Last checked at 
(Correcting 2021 comparison figure for GSK revenue.)
(Alliance News) - Stocks in London opened slightly higher on Wednesday, following positive leads from Wall Street and Asia, as investors anxiously look ahead to a trio of interest rate decisions this week.
The US Federal Reserve will kick off the interest rate decision announcements on Wednesday at around 1900 GMT. On Thursday, the Bank of England and the European Central Bank will reveal their own respective decisions.
Markets are expecting a 25 basis point hike from the US central bank. In contrast, half-a-percent hikes are expected from the BoE and the ECB.
In early UK corporate news, GSK reported a jump in both full-year revenue and profit, whilst safety equipment maker Halma made a small acquisition.
Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: up 19.63 points, 0.3%, at 7,791.33
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Hang Seng: up 0.6% at 21,975.28
Nikkei 225: closed up 0.1% at 27,346.88
S&P/ASX 200: closed up 0.3% at 7,501.70
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DJIA: closed up 368.95 points, or 1.1%, at 34,086.04
S&P 500: closed up 58.83 points, or 1.1%, at 4,076.60
Nasdaq Composite: closed up 190.74 points, or 1.7%, at 11,584.55
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EUR: up at USD1.0868 (USD1.0861)
GBP: up at USD1.2321 (USD1.2314)
USD: up at JPY130.32 (JPY130.17)
Gold: down at USD1,926.52 per ounce (USD1,927.04)
(Brent): down at USD85.57 a barrel (USD85.27)
(changes since previous London equities close)
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ECONOMICS
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Wednesday's key economic events still to come:
10:00 CET EU manufacturing PMI
11:00 CET EU unemployment
11:00 CET EU consumer price index
09:55 CET Germany manufacturing PMI
11:00 GMT Ireland unemployment
09:30 GMT UK manufacturing PMI
09:30 GMT UK narrow money and reserve balances
07:00 EST US MBA weekly mortgage applications survey
08:15 EST US ADP national employment report
10:00 EST US labor turnover survey
11:00 EST US manufacturing PMI
14:00 EST US interest rate decision
11:00 GMT OPEC ministerial virtual meeting
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UK house prices fell for the fifth month in a row, according to figures from Nationwide. In January, house prices fell by 0.6% on a monthly base, quickening from a monthly fall of 0.3% in December. On an annual basis, house prices rose 1.1% in January, slowing from a 2.8% increase in December. The average UK house price stood at GBP258,297, down from GBP262,068 in December. "All regions have seen a deterioration in affordability compared to 2021, with the cost of servicing the typical mortgage as a share of take-home pay now at or above the long-run average in all regions," said Nationwide Chief Economist Robert Gardner.
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Hundreds of thousands of UK workers – including school teachers – are going on strike for what will be the biggest day of industrial action in more than a decade. Teachers in England and Wales, who are members of the National Education Union, will embark on their first day of strikes on Wednesday, which threaten to disrupt more than 23,000 schools. The walkouts, which could see more than 100,000 teachers take action in a dispute over pay, come on the same day that university lecturers, train drivers, civil servants, bus drivers and security guards are going on strike.
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The Irish factory sector stabilised at the start of the year, with the AIB manufacturing purchasing managers' index rising to 50.1 points from 48.7 in December. The score represented slight growth for the Irish manufacturing sector and was the highest in three months, breaking a two-month string of declines, according S&P Global, which conducts the monthly survey. "Encouragingly, the Irish data showed the smallest fall in new orders since they first began to decline in June last year, though demand remains muted," commented AIB Chief Economist Oliver Mangan. "The pace of contraction in output also eased considerably, with just a small fall in the month."
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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Citigroup cuts Persimmon to 'sell' (neutral)
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Jefferies cuts TI Fluid System to 'underperform' (buy) - price target 100 (210) pence
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Jefferies cuts Synthomer to 'hold' (buy) - price target 160 (430) pence
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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GSK posted revenue of GBP29.32 billion in 2022, up from GBP24.70 billion a year earlier. Pretax profit climbed in the year to GBP5.63 billion from GBP3.60 billion in 2021. The 2021 figures exclude the consumer healthcare arm. GSK declared a 13.75 pence dividend for the fourth quarter of 2022, bringing the annual dividend to 61.25p. In 2021, before the spin-off of consumer arm Haleon, GSK declared a 100p full-year dividend. Looking ahead, GSK said it expected 2023 turnover to increase by between 6% and 8%, adjusted operating profit to rise by between 10% and 12%, and earnings per share to be up by between 12% and 15%. The expected dividend for 2023 is 56.5p per share.
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Safety equipment maker Halma has bought Thermocable (Flexible Elements) for its Safety sector fire detection company, Apollo Fire Detectors. Thermocable is based in Bradford, UK, and is a leading developer and manufacturer of Linear Heat Detectors. Halma will pay GBP22 million in cash. "Thermocable's specialist technologies will further enhance Apollo's existing strengths in fire detection and alarm systems for industrial and commercial customers. They will enable Apollo to address a greater range of customer needs in niche applications for a variety of sectors such as urban infrastructure and transportation, logistics, natural resources and emerging applications in renewable power generation," said Chief Executive Andrew Williams.
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Anglo American reported sharply lower rough diamond sales on an annual basis, but they were up compared to the previous sales cycle due to strong consumer demand during holiday season. The London-based miner said provisional rough diamond sales value for the first sales cycle of 2023 slumped by 32% to USD450 million from USD660 million in the same cycle last year. But sales in the latest cycle was up 7.9% from USD417 million in the tenth cycle. The provisional rough diamond sales figure quoted for cycle one represents the expected sales value for the period January 16 and January 31, and remains subject to adjustment based on final completed sales. Cycle ten actual sales value in 2022 represents sales between the dates of December 5 and December 20.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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FDM Group said it performed "well" in 2022, with each of its primary regions showing year-on-year growth in Consultants deployed, and a particularly strong performance in North America. The company expects its results for 2022 to be in line with expectations. FDM said it expects to report revenue for the year of GBP330 million, up 23% year-on-year from GBP267 million. It also ended the year with 4,905 consultants placed with clients, up 22% annually from 4,033. Looking ahead, CEO Rod Flavell said: "As we enter 2023 there remains a high degree of macro-economic and political uncertainty in some of the regions where we operate. However, across the group we continue to see healthy levels of client engagement and activity." FDM will release its full annual results on March 15.
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OTHER COMPANIES
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Judges Scientific appointed Tim Prestidge as group business development director. Prestidge will join the London-based acquirer of scientific-instrument companies immediately. Most recently, Prestidge spent 8 years as Divisional CEO with Halma, where he chaired portfolios of technology companies based in the UK, Europe, USA, and China, operating in a diverse range of scientific and industrial sectors. Chair Alex Hambro said: "We are delighted that a candidate of Tim's experience and calibre is joining the Judges board. This is a reinforcement of our executive team and of our ability to maximise the performance of our expanding group."
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Renew Holdings said trading in the first quarter of its financial year has been in line with its expectations. The engineering services group's order book at December 31 stood at GBP861 million, up from GBP742 million a year earlier. "We are pleased with the momentum within the Group. This, combined with the structural growth drivers in our regulated infrastructure markets, give us confidence in the year ahead," said Chair David Brown.
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By Sophie Rose, Alliance News reporter
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