EXI.L Share News (EXI)

LONDON (Alliance News) - Shares have opened lower Tuesday amid continued concern about Ukraine and some negative statements from UK companies.

AIM is suffering the most, as its largest stock ASOS is down 20% despite reporting total retail sales rose by 26% in the two months to the end of February. In the FTSE 100, J Sainsbury is down 0.5% after reporting a decline of 3.8% in like-for-like sales in its fourth quarter.

Meanwhile, Chilean miner Antofagasta is bucking the opening trend, leading the FTSE 100 gains with a 3.1% early rise, despite reporting sharp drop in net profit for 2013.

Here is what you need to know at the UK market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: down 0.4% at 6,543.16
FTSE 250: down 0.2% at 16,271.65
AIM ALL-SHARE: down 1.4% at 858.96
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Hang Seng: closed up 0.5% at 21,583.50
Nikkei 225: closed up 0.9% at 14,411.27
DJIA: closed up 1.1% at 16,247.22
S&P 500: closed up 1.0% at 1,858.83
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GBP-USD: down at USD1.6598
EUR-USD: down at USD1.3911

GOLD: down at USD1,359.87 per ounce
OIL (Brent): up at USD106.64 a barrel

(changes since end of previous GMT day)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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Tuesday's Key Economic Events still to come

