LONDON (Alliance News) - Stock indices are tightly mixed in London at the open Wednesday, as investors await the outcome for Greece of the EU summit starting this evening.
Supermarkets Sainsbury's and Morrisons lead FTSE 100 gainers, up 2.9% and 2.0%, respectively. SocGen raised Sainsbury shares to Buy from Hold on Tuesday afternoon, while cutting its price target for Morrisons and keeping it at Sell. Tesco shares are up 1.1%; UBS cut its price target on the stock but kept it at Buy.
Shell A and B shares also are up about 1.1%, after Deutsche Bank raised the oil major to Buy from Hold.
Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: up 0.2% at 6,850.81
FTSE 250: down 0.1% at 17,978.99
AIM ALL-SHARE: flat at 770.02
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Hang Seng: up 0.4% at 27,428.68
Nikkei 225: closed up 0.3% at 20,868.03
DJIA: closed up 0.1% at 18,144.07
S&P 500: closed up 0.1% at 2,124.20
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GBP: up at USD1.5788
EUR: up at USD1.1196
GOLD: down at USD1,175.58 per ounce
OIL (Brent): up at USD64.54 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 in BST)
EU Eurogroup meeting
09:00 Germany IFO survey
09:00 Italy Wage Inflation
09:30 UK BBA Mortgage Approvals
10:00 Italy Trade Balance
11:00 Ireland Retail Sales
12:00 US MBA Mortgage Applications
13:30 US Gross Domestic Product
13:30 US Personal Consumption Expenditures
14:00 Switzerland SNB Quarterly Bulletin
15:30 US EIA Crude Oil Stocks
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EU leaders face a full plate at their summer summit this week, replete with challenges straining their bloc - starting with the debilitating economic situation in Greece and the deadly migration crisis in the Mediterranean Sea. The diplomatic tensions with Russia will be on the menu too, along with the European identity crisis in Britain. Hopes for a blockbuster free trade deal with the US and dreams of a stronger eurozone union will round off their two days of talks. "This moment in the EU's development is not a dress rehearsal," its president and summit chair, Donald Tusk, warned in a recent speech. "We must do what needs to be done, now, with a strong sense of purpose, or Europe goes backwards." Tusk has in the past strived to keep Greek negotiations off summit agendas, given their technical complexity and political sensitivity. But the issue looks set to overshadow the EU summit on Thursday and Friday, amid last-ditch negotiations on a breakthrough agreement.
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The foreign ministers of Russia, Germany, Ukraine and France met Tuesday in Paris in an effort to revive a peace deal in Ukraine as military and economic retaliation in the conflict has become more entrenched. "We call for a quick de-escalation and for an immediate ceasefire," French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said after the meeting ended. His German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier expressed hope that a ceasefire would be accepted in the town of Shyrokyne about 23 kilometres east of Mariupol in the country's troubled Donetsk region.
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Members of the Bank of Japan's monetary policy board are satisfied with the rate of the country's economic recovery, minutes from the board's meeting on May 21 and 22 showed - and the recovery is expected to continue. "Japan's economy is expected to continue recovering moderately," the minutes said. "The year-on-year rate of increase in the CPI is likely to be about 0% for the time being, due to the effects of the decline in energy prices." At the meeting, the BoJ decided in an 8-1 vote to hold its benchmark lending rate steady at 0.10%, while also maintaining its target of raising the monetary base at an annual pace of about JPY80 trillion.
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US President Barack Obama's push for greater authority to negotiate trade deals moved a step closer to reality after the measure cleared a key procedural hurdle in the Senate. The Senate voted 60-37 to limit debate on the Trade Promotion Authority measure and was expected to approve the bill in a separate vote as soon as Wednesday. TPA is considered a key element for completion of trade deals under negotiation with Pacific Rim countries and the EU.
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Top US officials underscored the need to cooperate with China on a host of issues from trade to climate change despite a massive hacking of US government personnel records that has been attributed to China and has overshadowed the three days of talks in Washington. "We do not fear China's rise," Vice President Joe Biden told US and Chinese officials gathered for the US-Chinese Strategic and Economic Dialogue. "A rising China can be a significant asset for the region and the world, and selfishly, for the US." Chinese officials acknowledged Washington and Beijing did not always see eye to eye, but were committed to cooperation and non-confrontation with the US.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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DEUTSCHE BANK RAISES SHELL TO 'BUY' ('HOLD') - PRICE TARGET 2425 PENCE
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TRADERS: BARCLAYS RAISES NEXT TO 'OVERWEIGHT' ('EQUAL WEIGHT')
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TRADERS: CREDIT SUISSE RAISES BHP BILLITON TO 'NEUTRAL' ('UNDERPERFORM')
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Anglo-South African financial services group Old Mutual said it has completed the acquisition of a majority stake in UAP Holdings and has begun integrating the business into its existing operations. Old Mutual had said in January it would take a majority stake in the East and Central Africa-focused financial services company, after acquiring new shares in the company for around USD155.5 million. It now holds a 60.7% stake in the company.
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Barclays is understood to have sealed a management buyout of its energy and commodity-focused private equity arm, having struggled to secure an external buyer for the business, the Financial Times reported. The deal, set to be announced in coming weeks, would still leave Barclays trying to sell around USD1 billion of investments in its private equity portfolio, the FT said. Barclays Natural Resources Investment is to be acquired by its managers, led by Chief Executive Mark Brown, as it is spun out from the bank in coming months and seeks to raise new funding from third-party investors.
