily close its Online, Warehousing and Distribution Operations from this evening, Thursday 26 March 2020. Next will not be taking any more Online orders after this time until further notice."
----------
COMPANIES - FTSE 250
----------
Frasers Group CEO Mike Ashley apologised for how his firm has handled the Covid-19 outbreak. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson told Ashley on Wednesday to "expect the consequences" if he does not obey the rules over his employees during the coronavirus crisis. Employees had been ordered to continue turning up to work at his Frasers Group stores, which are closed to the public, during the pandemic. "Given what has taken place over the last few days, I thought it was necessary to address and apologise for much of what has been reported across various media outlets regarding my personal actions and those of the Frasers Group business," Ashley said in a statement Friday. "Our intentions were only to seek clarity from the government as to whether we should keep some of our stores open; we would never have acted against their advice. In hindsight, our emails to the government were ill-judged and poorly timed, when they clearly had much greater pressures than ours to deal with. On top of this, our communications to our employees and the public on this was poor."
----------
COMPANIES - OTHER MAIN MARKET AND AIM
----------
South32 suspended its share buyback and said it is hoping to cut spending by USD160 million, amid the Covid-19 outbreak. "We are taking action to maintain the financial strength of our business in response to a rapidly evolving environment," said Chief Executive Graham Kerr. The lower expenditure comprises a USD150 million reduction in capital expenditure and a further USD10 million in exploration activity over the next 15 months. In addition, South32 has suspended the remaining USD121 million of its current share buyback. The miner said its balance sheet remains strong, with net cash of USD277 million at the end of 2019, including cash and cash equivalents of USD1.4 billion, no term debt and an undrawn USD1.5 billion revolving credit facility.
----------
The owners of Chiquito restaurants has put the chain into administration, as it struggles to cope with the fallout from the coronavirus outbreak on the business. The Restaurant Group, which also owns Wagamama and Frankie & Benny's, said it would also shut its Food & Fuel chain of pubs in London. Around 1,500 jobs are likely to be affected and the move comes less than a week after the company said sales plummeted 13% over two weeks. A total of 60 Chiquito sites will remain shut. A spokesman said: "Covid-19 has had an immediate and significant impact on trading across the group."
----------
COMPANIES - INTERNATIONAL
----------
Sony warned Covid-19 is likely to hurt performance, but it was not able to give any firm guidance. The Japanese electronics and entertainment conglomerate said it is continuing to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on its financial year ending March 31 but expects the scale to be similar to that guided in February when releasing third-quarter figures. At that time, Sony upped revenue and pretax profit guidance for its soon-to-end year, by more than 1% and 7% respectively from prior forecasts. However, Sony warned results for its year ending March 2021 are likely to reflect the disruption to trading caused by Covid-19. Sony has shut both of its manufacturing plants in Malaysia as well as its site in the UK, in line with government orders. It has four plants in China, all of which shut during January and February, and though they are now fully open, there are some supply chain issues.
----------
McDonald's said it has entered into a revolving credit agreement to reinforce its cash position amid Covid-19 uncertainty. The fast food chain entered into the 364-day agreement with JPMorgan Chase Bank as administrative agent. The agreement expires on March 24, 2021. On Wednesday, the firm borrowed the full USD1 billion committed amount available, which may be used for general corporate purposes. "The company entered into and borrowed under the credit agreement as a precautionary measure to reinforce its cash position and provide financial flexibility in light of current uncertainty resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic," said McDonald's. The company also has available a USD3.5 billion commitment from a revolving credit agreement entered into in 2018, which remains unborrowed.
----------
Friday's Shareholder Meetings
St Modwen Properties
----------
By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com
Copyright 2020 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
