Iomart Share News (IOM)

LONDON (Alliance News) - UK shares are flat to marginally higher Wednesday, after the S&P 500 made a new record high close in the US on Tuesday.

A raft of FTSE 250 constituents have reported half-year results prior to the open. Estate agency Foxtons is leading fallers in the index despite reporting higher revenue and profit, alongside a special dividend.

Here is what you need to know at the UK market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: flat at 6,823.26
FTSE 250: up 0.1% at 16,005.96
AIM ALL-SHARE: up 0.6% at 774.96
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Hang Seng: down 0.5% at 24,938.24
Nikkei 225: closed up 0.1% at 15,534.82
DJIA: closed up 0.2% at 17,106.70
S&P 500: closed up 0.1% at 2,000.02
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GBP-USD: up at USD1.6567
EUR-USD: up at USD1.3184

GOLD: up at USD1,286.05 per ounce
OIL (Brent): up at USD102.81 a barrel

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

09:00 Italy Consumer Confidence
12:00 US MBA Mortgage Applications
15:30 US EIA Crude Oil Stocks
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Ukraine and Russia have agreed to hold military consultations over the bloody conflict in eastern Ukraine, President Petro Poroshenko said late Tuesday after two hours of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The consultations between members of both countries' general staff and border guard commands are meant to fulfil Ukraine's demand to reestablish government control of the border with Russia, Poroshenko told reporters in Minsk, the Interfax Ukraine news agency reported. Putin said after the Poroshenko meeting that both sides had agreed to swiftly revive so-called contact group talks between Russia, Ukraine and the Organization of Security and Co-Operation in Europe.
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French Prime Minister Manuel Valls reshuffled his Socialist government Tuesday, a day after dissolving his five-month-old cabinet following an internal dispute over austerity measures. Most leading ministers survived the reshuffle. Finance Minister Michel Sapin, Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, Defence Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and President Francois Hollande's ex-partner, Environment and Energy Minister Segolene Royal, all kept their jobs. Two ministers who publicly criticized Hollande's belt-tightening agenda, Arnaud Montebourg and Benoit Hamon, were shown the door. Montebourg was replaced as economy and industry minister by Emmanuel Macron, a 36-year-old former Rothschild investment banker, who was an economic advisor to Hollande for two years.
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Germany's import prices declined at a faster rate in July, more than the consensus estimate, a report from the statistical office Destatis showed. The import price index fell 1.7% year-over-year in July following the 1.2% drop in June. Economists had expected a 1.4% decline. On a month-over-month basis, import prices fell 0.4%, after the 0.2% increase in June. This was more than the 0.1% fall expected by economists.
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German consumer sentiment is set to drop in September, according to a survey conducted by the market research group GfK. The forward-looking consumer confidence index fell to 8.6 from a revised score of 8.9 in August, data showed Wednesday. The index was expected to drop marginally to 8.9 from August's initially estimated value of 9.
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FRANCE AUG BUSINESS CONFIDENCE 91 VS. 93 IN JULY, CONSENSUS 93
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China's consumer sentiment decreased in August, results of a survey by MNI and Westpac showed. The Westpac-MNI consumer sentiment index fell to 113.3 in August from 114.8 in July. In June, the index was at 112.6.
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There have been no Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip since the latest ceasefire came into force and no rockets have been fired at Israel, an army spokeswoman said early Wednesday. The ceasefire came into force at 1600 GMT Tuesday.
