Last checked at LONDON (Alliance News) - Shares have opened marginally higher in London Thursday, as the US Federal Reserve maintained its accommodative stance. However, trade is expected to be especially cautious Thursday, as the Scottish independence vote got underway an hour ago.
Merlin Entertainments provided a positive trading prior to the open, saying strong trading over the summer at its attractions and theme parks has left it confident in its outlook for the remainder of the year. Merlin shares are up 0.9%.
In AIM, Iofina is down 15%, the second biggest faller, after saying production declined in August from July, while saying the iodine market remains challenging.
Here is what you need to know at the UK market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: up 0.1% at 6,784.95
FTSE 250: up 0.3% at 15,619.56
AIM ALL-SHARE: marginally higher at 763.63
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Hang Seng: down 0.9% at 24,158.71
Nikkei 225: closed up 1.1% at 16,067.57
DJIA: closed up 0.2% at 17,156.85
S&P 500: closed up 0.1% at 2,001.57
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GBP-USD: up at USD1.6279
EUR-USD: up at USD1.2871
GOLD: up at USD1,222.29 per ounce
OIL (Brent): down at USD98.51 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)
09:30 UK Retail Sales
11:00 UK CBI Industrial Trends Survey
13:30 US Building Permits
13:30 US Housing Starts
13:30 US Jobless Claims
13:45 US Fed's Yellen Speech
15:00 US Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Survey
15:30 US EIA Natural Gas Storage
20:00 US American Petroleum Institute Monthly Report
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Rival rallies were held across Scotland on Wednesday, one day before voters decide whether or not to end more than 300 years of union with the rest of the UK. Opinion polls suggest Thursday's referendum remains on a knife edge, with a You Gov survey published late Wednesday showing 52% of Scots were against independence while 48% were in favour, when undecided voters were excluded. That result was mirrored in a Panelbase survey, while a survey by Ipsos-Mori predicted an even closer result, with 51% of people backing voting a "No" to independence vote and 49% backing "Yes." Almost 4.3 million people residing in Scotland are registered to vote on Thursday. They will be asked the question, "Should Scotland be an independent country?"
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The following is the expected timetable of events for the Scottish vote:
- Polling stations in Scotland's 32 local authority areas will be open from 7 am to 10 pm.
- Counting will take place as soon as reasonably possible after the polling stations close. Postal votes will have to be added to the votes made on the day.
- Smaller local authorities are expected to declare first at around 0200 BST on Friday morning, with Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen expected to be the last to declare as late as 0600 BST on Friday morning.
- The result of the vote is unofficially expected to be released around 7 am Friday morning, although there is no official time for the result. Turnout is predicted to be very high, meaning results could take more time to collate.
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The US Federal Reserve expects to end its monthly purchases of government-backed debt after its next scheduled meeting on October 28-29, the central bank said Wednesday. If current expectations remain on track for ongoing improvement in the labour market and inflation, "the committee will end its current programme of asset purchases" at next month's meeting, the Fed said. The statement reiterated that bond purchases "are not on a preset course." The Fed also voted Wednesday to reduce quantitative easing from the current USD25 billion per month to USD15 billion in October. The Fed maintained its forecast that near-zero interest rates would remain in place for a "considerable time".
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New home prices in most Chinese cities fell in August, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed Wednesday. Average new house prices in 68 out of the total 70 cities declined in August from the previous month. Prices in major cities like Shanghai and Shenzhen decreased 1.1% each. Prices in Beijing dropped 0.9%. On a year-over-year basis, house prices in 19 out of the 70 cities fell in August while prices in 48 cities increased.
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Japan posted a merchandise trade deficit of JPY948.5 billion in August, the Ministry of Finance said - remaining in the red for a record 26th consecutive month. The headline figure beat forecasts for a shortfall of JPY1,028.9 billion following the JPY962.1 billion deficit in July. Exports fell 1.3% on year to JPY5.705 trillion, beating expectations for a drop of 2.6% but down from the 3.9% jump in the previous month. Imports dipped an annual 1.5% to JPY6.654 trillion versus forecasts for a fall of 1.2% following the 2.3% gain a month earlier.