09:00 Italy Trade Balance
10:00 EU Trade Balance
10:00 Germany ZEW Survey
10:00 EU ZEW Survey
n/a Russia Federal Assembly over Crimea
12:30 US Building Permits
12:30 US Consumer Price Index
12:30 US Housing Starts
12:30 Canada Manufacturing Shipments
12:55 US Redbook index
13:00 US TIC Flows
15:30 US 4-Week Bill Auction
15:55 Canada BoC Governor Poloz Speech
17:45 UK BOE's Governor Carney speech
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Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday approved a draft bill allowing Crimea to join Russia, the state legal website pravo.gov.ru said. The move is a step towards the annexation of the Black Sea peninsula from Ukraine. Putin is due to address both houses of parliament over Crimea at 1100 GMT. Putin on Monday brushed off US and European sanctions by approving a decree recognizing Crimea as an independent and sovereign state. The decree is a technical but highly symbolic move that enables Moscow to accept Crimea without Ukraine's consent. His signature on the decree came just hours after the US and the EU had hit high-level Russian and Ukrainian officials linked to the Crimean crisis with travel bans and asset freezes. Western officials had also threatened further measures unless Moscow altered its course.
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Passenger car sales in Europe increased for the sixth successive month in February, but at a weaker pace than in the prior month, data published by the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA) revealed. Registration of new passenger vehicles advanced 8% on an annual basis to 861,058 units in February, which was slower than the 5.5% growth recorded in January. Sales have now increased for the sixth month in a row. Among the major member countries, sales grew 4.3% annually in Germany, and by 8.6% in Italy. Spain recorded a 17.8% rise in sales, and UK posted a 3% gain. Meanwhile, new car registrations in France decreased by 1.4% compared to February 2013, the agency said.
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Home prices in major Chinese cities increased further in February, but at a slower rate than in January, figures released by the National Bureau of Statistics revealed. On month-on-month basis, average prices of new homes increased in 57 of the 70 cities surveyed by the statistical office, which was smaller than the January Figure. Prices advanced 0.2% sequentially in Beijing, and grew 0.4% in Shanghai. Compared to February 2013, new home prices grew in 69 of the 70 major cities for which data was collected.
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The search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 intensified over two huge arcs of territory north and south of where the plane last made contact. China began searching north-western parts of its territory in areas along the possible northern corridor, said the Chinese ambassador in Kuala Lumpur, Huang Huikang, according to the Xinhua news agency. He added that background checks on all the passengers had found no evidence of links to terrorism or involvement in a possible hijack, Xinhua said. Australia was leading the search on the southern corridor. The New Zealand government said Tuesday it was sending an air force plane to Australia at the request of the Malaysian government to help with the international operation to find the plane.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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DEUTSCHE BANK CUTS REDEFINE INTERNATIONAL TO 'HOLD' ('BUY') - TARGET PRICE 5100 (3830) PENCE
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UBS RAISES ASHTEAD GROUP PRICE TARGET TO 1020 (875) PENCE - 'BUY'
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UBS RAISES CSR PLC PRICE TARGET TO 750 (580) PENCE - 'NEUTRAL'
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UBS RAISES PREMIER FOODS PRICE TARGET TO 115 (65) PENCE - 'SELL'
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JEFFERIES CUTS TATE & LYLE PRICE TARGET TO 730 (900) PENCE - 'BUY'
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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British supermarket chain J Sainsbury PLC reported a 1.5% drop in sales in the fourth quarter, and a steep decline of 3.8% in like-for-likes sales, in stark contrast to stable sales growth in the previous quarter, and a strong Christmas trading period. The UK's third largest grocer said it expects the outlook for customers to continue to be challenging for the coming year.
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Mining company Antofagasta PLC reported a sharp drop in net profit for 2013 as the fall in commodity prices combined with higher costs, particularly for energy, to more than offset higher copper production. The Chile-based company reported a net profit of USD659.6 million, or 66.9 cents a share, for 2013, down from USD1.04 billion, or 105.2 cents a share, in 2012. Revenues fell to USD5.97 billion, from USD6.74 billion. Its copper production rose 1.6% to 721,200 tonnes, mainly thanks to higher plant throughput at its Esperanza site, but the average London Metal Exchange copper price fell 7.9% while the company's own realised copper prices fell 10.6% during the year. Its cash costs also rose 9.8%, mainly thanks to higher energy costs at its Los Pelambres site.
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Resolution Ltd, which operates the Friends Life brand, declared its three-year restructuring complete and made clear its intention to change its name to Friends Life Group Ltd, as its annual pretax profit from continuing operation increased by more than five times. Resolution also said it has entered a new strategic partnership with Schroders, which will now manage GBP12.2 billion of equity and multi-asset funds on behalf of Resolution customers. The funds were previously managed by F&C Asset Management, which has faced pressure on revenues of late. Resolution Ltd itself reported a GBP369.0 million pretax profit from continuing operations in 2013, compared with GBP66.0 million in 2012. Revenue declined by under 1.0% to GBP10.99 billion as claims, benefits and expenses fell by 3.5% to GBP10.64 billion.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Simon Nixon, the founder and non-executive deputy chairman of MoneySupermarket.com PLC, will sell 55.0 million shares in an accelerated bookbuilding exercise with institutional investors, according to Citigroup Global Markets Ltd and Credit Suisse Securities (Europe) Ltd late Monday. The stake represents 10% of the company's issued share capital. Nixon currently hold 29.48% of MoneySupermarket.com's shares, making him the largest single investor, according to Morningstar.
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IG Group Q3 Revenue GBP96.7M Vs GBP88.6M; Q3 Australia Revenue Rose By 6%, But Rest Of World Revenue Down 7%; Notes Unseasonably Strong December; Says On Track To Deliver Revenue Growth In Line With FY Expectations; Expects FY Operating Costs Below Previous Guidance
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James Fisher & Sons Buys Defence Consulting Europe For GBP3.7M; To Pay Up To GBP1.9M More Dependent On Targets
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Berkeley Group Says Sales Of New Build Has Been Strong Since Nov
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Xaar FY Pretax Profit GBP40.1M Vs GBP15.7M; Revenue GBP137.1M Vs GBP86.3M; Total Dividend 8.0p Vs 4.0p; Chief Executive Ian Dinwoodie To Retire During 2015, Search For Successor Underway; Expects More Modest Growth Over Next Period
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Cairn Energy 2013 Loss USD556M Vs USD73M Profit; Net Cash At End-Dec USD1.25B; Says 2014 Dependent On Exploration, Timing Of Resolution Of Indian Tax Dispute
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Rentokil Initial Confirms Completion Of Sale Of Initial Facilities Business To Interserve For GBP250M
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F&C Asset Management To Lose Some Business It Currently Manages For Friends Life
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COMPANIES - ALL-SHARE AND AIM
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ASOS Total Retail Sales Up 26% For 2-Mo To Feb 28 To GBP136.7M Vs GBP108.4M; UK Retail Sales For 2-Mo To Feb 28 Up 21% To GBP48.4M Vs GBP39.9M; Total International Retail Sales For 2-Mo To Feb 28 Up 29% To GBP88.3M Vs GBP68.5M; Active Customers At 8.2 Million At February 28;H1 Retail Gross Margin Up 60 Basis points On Prior Year; CEO: Confident In Achieving GBP1bn Of Sales In FY 2013/14; CEO: Will Invest At Least GBP68M In CapEx This Year; Previous Guidance GBP55M
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Speedy Hire Now Expects FY Adjusted Pretax Porfit To Be In Region Of GBP14.5M; Says Higher Margin Hire Revenues For Feb And March Below Forecast; Trading Losses In Middle East Business Likely To Be Greater Than Anticipated; Asset Sales Running At Slower Pace Than Anticipated; Says There Will Be A Lag Before Restructuring And Investments Take Full Effect
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Carillion JV Awarded GBP61M Contract For Phase 1 of Dubai Trade Centre Development
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Mears Group FY Pretax Profit GBP21.7M Vs GBP20.0M; Revenue GBP898.2M Vs GBP679.5M; Total Dividend Of 8.80 Pence Vs 8.00 Pence
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McKay Securities Buys Freehold Of Ashcombe House, Leatherhead For GBP4.4M, 7.4% Yield
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Spirit Pub Like-For-Like Net Sales Up 6.1% In 8 Weeks To March 1; H1 Like-For-Like Net Sales Up 4.8%
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T Clarke FY Pretax Profit GBP1.7M Vs GBP1.2M; Revenue GBP217.1M Vs GBP193.8M; Final Dividend 2.10 Pence Vs 2.00 Pence; Says Results Are Good Considering Recent Pressure On Margins
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Exillon Energy 2013 Pretax Profit USD38.9M, Vs USD17.5M; Revenue USD321.5M, Vs USD301.9M
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SDL FY Pretax Loss GBP24.4M Vs Pretax Profit GBP27.4M; Proposes No Final Dividend Vs 6.1p In 2012; Confident It Will Return To The Levels Of Profitability And Exceed Levels Of Technology Growth It Had In The Past
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UTV Media FY Pretax Profit GBP16.9M Vs GBP20.1M; Revenue GBP107.8M Vs GBP112.3M; Total Dividend Flat At 7.00p
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Wynnstay Says First Half Results Expected To Be Behind Previous Year Due To Poor Harvests;Says Market Conditions Are Encouraging For Second Half; Says Demand For Spring Fertiliser Has Increased, Likely To Remain Strong
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Byotrol Says Trading In H2 Was Solid, Revenue Should Be In Line With Expectations; Says Finance Director Is Stepping Down, Replaced By Denise Keenan; Chairman Ralph Kugler To Step Down; Says Nicholas Martel Will Become Non-Exec Chairman From April 1
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Tuesday's Scheduled AGMs/EGMs

Brunner Investment Trust
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite

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