Next Share News (NXT)

LONDON (Alliance News) - London share prices resumed trading after a four-day holiday weekend on the front foot Tuesday, despite confirmation of the hijacking of an Egyptian airliner.

Shrugging off the continued bad news for the travel sector, easyJet was the top gainer in the FTSE 100, up 3.1%, after the stock was raised to Buy by Merrill Lynch.

Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: up 0.8% at 6,154.84
FTSE 250: up 0.4% at 16,739.26
AIM ALL-SHARE: up 0.1% at 709.61
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Hang Seng: down 0.1% at 20,325.22
Nikkei 225: closed down 0.2% at 17,103.53
DJIA: closed up 0.1% at 17,535.39
S&P 500: closed up 0.1% at 2,037.05
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GBP: up at USD1.4208 (USD1.4154)
EUR: firm at USD1.1181 (USD1.1172)

GOLD: down at USD1,217.31 per ounce (USD1,219.87)
OIL (Brent): down at USD39.83 a barrel (USD40.23)

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

08:55 Germany unemployment rate
09:00 EU M3 money supply and private loans
13:30 Canada industrial product and raw material price indices
13:55 US Redbook index
14:00 US S&P/Case-Shiller home price indices
15:00 US consumer confidence
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A hijacked passenger plane from Egypt with approximately 80 people on board has landed at Larnaka International Airport on the island of Cyprus, police told Cyprus state broadcaster RIK. The captain of the Egyptian plane told Egyptian air traffic control that his aircraft had been hijacked, officials in the country's Civil Aviation Ministry said. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity as they were not authorized to brief the press, say that the captain contacted air traffic control and indicated that hijackers had demanded he divert the scheduled Alexandria-Cairo flight to Cyprus. The Airbus 320 aircraft departed on Tuesday morning. After take-off, an individual on board announced he was wearing a belt with explosives, Dubai-based AL Arabiya reported.
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A man is feared to have died as Britain was battered by Storm Katie which packed winds of more than 100 mph. Britons heading home from the long Easter break faced travel chaos as planes were diverted, trains delayed and heavy rainfall left roads treacherous. Police launched a search for a man whose kayak capsized on Monday in the River Wey in Surrey, which the Environment Agency on Sunday night warned was at risk of flooding. It comes after air passengers were left sick and in tears as their planes were hit with severe winds. Around 100,000 homes were hit by power cuts while railway passengers returning home after the long Easter weekend endured delays.
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Optimism among UK firms in the financial services sector declined at the fastest pace since 2011, the quarterly Financial Services Survey from the Confederation of British Industry and accountancy firm PwC showed. About 14% of firms said they were more optimistic, while 35% were less optimistic, giving a balance of -21%. "Concerns over China and a volatile start to the year for markets, alongside uncertainty about a possible Brexit, have created a perfect storm to dampen optimism in financial services," Rain Newton-Smith, CBI director for Economics, said.
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A man charged with terrorist murder in connection to last week's triple bombing attack in Brussels has been released for lack of evidence, federal prosecutors said, while the death toll was raised to 35. The attacks took place early March 22 at the Belgian capital's international airport and at the Maelbeek metro station, near the Brussels seat of the EU's main institutions. Three suicide bombers died in the explosions, while a fourth suspect - filmed by an airport surveillance camera alongside the two departure hall bombers - has since been on the run.
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Pakistani forces launched a crackdown on Islamist extremists in the central province of Punjab as part of the hunt for those responsible for the deadly Taliban attack on Christians celebrating Easter, officials said. Several raids were conducted and a number of suspects were arrested across major cities in the country's most populous province, army spokesman General Asim Bajwa said. On Sunday evening a suicide bomber detonated an explosive vest among a crowd inside a public park in the eastern city of Lahore, killing 72 people, local official Mohamed Usman said. Around 350 people were injured, said Deeba Shahnaz Akhtar, a spokeswoman for the rescue services.
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Russia reaffirmed that it will help rebuild ancient sites in the Syrian city of Palmyra, recaptured by Syrian state forces last week from the terrorist group Islamic State. The central Syrian city, built on an oasis, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site with monuments thousands of years old. "We will definitely perform restoration of Palmyra. This issue has long been discussed," Russian cultural envoy Mikhail Shvydkoi told the Interfax news agency.
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There was no further threat after a reported shooting Monday afternoon at the US Capitol, Washington city police said. "There has been an isolated incident at the US Capitol. There is no active threat to the public," the department said on Twitter. The Capitol and the White House were locked down Monday after a reported shooting at the visitors centre outside the Capitol.
