Ncc Share News (NCC)

LONDON (Alliance News) - Global stock markets were starting the new week buoyantly Monday, with the Tokyo market adding 4% after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe scored a big victory in elections for the country's legislative upper house.

Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: up 0.6% at 6,632.50
FTSE 250: up 1.1% at 16,350.21
AIM ALL-SHARE: up 0.3% at 707.44
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Hang Seng: up 1.5% at 20,876.86
Nikkei 225: closed up 4.0% at 15,708.82
DJIA: closed up 1.4% at 18,146.74
S&P 500: closed up 1.5% at 2,129.90
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GBP: flat at USD1.2936 (USD1.2957)
EUR: flat at USD1.1032 (USD1.1039)

GOLD: up at USD1,361.72 per ounce (USD1,351.45)
OIL (Brent): flat at USD46.43 a barrel (USD46.59)

(changes since previous London equities close)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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Monday's Key Economic Events still to come
(all times in BST)

0900 Italy industrial output
1500 US labour market conditions index
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A closer trading relationship with the US could be possible as a result of Brexit, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne indicated as he vowed to build a "global-facing Britain". The Chancellor, who is heading to New York for talks with major investors, said he wanted to begin discussions with members of the North American Free Trade Agreement bloc - the US, Canada and Mexico - about forging stronger ties. Osborne has a busy schedule over the coming weeks, with a trade visit to Asia also planned in an effort to promote investment in the UK amid fears that leaving the EU could make the country less attractive to foreign firms.
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Angela Eagle has insisted she can save Labour as she prepares to formally launch a leadership contest with the potential to rip the UK opposition political party apart. The former shadow business secretary is hoping to oust Jeremy Corbyn amid warnings the bitter rows over the party leadership could lead to a legal wrangle or lasting split. The Labour leader has vowed to fight any challenge and continue in his position despite the overwhelming majority of his MPs losing confidence in his ability to secure a general election victory.
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Theresa May will promise to put workers on the boards of major companies and curb excess corporate pay as she sets out her plan for a Britain that "works for everyone - not just the privileged few". The Home Secretary is embarking on a nationwide campaign to win over Tory members in her bid to become UK prime minister, after a weekend dominated by a row over comments made by leadership rival Andrea Leadsom about motherhood. On Sunday night the energy minister apologised to May, who does not have children, after she appeared to suggest in a newspaper interview that being a mother gave her an advantage as a potential prime minister. Leadsom said she was sorry "for any hurt I have caused" and that she "deeply regret that anyone has got the impression that I think otherwise".
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Britain's former deputy prime minister John Prescott has revealed in an article for Sunday's Mirror newspaper that he feels guilt at the Iraq war, as he apologized to the families of the men and women who died in the conflict. Earlier in the week the much-awaited Chilcott Report detailed what went wrong in the decision by ex-prime minister Tony Blair and his government to go to war in Iraq on flawed and insufficient evidence. Prescott wrote that the report was "a damning indictment of how the Blair government handled the war - and I take my fair share of blame."
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Ireland's construction activity expanded at the fastest pace in three months in June, survey figures from Markit Economics showed. The Ulster Bank Construction Purchasing Managers' Index, or PMI, rose to 59.7 in June from May's 6-month low of 55.9. Any reading above 50 indicates expansion in the sector.
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China's inflation is likely to remain largely unchanged in the second half of 2016, Chang Liu, a China economist at Capital Economics, said. Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics over the weekend showed that inflation eased to 1.9% in June, in line with expectations, from 2% in May. This was the lowest rate in five months and continues to remain below the full-year target of 3%. Producer prices declined 2.6% year-on-year in June compared to a 2.8% drop a month ago, another report from NBS showed. The PPI has been falling for more than four years now. Prices were expected to decrease by 2.5%.
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Japanese Prime Minister Abe's Liberal Democratic Party and its coalition partner Komeito achieved a resounding victory in upper house elections, final results showed. The ruling coalition retained a majority in the House of Councillors with both the LDP and Komeito increasing their seats in the upper chamber of parliament, despite Abe's economic measures proving to be ineffective so far. The LDP won 55 seats, Komeito 14, while the main opposition Democratic Party captured 32. The ruling coalition and like-minded minor parties will be able to build a two-thirds majority in the upper chamber of parliament, Kyodo News agency reported. The premier needs the support of two-thirds of both chambers of parliament in order to call a national referendum on amending the constitution. The coalition already holds a two-thirds majority in the more powerful lower house.