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US officials declined Tuesday to publicly confirm reports that the military is flying surveillance missions over Syria to analyze targets for potential airstrikes against Islamic State militants. The White House, State Department and Defence Department all declined to comment on the reports because they involved intelligence matters. The manned and unmanned flights using drones and other aircraft were over the weekend approved by President Barack Obama, according to The New York Times, citing unnamed officials.
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The US military said Tuesday that seven countries have committed to providing urgently needed arms and equipment to Kurdish forces. Additional small-arms ammunition and other personnel weaponry announced by the Pentagon will be sent by Albania, Britain, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, France and Italy.
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The number of deaths in a Japanese landslide reached 70 after more bodies were recovered in the western city of Hiroshima, a report said. Thousands of rescuers spent the night removing mud, debris and rocks in the outskirts of the city where a landslide struck a week ago, broadcaster NHK reported. A total of 70 people were confirmed dead with 18 still missing, after torrential rain sparked a series of mudslides in the area in the early hours of August 20, NHK said.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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JPMORGAN RAISES WPP PRICE TARGET TO 1621 (1552) PENCE - 'OVERWEIGHT'
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GOLDMAN CUTS PETROFAC PRICE TARGET TO 1270 (1310) PENCE - 'BUY'
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GOLDMAN CUTS BABCOCK INTERNATIONAL PRICE TARGET TO 1405 (1475) PENCE - 'BUY'
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DEUTSCHE BANK RAISES BUNZL PRICE TARGET TO 1565 (1508) PENCE - 'HOLD'
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UBS REMOVES HAYS FROM 'MOST PREFERRED LIST' EUROPEAN SUPPORT SERVICES
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GOLDMAN RAISES JUST EAT PRICE TARGET TO 360 (335) PENCE - 'CONVICTION BUY LIST'
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TRADERS: MORGAN STANLEY RESUMES CARILLION WITH 'EQUAL-WEIGHT'
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Royal Bank of Scotland PLC and National Westminster Bank PLC, both members of Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC, were fined GBP14.5 million by the UK financial regulator for "serious failings" in their advised mortgage sales business. The Financial Conduct Authority said it would have imposed a GBP20.7 million fine on the firms, but they qualified for a 30% discount as they agreed to settle at an early stage of the investigation.
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GlaxoSmithKline PLC said Tuesday the US Food and Drug Administration approved a supplemental New Drug Application for the once-daily use of Promacta (eltrombopag) in patients with severe aplastic anaemia who have had an insufficient response to immunosuppressive therapy. Severe aplastic anaemia, or SAA, is a blood disorder where the bone marrow fails to make enough red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. Eltrombopag, an oral thrombopoietin (TPO) receptor agonist, works by helping to induce proliferation and differentiation of bone marrow stem cells to increase production of blood cells.1
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BG Group PLC said the results from its second drill-stem test on the Mazia discovery in Block 1, offshore Tanzania, has provided further support for a hub development to supply a potential onshore liquefied natural gas project. The exploration and LNG company said the drill-stem test on the Mzia-3 appraisal well was drilled in approximately 1,800 metres of water around six kilometres north of the original Mzia-1 discovery.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Balfour Beatty PLC looked to appease disgruntled shareholders Wednesday following the collapse of its merger talks with Carillion PLC, as it revealed that the value of its public-private partnership portfolio is now worth GBP1.05 billion. Balfour Beatty said a review of its private-public partnership (PPP) portfolio has resulted in an increase in the total directors' valuation to GBP1.05 billion as at the end of June. This compared with GBP766 million at the end of December.
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Foxtons H1 Pretax Profit GBP23.1M Vs GBP14.7M; H1 Revenue GBP72.8M Vs GBP62.6M; Interim Dividend 1.77P And Special Dividend Of 2.77P