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Economic activity in the US was stronger than people had previously thought in the fourth quarter, according to new government statistics. The US Department of Commerce revealed that Gross Domestic Product, a gauge of broad economic activity, rose by an annual rate of 1.4% in the last three months of 2015. The figure had previously been reported to have risen by 0.7%. In the third quarter, GDP had a growth rate of 2.0%. Economists had been expecting an upward revision to the fourth-quarter GDP stat. However, Friday's result was stronger than was generally predicted. Economists had expected the figure to be revised up to about 1.0%.
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Partly reflecting strong growth in the Midwest, the National Association of Realtors released a report showing a bigger than expected increase in US pending home sales in the month of February. NAR said its pending home sales index climbed 3.5% to 109.1 in February from a downwardly revised 105.4 in January. Economists had expected the index to increase by about 1.5%.
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Personal income in the US increased by slightly more than expected in the month of February, according to a report released by the Commerce Department. The report said personal income rose by 0.2% in February after climbing by 0.5% in January. Economists had expected income to tick up by 0.1%.
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Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders said his wins in Democratic Party caucuses in three states have given his campaign momentum against the party's presidential front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton. He acknowledged his campaign remains an "underdog", but believes he will do well moving forward in contests in states such as Wisconsin, New York and California. "We do have a path toward victory." Sanders won the Democratic caucuses in the western US states of Hawaii, Alaska and Washington by wide margins against Clinton.
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Overall nationwide consumer prices in Japan gained 0.3% on year in February, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said. That was in line with forecasts following the flat reading in January. Core inflation, which excludes the volatile costs of food, came in flat - again matching forecasts and unchanged from the previous month.
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The unemployment rate in Japan came in at a seasonally adjusted 3.3% in February, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said. That was higher than forecasts for 3.2%, which would have been unchanged.
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Retail sales in Japan were up 0.5% on year in February, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said. That was well shy of expectations for an increase of 1.6% following the 0.2% decline in January.
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The average of household spending in Japan advanced 1.2% on year in February, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said - standing at JPY269,774. That topped expectations for a decline of 1.9% following the 3.1% contraction in January.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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GOLDMAN CUTS NEXT TO 'NEUTRAL' ('BUY') - TARGET 6400 (7900) PENCE
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DEUTSCHE BANK RAISES NEXT TO 'BUY' ('HOLD') - TARGET 6850 (7200) PENCE
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TRADERS: CANACCORD CUTS NEXT TO 'HOLD' ('BUY')
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EXANE BNP CUTS HSBC TO 'UNDERPERFORM' (NEUTRAL) - PRICE TARGET 400 (450) PENCE
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TRADERS: MERRILL LYNCH RAISES EASYJET TO 'BUY'
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TRADERS: HSBC REMOVES PRUDENTIAL FROM 'EUROPE SUPER 10 PORTFOLIO'
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BERENBERG CUTS SYNTHOMER TO 'HOLD' ('BUY') - TARGET 345 (315) PENCE
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Blue-chip drug makers AstraZeneca and GlaxoSmithKline both have secured product approvals in Japan, the companies said. AstraZeneca said it has secured approval for its Tagrisso drug as a treatment for patients with non-small cell lung cancer resistant to EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitor therapy. Glaxo has received marketing approval in Japan for its Nucala drug as a treatment for bronchial asthma in patients with refractory asthma whose symptoms are not adequately controlled using standards asthma treatments.
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The UK Ministry of Defence has handed contracts to BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce Holdings covering support services for the Hawk fast-jet training aircraft. BAE has won contracts worth around GBP300.0 million to provide in-service support and post-design services for the Hawk 1 and 2 jets. BAE will handle the contract alongside maintenance partner Babcock International. In addition, a GBP79.0 million deal has been signed by Rolls-Royce to provide support services for the Adour engines which power the Hawk aircraft.
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Anglo-South African miner Anglo American is preparing plans to bring in a new finance director as it pushes on with a radical restructuring of its business, Sky News reported. Anglo is understood to be in the early stages of a process to identify a successor to incumbent finance chief Rene Medori, who has been in the position since 2005, Sky said.