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The US House of Representatives approved the training of moderate Syrian rebels to fight against the Islamic State in a 273-156 vote, with opposition Republicans giving strong backing to US President Barack Obama's strategy. The measure, which was requested by Obama, is part of a budget resolution that now goes to the full Senate, where it is expected to pass.
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The international coalition being put together by the US to fight the Islamic State has reached 50 countries, US Secretary of State John Kerry said Wednesday. Efforts are now focused on what each nation's contribution will be, Kerry told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. More details will be made public at the United Nations General Assembly this week and next.
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The Ebola epidemic could deal a "catastrophic" blow to already fragile West African countries, the World Bank said Wednesday, pointing to fear of contagion as the main factor driving the downturn.
Left unchecked, Ebola could lead to a contraction of Liberia's economy by 11.7% in 2015, putting the West African country - the worst-affected by the epidemic - at minus 4.9% growth, the World Bank said. Guinea and Sierra Leone - the second and third hardest-hit nations - could see gross domestic product (GDP) drop by 2.3 and 8.9 percentage points respectively in 2015.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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TRADERS: MORGAN STANLEY RAISES TUI TRAVEL TO 'OVERWEIGHT' ('EQUAL-WEIGHT')
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UBS REMOVES ADMIRAL FROM 'LEAST PREFERRED LIST' - 'NEUTRAL'
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UBS ADDS AVIVA TO 'LEAST PREFERRED LIST' - 'NEUTRAL'
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UBS REMOVES DIRECT LINE FROM 'MOST PREFERRED LIST' - STILL 'BUY'
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TRADERS: NUMIS CUTS MARSTONS TO 'ADD' ('BUY')
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TRADERS: CITIGROUP CUTS PREMIER FARNELL TO 'SELL' ('BUY')
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Jefferies Cuts 3Legs Resources To Hold From Buy, PT Down To 17p From 40p
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Marks & Spencer Group is to accelerate its expansion into international markets by entering the Scandinavian market, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday. The retailer has already outlined plans to open 250 new international stores by 2016 and is set to open 15 new franchise stores across Finland and Norway, with the first site, a 32,000 square foot flagship store in Helsinki, to open next month, the FT said. The retailer has teamed with Finnish retailer S Group as a franchise partner for the launch and will work with Norwegian retailer POCOS Group in that country, the newspaper added.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Merlin Entertainments said a positive trading performance over the summer from its attractions and theme parks, has left its confident in its outlook for the remainder of the year. The attractions and theme park operator said throngs of customers continued to flood through the gates of its LEGOLAND parks over the summer, driving revenue growth of 3.8% at actual exchange rates for the 36 weeks ended September 6, and a 9.3% rise at constant currency, as sterling strength hit revenue on a reported basis. In the year-to-date, Merlin said like-for-like revenue has grown 6.7% - with LEGOLAND parks up almost 14%, Midway Attractions up 3.2%, and its Resort Theme Parks sporting 4.2% growth.
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Kier Group reported higher underlying profits for its last financial year as its acquisition of May Gurney and strong organic growth drove up revenue, and it appointed Balfour Beatty PLC executive Beverley Dew as its Finance Director, although it hasn't yet decided when the 43 year-old will start in the job. The company reported underlying pretax profit of GBP73.1 million for the year to end-June, up from GBP47.6 million a year earlier, as revenue grew by half to GBP3.0 billion, from GBP2.0 billion. It pretax profit fell, however, to GBP14.8 million, from GBP25.9 million, as exceptional items more than doubled to GBP42.2 million due to the costs related to its acquisition of May Gurney. It raised its total dividend for the year by 6% to 72.0 pence, from 68.0p.
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Vehicle hire company Northgate said it is trading in line with expectations and expressed confidence for the full year on the back of increased profit and revenue from its UK and Spanish businesses. FTSE 250-listed Northgate said vehicles on hire in the UK rose 900 between May 1 and September 18 to 48,500. This compares to an increase of 1,600 in the same period last year. In Spain, Northgate said vehicles on hire were up 1,800 during the period to reach 36,500, ahead of the 1,300 increase reported in the comparable period in 2013.