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Core machine orders in Japan declined 1.4% on month in May, the Cabinet Office said - standing at JPY785.0 billion. The headline figure missed forecasts for an increase of 3.2% following the 11.0% tumble in April. On a yearly basis, core machine orders plummeted 11.7% - also missing forecasts for a decline of 8.7% following the 8.2% drop in the previous month.
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Russia has accused NATO of "demonization" after the military alliance pledged to up the number of troops on its eastern flank in the face of what Moscow claims is a "non-existent" threat. At a summit in Warsaw on Friday, NATO approved the rotational deployment of four battalions from next year to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland, where unease has grown in the face of the easternmost member states' increasingly powerful neighbour. But Russia has denied posing any threat, instead accusing NATO of demonizing the country in a bid to detract from its own destructive role in global conflict, according to a Foreign Ministry statement released on Sunday.
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A black man who shot and killed five US police officers, plunging a peaceful protest in Dallas against police brutality into chaos, had been planning an even bigger attack, the city's police chief David Brown said in an interview. Investigators found explosives in Micah Johnson's flat, as well as diary entries hinting at the intended scale of the violence, Brown told broadcaster CNN.
The 25-year-old, who investigators believe acted alone, was killed when police sent a robot to detonate a bomb in the parking garage where he was holed up. He had previously told officers that he wanted to kill "white people, especially white police officers."
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Andy Murray claimed the second Wimbledon title of his career with a convincing 6-4, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-2) defeat of Canadian Milos Raonic. The Scot, who stands second behind Novak Djokovic on the ATP rankings list, now owns three trophies at the majors after defeating Raonic for the sixth time in a row. It was his second Wimbledon title in four editions. Murray also won the US Open in 2012 and made history a year later as the first British man in 77 years to win at the All England Club.
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Portugal overcame an injury to superstar Cristiano Ronaldo to capture their first major football title when they beat hosts France 1-0 on an extra-time winner from substitute Eder.
Eder, who plays at French club Lille, beat Hugo Lloris with a low shot into the bottom left corner in the 109th minute.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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SOCGEN CUTS GREAT PORTLAND TO 'SELL' ('HOLD') - TARGET 550 (790) PENCE
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SOCGEN CUTS BRITISH LAND CO TO 'HOLD' ('BUY') - TARGET 650 (810) PENCE
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TRADERS: BARCLAYS CUTS DIXONS CARPHONE TO 'EQUAL WEIGHT' ('OVERWEIGHT')
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N+1 Upgrades NCC Group To Buy From Hold, Price Target 332p From 285p
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UBS CUTS SPIRAX-SARCO TO 'NEUTRAL' ('BUY') - TARGET 3800 PENCE
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UBS CUTS IMI TO 'SELL' ('NEUTRAL') - TARGET 880 (900) PENCE
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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London Stock Exchange Group noted the announcement made by Deutsche Boerse that it is considering lower the acceptance threshold required to get shareholder approval for the pair's GBP21.0 billion merger. On Sunday, Deutsche Boerse said it was considering lowering the minimum threshold for acceptance for the merger when its shareholders vote on the deal on Tuesday. The group is concerned the 75% threshold will not be met and reports suggested it may cut this to 60%. Deutsche Boerse did not provide any details on what the threshold could be lowered to, however.
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Engineer Rolls-Royce Holdings said it has agreed to acquire the other 53.1% stake in Spanish aerospace components firm Industria de Turbo Propulsores SA it does not already own for EUR720.0 million. Rolls-Royce will acquire the stake from SENER Grupo de Ingeniería and said the deal will strengthen its position on large engine programmes in its civil aerospace operations by growing aftermarket revenue. Industria de Turbo Propulsores is based in Bilbao, Spain and design and manufacturers aerospace components.
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Lloyds Banking Group is understood to be accelerating a restructuring plan in order to cut more costs, which could lead to further job losses and branch closures, the Financial Times reported. The lender unveiled a plan in October 2014 to cut GBP1.0 billion a year from its cost base by the end of 2017, which would involve 9,000 jobs going and 200 branches shutting. Lloyds, according to senior bankers briefed on the plans, is now accelerating those plans and is targeting another 20% in savings by the end of 2017, which would increase its annualised cost savings to GBP1.2 billion.
