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(Alliance News) - Stocks in London were mostly higher early on Friday, in a quiet day for UK corporate news, as markets remain hopeful of further trade talks between the US and China.
The FTSE 100 was 11.94 points higher, or 0.2%, at 7,196.26. The FTSE 250 was 16.69 points higher, or 0.1%, at 19,309.19, but the AIM All-Share was down 0.1% at 869.64.
The Cboe UK 100 index was 0.3% higher at 12,209.04. The Cboe UK 250 was also 0.3% higher, at 17,215.15, and the Cboe UK Small Companies was marginally higher at 10.854.99.
In mainland Europe early Friday, the CAC 40 in Paris and the DAX 30 in Frankfurt were 0.2% and 0.5% in the green respectively.
In London, FTSE 250 building materials firm Grafton Group was up 4.3% as it reported interim profit and revenue growth, despite a tough environment in the UK.
Revenue for the six months to June rose 2% to GBP1.44 billion, with pretax profit climbing 5% to GBP88.2 million. Adjusted pretax profit also was 5% higher, at GBP90.9 million.
Grafton increased its interim dividend by 8% to 6.5 pence per share.
The UK business was held back by uncertainty over the UK's near-term economic prospects, but operations elsewhere did well, especially in Ireland and the Netherlands. Despite the UK issues, Dublin-based Grafton "looks to the future with confidence".
Iron ore pellet maker Ferrexpo was 1.0% lower, as it said an independent review into payments made to a charity in the Ukraine has found "some" of the funds could have been used inappropriately. The stock has lost 23% over the past six months.
The probe, Ferrexpo said, was unable to find an explanation for a number of discrepancies, but the company stressed there is no evidence any of its directors have been involved in the misuse of funding.
Elsewhere on AIM and the London Main Market, Clipper Logistics rose 1.2%, as it increased its payout. The company is paying a final dividend of 6.5p for its year ended April, meaning the year's total is 16% higher than the year before at 9.7p.
Clipper's pretax profit slipped 6.1% to GBP16.9 million, due to higher costs, but there was strong revenue growth of 15% to GBP460.2 million.
The logistics firm achieved "significant" organic growth in the both the UK and Europe, it said. Clipper warned, however, that UK economic uncertainty "may well" have some impact in its new financial year, but the outlook is positive nonetheless.
Shoe Zone slumped 35%, as the footwear retailer warned performance in its year ending September 29 will miss expectations.
The firm is to write down the value of its 17 freehold properties by GBP3.1 million to GBP5.3 million. This will result in a non-cash exceptional charge in its full year results for the year to October 5.
This property write down will have no effect on Shoe Zone's dividend, it said, which will be calculated on underlying trading. The company said however there likely will be no special dividend.
The footwear retailer also said Chief Executive Nick Davis has resigned with immediate effect to pursue other business interests. Executive Chair Anthony Smith will resume the role of CEO on a permanent basis.
US President Donald Trump said US and Chinese trade officials were due to hold discussions on Thursday, days before Washington is set to raise tariffs on billions in Chinese goods.
"There is a talk scheduled for today at a different level," Trump told Fox News Radio on Thursday, without elaborating.
He rebutted prior news reports sceptical of his claims that Beijing and Washington held talks by telephone last week. "Yes, they have been talking," Trump said.
The US Trade Representative's office, which is leading the US negotiations with China, did not immediately respond to an AFP request for comment.
Earlier on Thursday, China's Commerce Ministry helped cheer stock markets by signalling Beijing may not respond in kind to Trump's latest tariff increases and is still willing to negotiate.
In the US on Thursday, Wall Street ended higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average closing up 1.3%, the S&P 500 also up 1.3%, and the Nasdaq Composite 1.5% higher.
The Japanese Nikkei 225 index ended 1.2% higher on Friday. In China, the Shanghai Composite closed down 0.2%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was 0.1% lower in late trade.
In political news, UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will intensify negotiations with Brussels amid three legal challenges to his decision to suspend Parliament.
Johnson called for both the UK and EU to "step up the tempo" as further protests were planned over his move to suspend Parliament for more than a month in the run-up to Brexit.
Downing Street said the UK's team of Brexit negotiators will sit down with their EU counterparts twice a week during September "with the possibility of additional technical meetings, to discuss a way forward on securing a new deal".
The push comes as judges in Scotland and Northern Ireland prepare to hear from lawyers representing anti-no-deal campaigners and the UK government on Friday, with a decision expected in Edinburgh.
It comes after the Queen approved Johnson's request for Parliament to be suspended for five weeks from September 10.
The pound has continued to fall, quoted at USD1.2176 early Friday, down from USD1.2196 late Thursday and near USD1.23 earlier in the week.
UK house prices were little changed in August, figures from Nationwide showed on Friday. On an annual basis, house prices were up 0.6% in August. Month-on-month, prices were flat on a seasonally adjusted basis. This compares to rises of 0.3% on both an annual and monthly basis in July.
Consumer confidence has fallen in the UK amid a sudden drop in expectations for personal finances and the general economy over the next 12 months, a survey suggested Friday. Overall confidence fell three points to minus 14 in August "in the face of pre-Brexit nerves", according to GfK's long-running Consumer Confidence Index.
Friday's economic calendar has eurozone inflation and unemployment at 1000 BST. In the US, personal spending numbers are at 1330 BST.