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WPP said it has sealed a partnership with newspaper the Daily Mail and social messaging service Snapchat to create a new content-marketing joint venture to be called Truffle Pig. The FTSE 100-listed advertising and marketing group said the new company will provide content planning, development and creation services. It will use DailyMail.com, Elite Daily and Snapchat as the test-beds for story-driven marketing concepts, the company said. Daily Mail is owned by UK-listed Daily Mail and General Trust.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Transport operator Stagecoach Group said its pretax profit ticked higher in its 2015 financial year on the back of better revenue and said it would hike its dividend on the back of the results. Stagecoach said its pretax profit rose to GBP165.2 million for the year to April 30, up from GBP158 million a year earlier. Revenue for the group increased to GBP3.20 billion from GBP2.93 billion, with a strong performance in its UK rail business and from its Virgin Rail Group joint venture, even as the performance of its bus operations fell slightly below its expectations. On the back of the results, Stagecoach raised its final dividend to 7.3 pence per share from 6.6 pence last year, taking its total dividend for the year to 10.5 pence from 9.5 pence.
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Specialty chemicals company Elementis said its earnings per share will miss market expectations for the full year as the group said it was taking a hit from conditions in the oil and gas market, from additives sales in China, and from local currency weakness in Latin America for its personal care arm.
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Defence company Ultra Electronics Holdings affirmed its expectations for the full year, even as it faces issues in the US market and from its terminated Oman Airport contract. Ultra said it expectations for 2015 remain unchanged and said it continues to anticipate that its performance will be weighted toward the second half of the year.
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Clothing retailer SuperGroup said Nick Wharton has been made its permanent chief financial officer with immediate effect, having been its interim finance chief since February. Wharton, the former chief executive of Dunelm Group and former chief financial officer at Halfords Group, was appointed to the role on an interim basis in February after his predecessor, Shaun Willis, stepped down upon being declared personally bankrupt.
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COMPANIES - LONDON MAIN MARKET AND AIM
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Quindell said UK regulators have begun an investigation into the company under the Financial Services and Markets Act. In a statement, Quindell said the Financial Conduct Authority informed it of the investigation on Tuesday. Quindell said it will co-operate "fully" with the investigation, which has been initiated in relation to "public statements made regarding the financial accounts of the company" in 2013 and 2014.
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LGO Energy said the estimated oil in place at the Goudron field in Trinidad has increased by over five-fold after a new independent review was carried out. The company said the best estimate oil in place in the Goudron field now stands at 805 million barrels of oil. Proven 1P oil reserves in the producing Goudron sandstone and C-Sand reservoirs more than doubled to 1.5 million barrels, and the proved and probable 2P reserves increased 60% to 11.4 million barrels.
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Vectura Group said it has appointed James Ward-Lilley as its chief executive officer and executive director, from October 1. Ward-Lilley will take over from Chris Blackwell, who it set to leave the business at the end of this month. He will join the company, which makes products to treat airways-related diseases, from FTSE 100 pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca, where is currently works as vice-president for its respiratory, inflammation and autoimmunity franchise.
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COMPANIES - INTERNATIONAL
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The owner of American football team the Miami Dolphins is set to work with Qatar on a bid to take control of Formula One in a deal thought to be worth between USD7 billion and USD8 billion, the Financial Times reported. RSE Ventures, headed by US property and sports mogul Stephen Ross, is seeking to acquire the 35.5% stake of the holding company that owns Formula One from CVC Capital Partners, the private equity group. Its bid is understood to be backed by Qatar Sports Investments, the owner of Paris St-Germain football club. The deal also would see Bernie Ecclestone, the chief executive of Formula One, sell his holding of around 5%, the FT said. Sources told the FT that Qatar Sports is believed to be planning to buy all of Formula One in the future.
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French conglomerate Bouygues said it has rejected a buyout offer from European telecommunications company Altice for its telecom unit, Bouygues Telecom. Bouygues said in a statement that its board of directors, after an in-depth review, unanimously decided not to follow up on Altice's unsolicited offer to acquire Bouygues Telecom. The Wall Street Journal had reported over the weekend that Altice offered to buy Bouygues Telecom for about EUR10 billion. Bouygues Telecom is France's fourth-largest mobile carrier.
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Boeing named Dennis Muilenburg as chief executive officer, effective July 1, succeeding James McNerney, Jr., who held the position for about a decade. Muilenburg, a 30-year company veteran, has served as Boeing president and chief operating officer since 2013. He has also been elected to the board. Boeing said McNerney will remain chairman of the company, and to ensure a smooth transition, will continue working as an employee until retiring at the end of February 2016.
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Google unveiled a free ad-supported music streaming service. The announcement comes just a week ahead of the expected launch of Apple's own USD9.99 streaming service, Apple Music.
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Internet television network Netflix said its board has approved a seven-for-one stock split to be effected in the form of a stock dividend of six additional shares of common stock for each outstanding share of common stock. The stock dividend will be payable on July 14 to stockholders of record at the close of business on July 2, the company said.
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Wednesday's Scheduled AGMs/EGMs
Oxford Pharmascience
UMC Energy
London & Associated Properties
Braemar Shipping Services
Pacific Assets Trust
Greka Drilling
Condor Gold
Ithaca Energy
Atlantis Resources
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite
Copyright 2015 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
7 Dec 2015 08:20