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Royal Dutch Shell is reviewing the case for selling some of its North Sea assets in the wake of its GBP35 billion takeover of BG Group, according to reports. Shell plans to raise USD30 billion from asset sales worldwide as it moves to offset the cost of the BG acquisition, completed last month just weeks after oil prices plunged to a 13-year low near USD27 a barrel. But the company has yet to identify in public precisely which fields will be under scrutiny, the reports said.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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AG Barr reported growth in profit in its recently-ended financial year, although revenue fell slightly in a challenging market which faced a tough comparative the year before. The soft drinks company said its pretax profit in the year ended January 30 rose to GBP41.3 million from GBP38.6 million the year before, as revenue fell slightly to GBP258.6 million from GBP260.9 million. AG Barr will pay a total dividend of 13.33 pence for the year, which is up 10% on the prior year. The company said it expects to be able to minimise the financial impact of the recently announced UK sugar tax through product innovation.
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Polymetal International said its dividend for 2015 will be over 40% higher than the previous year after the company turned to a profit despite reporting a fall in revenue. The gold and silver miner operating in Russia and Kazakhstan said it made net earnings of USD221.0 million in 2015, swinging from a USD210.0 million net loss in 2014. Underlying earnings, which exclude certain exceptional items, rose to USD296.0 million from USD282.0 million in 2014. Polymetal said it plans to pay a dividend of 51.0 cents in total for 2015, representing a 42% rise from the 0.36 cents paid in 2014.
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Non-life insurer Lancashire Holdings said its Lancashire Insurance Co Ltd subsidiary has secured a new USD300.0 million, five-year credit and revolving credit facility. The funding has been provided through Lloyds Bank and Barclays. The money will be used to support obligations under reinsurance liabilities held by the subsidiary, Lancashire said.
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Tritax Big Box REIT said it has struck a GBP74.7 million deal to acquire the national distribution centre of catalogue retailer Argos in Burton-upon-Trent. Tritax said the distribution centre, located at Barton Business Park, offers 653,670 square feet of space, arranged over 26 acres. It is currently let to Argos, owned by Home Retail Group, on a 12-year lease.
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COMPANIES - LONDON MAIN MARKET AND AIM
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Infrastructure and support services company Stobart Group said it has signed a 20-year lease and option to purchase deal with Ford Motor Co. Ford, the US carmaker, is the current tenant of Stobart's Speke investment property in Liverpool. Ford will pay an initial rent of GBP2.2 million a year for the property from July 2016, compared to GBP1.5 million per annum currently, and has signed an option to acquire the site for GBP37.0 million. Stobart acquired the property for GBP15.6 million.
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Payments company Monitise said it has hired a chief operating officer who also will take on the role of chief financial officer. Gavin James has been working with Monitise in the past five months in an advisory role, the company said.
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COMPANIES - INTERNATIONAL
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The competition to acquire the Starwood hotel chain intensified as a group led by Chinese investors increased its offer to outbid rival Marriott. The group led by Anbang Insurance Group offered USD82.75 in cash per Starwood share, or around USD14 billion, in a bid likely to be a "superior proposal" to a revised deal offered by Marriott earlier this month, Starwood said in a statement. Marriott most recently offered USD13.6 billion dollars in cash and stock for the chain.
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NTT Data, a unit of Japanese telecom giant Nippon Telegraph & Telephone, will acquire Dell Services from computer maker Dell, the two companies said. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but media reports indicated that the deal is valued at more than USD3 billion. Dell Services is an IT services provider with depth in vertical industries and offerings around infrastructure services, cloud services, application services, and business process outsourcing.
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Yahoo has set an April 11 deadline to submit preliminary bids for its core web business and Asian assets, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Yahoo advisers asked to submit proposals for their bids, including what assets they hope to acquire and for what price, the report said, citing a letter sent to possible buyers in recent days.
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The US Department of Justice said it has succeed in unlocking an iPhone used by one of the shooters in the San Bernardino, California attack last year and has also dropped its lawsuit against Apple. The Justice Department said it has asked a US Magistrate Judge in Riverside, California to vacate her order compelling Apple to assist the FBI in unlocking the iPhone that was used by one of the terrorists who killed 14 people in San Bernardino on December 2, 2015. US Attorney Eileen Decker said, "Our decision to conclude the litigation was based solely on the fact that, with the recent assistance of a third party, we are now able to unlock that iPhone without compromising any information on the phone."
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Tuesday's Scheduled AGMs/EGMs

entu (UK)
Quartix Holdings
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite

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