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Standard Chartered has started its first brokerage business in Japan with 100 employees as institutional investors in the country seek products from emerging markets in Asia, the Middle East and Africa for better returns, Bloomberg reported. Of the 100 staff, the UK bank will deploy 20 salesmen to meet with Japanese life insurers, brokerages, banks and asset managers to sell products that invest in developing countries with potential for fast economic growth. The report said the Japanese securities unit also will start an investment-banking business that would advise local corporate clients and financial firms to raise funds in capital markets in Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
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US plane maker Boeing is in discussions with Spain's Air Europa Lineas Aereas and tour operator TUI for orders totallingUSD3.5 billion at list prices, Bloomberg reported citing people familiar with the matter. Air Europa is in line for 20 737 Max jets valued at USD2.2 billion, with TUI slated to convert 10 options on the upgraded narrow-body into firm orders, the report said. TUI is also poised to purchase an additional 787 Dreamliner, bringing its order to USD1.3 billion. Buyers typically negotiate discounts from list prices. The transactions are expected to be announced this week at the Farnborough International Airshow, the bi-annual trade show.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Plastic products company RPC Group said revenue in its financial first quarter grew significantly thanks both to good organic growth and to acquisition contributions, while adjusted profit slightly outpaced the company's forecasts. RPC said it saw good underlying organic growth in the first quarter to the end of June and said revenue was helped higher by the contribution from acquisitions it has made. Adjusted operating profit for the year, in constant currencies, was ahead of RPC's expectations.
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Petrofac said an agreement has been reached between its partners to end the Berantai risk service contract in Malaysia. The contract was awarded to Petrofac and its two local partners by Malaysian oil and gas firm Petronas back in 2011 and, since then, the London-listed oilfield services company has co-invested in the development of the Berantai field and has been responsible for its operation and maintenance. Petrofac and its partners, Kencana Energy and Sapura Energy Ventures, have now reached a mutual agreement with Petronas to end the contract from the effective date of September 30. Petrofac gave no reason for the decision in its announcement Monday.
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COMPANIES - LONDON MAIN MARKET AND AIM
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McBride said adjusted operating profit for its full financial year will be slightly ahead of its previous expectations, although revenue fell in the year as it worked to reduce the number of small customers it serves and due to pricing pressures. The household and personal care products company said its financial year, which ended on June 30, benefited from better-than-anticipated progress on cost-saving initiatives, including from its UK business restructuring project and from purchasing-driven savings resulting from reductions in product ranges.
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Recruiter SThree said pretax profit dipped in the first half of its financial year due to restructuring costs and a sluggish UK recruitment market, counteracting growth in revenue and gross profit. SThree said its pretax profit for the half to the end of May dipped to GBP12.8 million from GBP13.8 million a year earlier. In the half, the group booked one-off charges on the restructuring actions taken in its energy, banking & finance and UK businesses. Excluding those charges, pretax profit grew to GBP15.1 million from GBP13.8 million.
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The company behind price comparison service CompareTheMarket is preparing for a GBP2.0 billion listing in London despite the volatility in markets following the Brexit vote, The Daily Telegraph reported. BGL Group will hold a beauty parade for investment banks to lead the listing, which is expected to take place in early 2017. BGL also owns insurance brands Budget and Dial Direct and provides white-label insurance for M&S Bank and The Post Office.
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COMPANIES - INTERNATIONAL
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LafargeHolcim announced it has entered into a letter agreement with Nirma Limited for the divestment of its interest in Lafarge India for an enterprise value of approximately USD1.4 billion. The company said the proceeds from the divestment will be used to reduce debt. Eric Olsen, CEO, said: "This agreement is an important step in our CHF3.5 billion divestment program. With this deal, two thirds of the program has been secured and the remainder of the program is well on track. We are confident that we will meet our target by the end of this year." LafargeHolcim will continue to operate in India through its subsidiaries ACCand Ambuja Cements.
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Monday's Shareholder Meetings

1Spatial
Equatorial Mining & Exploration
Totally
Future (re acquisition of Imagine Publishing)
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite

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