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Grafton Group H1 Pretax Profit GBP45.9M Vs GBP51.5M; Revenue GBP1.02B Vs GBP912.2M; Increases Interim Dividend 25% To 3.75P Vs 3P
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John Laing Infrastructure H1 Pretax Profit GBP27.3M Vs GBP22.1M; H1 Total Shareholder Return Of 3.99%
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Hansteen Holdings H1 IFRS Pretax Profit GBP66.7M, Up From GBP14.9M Year Before;November Interim Dividend Up 5.3% To 2.0p From 1.9p; EPRA NAV Per Share 96p On June 30, Up From 91p On Dec 31
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James Fisher and Sons Subsidiary Awarded Contract By Keppel Singmarine; Contract To Supply Saturation Diving System For BP Exploration; James Fisher Interim Dividend 7.10p, Up 10% From 6.46p; H1 Profit Before Tonnage And Income Tax GBP20.8M, Up From GBP18.6M; Revenue GBP216.1M, Up 8% From 200.7M; Says Trading To Expectations In H2
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Evraz H1: Pretax Profit USD85M Vs USD139M Loss
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Ophir Energy Says Side Track To Mzia-3 Well In Tanzania Flowed Slightly Ahead Of Expectations; Says Tonel North-1 Well In Equatorial Guinea Found Gas Pay In Lower Sands; Tonel North-1 Well Found Low Gas-Saturation In Upper Sands; Says Tonel North-1 Results Has Slightly Reduced Size Of Tonel Field
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Polymetal International H1 Net Earnings Of USD101M Vs USD255M Net Loss; H1 Revenue Of USD727M Vs USD721M
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COMPANIES - LONDON MAIN MARKET AND AIM
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Medaphor Group Raises GBP4.7M In AIM IPO; IPO Priced At 50p Per Share With 20.1M Shares For GBP10.1M Market Cap
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London Capital Group H1 Pretax Loss From Continuing Ops GBP0.4M, Vs GBP0.1M Profit; H1 Revenue From Continuing Ops Down 39% To GBP9.2M From GBP15.2M Profit; Says Legacy Problems Have Been Addressed, Claims Settled
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APR Energy Chairman Fairey Steps Down, To Be Replaced By John Champion; Names Laurence Anderson CEO;Names Lee Munro CFO; H1 Pretax Profit USD54.3M Vs USD16.1M Loss; Revenue USD254.2M Vs USD87.2M
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McColl's Retail Q3 Sales Up 4.3%; Q3 Like-For-Like Sales Down 0.5%; Remains In Line With Expectations For The Full Year
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Polemos Says David Lenigas, Executive Chairman, Steps Down Immediately
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Ryanair Launches Business Plus Package For European Business Travellers
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Fyffes And Chiquita Remain Committed To Merger, Working To Complete As Soon As Possible; Merger Now Targeting USD60M In Annual Pretax Cost Savings; Fyffes Raises Its Own 2014 EBITA Target To EUR38M-EUR42M; Fyffes H1 Adjusted EBITA EUR31.5M, Up 37% On EUR23.1M Year Before; Total Revenue EUR592.8M, Up 1.3% On EUR585.4M Year Before; Interim Dividend 0.714 Euro Cent, Up 5.0% On 0.68 Euro Cent
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Rare Earth Minerals CEO: Mexico, Greenland, Australia Showing Potential For Rapid Growth
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Cambian Group H1 Pretax Loss GBP11.8M Vs GBP1.2M Profit; Results Were Line With Expectations
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888 Holdings CEO Brian Mattingley To Step Down, Become Executive Chairman; Non-Executive Chairman Richard Kilsby To Retire; H1 Pretax Profit Down 4% To USD34.0M Vs USD35.5M; Revenue Up 13% To USD225.1M Vs USD200.1M; Declares Interim Dividend Of 3.5 Cents per Share Vs 3.0 Cents
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Cape H1: Revenue Down 13.1% To GBP322.2M Vs GBP370.8M; Interim Dividend Flat At 4.5P Per Share; Adjusted Pretax Profit Down 12.7% To GBP20.6M Vs GBP23.6M; Statutory Pretax Profit Jumps To GBP17.1M Vs GBP6.1M
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Chime Communications H1: Pretax Profit GBP9.6M Vs GBP0.6M; Interim Dividend 2.53P Vs 2.20P; Growth Prospects Good For H2
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Wednesday's Scheduled AGMs/EGMs

Collagen Solutions
Prospect Japan Fund
Coral Products
BlueCrest AllBlue Fund
Iomart Group
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite

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