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Events marketing and communications company UBM confirmed it has been involved in discussions to potentially acquire its trade show rival Advanstar Communications Inc, following recent media speculation. The PR Newswire owner said the discussions may or may not lead to an offer, and said it will make a further announcement in due course as appropriate.
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RPS Group said it has secured a deal to buy Australian project management consultancy Point Project Management Pty Ltd for up to AUD31 million. RPS, the FTSE 250 energy resources and environmental consultancy, will buy the entire issued share capital of Canberra-based Point for AUD31 million in cash. The two directors selling the business and all other Point staff will remain with the company.
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UK food wholesaler Booker Group said sales only inched up slightly in the second quarter of its financial year, helped by non-tobacco sales, and said its turnaround plans for the Makro business remain on track and on budget. Total sales in the 12 weeks to September 12 were up 0.1% including sales from Makro. Non-tobacco sales were up 0.8%, while tobacco sales declined 1.4%.
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Premier Farnell H1 Pretax Profit GBP36.4M Vs GBP38.1M; Revenue GBP479.3M Vs GBP498.2M; Interim Dividend Maintained At 4.4p; Full Year Expectations Unchanged
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Petra Diamonds FY Net Profit After Tax USD67.5M, Up From USD27.9M; Revenue Up 20% To USD471.8M From USD392.5M; FY Production Up 17% To 3.11M Carats, Ahead Of 3Mcts Guidance; FY15 Production Forecast Increased To 3.2M Carats; On Track For 5M Carats Production By FY19; Considering Bring Forward Dividend Payments From FY16 Previous Date
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Just Retirement FY Gross Premiums Written GBP1.20B Vs GBP1.27B
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COMPANIES - LONDON MAIN MARKET AND AIM
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Punch Taverns has almost ended a drawn-out process to restructure its GBP2.3 billion debt pile, after bondholders and shareholders finally agreed to its latest proposals. The debt-for-equity deal will mean shareholders are left with 15% of the equity while bondholders take over the remainder of the stock. However, debt will be cut by GBP600.0 million.
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Iofina Produced 23.6MT Of Crystallized Iodine In August, Down From 24.5MT In July; Blames Design Changes, Delayed Site Upgrade For Production Decline; Says Production Began To Normalize Last Week; Revises Forecast For 2014 Crystallized Iodine Production To 325-350MT; Says Iodine Market Remains Challenging But Demand For Iodide Derivatives Strong; Says Revenue Through September Expected To Surpass Total 2013 Sales
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COMPANIES - INTERNATIONAL
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German conglomerate Bayer AG plans to separate its plastics business, as it shifts focus to its life sciences business, WSJ Deutschland said Wednesday, quoting people familiar with the matter. The business is estimated to have a value of around EUR8 billion. An announcement regarding this could be made as early as Thursday.
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Technology giant Apple is expected to introduce its latest iPad in mid October, according to media reports Wednesday. Apple is planning to hold a media event on October 21 according to website Daily Dot, while Bloomberg News reported the new gadgets would be unveiled in mid October without naming an exact date.
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Online retail giant Amazon.com Inc on Wednesday announced the launch of two all-new Kindle e-reader models, three all-new Fire tablets and also introduced the Fire OS 4 "Sangria." With the models unveiled, Amazon is trying to target different segments in the market, including kids with the new Fire HD Kids Edition. All the new models launched are available for pre-order today, with deliveries to start in October.
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Dollar General Corp said Wednesday that it remains committed to acquiring Family Dollar Stores, Inc in a deal that would deliver superior value to Family Dollar shareholders and is capable of being completed on the terms proposed. Dollar General also said that it remains confident in both its antitrust strategy and the analysis performed by its antitrust advisors.
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Thursday's Scheduled AGMs/EGMs
Best Of The Best
Trifast
Diageo
Jaywing
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite
Copyright 2014 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
18 Sep 2014 09:35
