Renew Holdings Share News (RNWH)

LONDON (Alliance News) - Shares in London are called to open lower on Tuesday, following on from a downbeat session in the US on Monday, as markets in Europe re-open from the long Easter weekend.

In focus in the UK on Tuesday is March's manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index at 0930 BST.

IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 index of large-caps to open 50.01 points lower at 7,006.60 on Tuesday. The FTSE 100 index closed up 0.2%, or 11.87 points, at 7,056.61 on Thursday.

In early UK company news on Tuesday, Sky noted two alternative remedy proposals submitted by Twenty-First Century Fox to the UK Competition & Markets Authority. Fox is seeking to acquire the 61% of Sky it does not already own.

Fox proposed the creation of Newco, which would be a subsidiary of Sky, and Sky News would be transferred into the newly incorporated company.

"Under this proposal, Sky News would operate entirely independently with guaranteed funding by 21CF for 15 years. Additionally, we offered personal undertakings given by 21CF's Executive Chairmen and its CEO not to influence or attempt to influence the editorial choices made by the Head of Sky News," said Fox in a statement.

Alternatively, Fox said, The Walt Disney Co has expressed an interested in acquiring Sky News "whether or not Disney's proposed acquisition of [Fox] proceeds".

Sky in a statement said: "Sky believes that both of these remedy proposals comprehensively address any plurality concerns the CMA may have, and would guarantee the long-term future of Sky News and its ongoing editorial independence."

Sky advised shareholders to take no action at this stage.

Drugmaker AstraZeneca, alongside biologics research and development arm MedImmune, said the US Food & Drug Administration has accepted the Biologics License Application for moxetumomab pasudotox.

Moxetumomab pasudotox is an investigational anti-CD22 recombinant immunotoxin and a potential new medicine for the treatment of adult patients with hairy cell leukaemia who have received at least two prior lines of therapy.

The FDA has granted the moxetumomab pasudotox BLA Priority Review status with a Prescription Drug User Fee Act date set for the third quarter of 2018. Priority Review is granted by the FDA to applications for medicines that, if approved, would offer a significant improvement in the safety or effectiveness of the treatment, diagnosis, or prevention of serious conditions.

In addition, Astra and Merck & Co said the European Medicines Agency has validated for review the Marketing Authorisation Application for Lynparza (olaparib) for use in patients with deleterious or suspected deleterious BRCA-mutated, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative metastatic breast cancer who have been previously treated with chemotherapy in the neoadjuvant, adjuvant or metastatic setting.

Miner Anglo American said it has suspended its Minas-Rio iron ore operation in Brazil, effective since Thursday, in order to conduct a full inspection of the pipeline that carries iron ore from the mine to the export terminal.

The decision followed the identification of a "minor leak". It occurred in "close proximity" to a similar leak earlier in March, near a pumping station.

"Due to the length of the pipeline and the priority of ensuring the protection of the natural environment, the current expectation is that it will take approximately 90 days for the full inspection to be completed during which time operations at Minas-Rio will remain suspended," Anglo said.

In the FTSE 250, Petrofac said it has won a USD233 million contract from Vedanta for its Raageshwari Deep Gas Field Development Project located in Barmer, Rajasthan, India.

The lump-sum engineering, procurement and construction project is for integrated gas surface facilities and includes pre-commissioning and commissioning. Under the terms of the 23-month contract, the scope of work includes well pads, flowlines and a new gas processing terminal.

On AIM, Renew Holdings said its performance continues to be strong, with trading for the first half of its financial year in line with board expectations, with anticipation of an "increased forward order book" at its interim results.

This has been driven by Engineering Services, where order flow across Infrastructure and Environmental sectors has been good. Renew said it expects to report a modest net debt position at the half year in line with expectations.

In the US on Monday, Wall Street ended sharply lower on trade war worries, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average ending down 1.9%, the S&P 500 down 2.2%, and Nasdaq Composite closing 2.7% lower.

"Yesterday China's tariffs on some specific US products came into effect, and this rattled investor confidence," says David Madden, market analyst at CMC Markets.

The tariffs will impact 128 products and included a 15% tariff on fresh and dried fruits, nuts, ginseng, wine, and steel pipes as well as a 25% tariff on pork products and recycled aluminium, according to the Customs Tariff Commission.

"In the grand scheme of things, China's response hasn't been too aggressive, but dealers fear we could be starting a long trade war. The ball is now in Trump's in court, and traders are waiting for the US President to make the next move," Madden adds.

Released in the US on Monday, the Institute for Supply Management said its PMI fell to 59.3 in March from 60.8 in February, although a reading above 50 still indicates growth in the manufacturing sector. Economists had expected the index to edge down to 60.0.

The bigger than expected decrease by the headline index was partly due to a notable slowdown in the pace of job growth in the manufacturing sector, as the employment index dropped to 57.3 in March from 59.7 in February.

In Asia on Tuesday, the Japanese Nikkei 225 index closed down 0.5%. In China, the Shanghai Composite is down 1.2%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong is down 0.5%.

In Chinese data released on Monday, IHS Markit showed manufacturing activity grew at the slowest pace in four months in March on weaker production and new orders.

The headline Caixin PMI - a composite single-figure indicator of manufacturing performance - fell unexpectedly to 51.0 in March from 51.6 in February, the latest upturn was the weakest since last November. The expected reading was 51.7.

The manufacturing index climbed to 51.5 in March from 50.3 in February, while the non-factory PMI improved to 54.6 from 54.4 a month ago.

In Japan on Monday, the headline Nikkei manufacturing PMI fell to 53.1 in March from 54.1 in February. The headline indicator has recorded in expansionary territory for 19 successive months.

In Tuesday's economic calendar, German manufacturing PMI data is at 0855 BST, with the same data from the eurozone at 1000 BST.