LONDON (Alliance News) - The UK's two biggest drug companies, GlaxoSmithKline and AstraZeneca, are among the top gainers on the FTSE 100 Thursday after Glaxo got US approval for an asthma treatment and AstraZeneca announced a partnership that it thinks will speed up cancer drug trials.
GlaxoSmithKline said late Wednesday that the US Food and Drug Administration has approved its Arnuity Ellipta treatment for asthma in patients aged 12 years and older. It was approved for 100 microgram and 200 microgram doses, and is administered daily via the Ellipta dry powder inhaler, which is also used for a range of other respiratory medicines in Glaxo's portfolio.
AstraZeneca, meanwhile, said it has partnered with Illumina Inc to develop a gene-sequencing platform for companion diagnostic tests, applicable across AstraZeneca's oncology portfolio. AstraZeneca plans to use Illumina's technology for a diagnostic test in studies for one of its investigational oncology compounds, which AstraZeneca said could speed up the clinical trial process.
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Markets: UK stocks are higher despite early caution in light of a more hawish tone from both the Bank of England and the Federal Reserve, and ahead of Fed Chair Janet Yellen's speech from Jackson Hole on Friday.
US stock futures are pointing to a slightly lower open on Wall Street. The DJIA, S&P 500 and Nasdaq are all indicated to open down up to 0.2%.
FTSE 100: up 0.3% at 6,773.87
FTSE 250: up 0.3% at 15,798.44
AIM ALL-SHARE: flat at 764.31
GBP-USD: flat at 1.6586
EUR-USD: flat at 1.3261
GOLD: down at USD1,280.73 an ounce
OIL (Brent): down at USD101.33 a barrel
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Other Top UK Corporate News
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The terms of a proposed settlement filed on Wednesday in the US will see Barclays Capital Inc, part of Barclays, pay a USD23.0 million sum to the creditors of Thornburg Mortgage Inc, settling allegations of "improper" margin calls that contributed to the bankruptcy of the mortgage lender, the Wall Street Journal reported. The agreement was reached with the court-appointed trustee overseeing the liquidation of Thornburg Mortgage.
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Kazakhmys' pretax loss narrowed in the first-half due to lower write-offs and impairment charges and as its cost cutting programme and efficiency improvements offset lower metals prices and boosted margins. However, revenue fell as it reduced its output at several higher cost, lower grade operations as part of its restructuring programme. In the six months to June 30, Kazakhmys said its pretax loss narrowed by more than half to USD118 million, from the USD244 million loss reported last year. Revenue slipped during the period to USD1.30 billion, from USD1.60 billion in the first half of 2013.
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Premier Oil posted a big drop in pretax profits despite a rise in sales revenue in the first half, as its cost of sales increased and it was hit by impairment charges in the UK and by an accounting loss on the sale of the Block A Aceh site in Indonesia. The company said pretax profit was down to USD50.4 million in the six months to June 30 from USD214.6 million last year. That was despite a rise in sales revenue in the period to USD884.7 million from USD757.8m a year ago. Premier did not proposed an interim dividend, in line with last year, but said it will continue distributions to shareholders through an ongoing share buyback programme. The firm said it would continue the share buyback until its share price "better reflects the underlying value of the business".
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WH Smith said it expects full-year results to be in line with market expectations, adding that both of its main business lines remain highly cash generative. The FTSE 250-listed retailer said results for the year to August 31 should be in line with market expectations. It said its travel arm is continuing to perform well, and its new store opening programme is on track both in the UK and internationally. In retailer's high street arm, the firm said its focus on gross margin gains and tight cost controls was translating into a positive performance.
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Quindell reiterated confidence in meeting all of its key performance indicators for the full year, on revenue guidance of GBP800 million to GBP900 million, as it saw profit rise in the half year to end-June. The software and outsourcing services company also appointed Stefan Borson as its chief legal and communications officer. Quindell posted a pretax profit of GBP153.7 million, up from GBP39.2 million in the previous year, as revenue rose to GBP357.3 million from GBP163.3 million. Profit also was boosted by a GBP14.5 exceptional gain on the re-measurement of acquisitions. Still, its shares are down over 8% on AIM.
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AIM MOVERS
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Oilex is a big gainer after it said crude oil recovered from the Cambay-77H project is now being transported to a nearby refinery for sale, while preliminary analyses of water recovered from samples of the oil, gas and water from the site confirmed it is consistent with frac water and not formation water. Nighthawk Energy is also up after it said it will start drilling at a new Arikaree Creek well this month and said it plans to start development of the Snow King discovery. Aurum Mining is a big faller after it said it would launch a discounted share placing to raise GBP60,000. Tangent Communications is down after it warned that profits in the first-half will be below market expectations due to problems in its agency and Tangent Snowball operations, hitting the prospects for its full-year performance. London Mining is also down after it swung to a loss in the first-half as revenue fell on the back of lower market prices for iron ore, and it narrowed its production guidance due to a slower-than-expected ramp-up of operations and the impact of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa. Beowulf Mining is another faller after it announced a discounted share placing to raise GBP2 million, though it also gave an upbeat update on its Kallak North and Kallak South iron ore projects in northern Sweden.
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Other Top Economics And General
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UK retail sales grew less than expected in July as household goods store sales deteriorated, official data showed. Including auto fuel, retail sales volume grew 0.1% in July from a month ago, slower than the revised 0.2% increase in June. Economists had forecast sales to grow 0.4%. Excluding auto fuel, retail sales advanced 0.5%, reversing the 0.1% fall in June. It was also slower than the expected growth of 0.4%. On a yearly basis, overall retail sales volume growth slowed to 2.6% from 3.4% in June. Economists had forecast 3.1% increase for July. Excluding auto fuel, sales were up 3.4%, slower than the 3.8% rise in June.
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The UK budget deficit narrowed in July, the Office for National Statistics reported. Public sector net borrowing excluding interventions came in at GBP0.2 billion in July versus GBP1 billion a year ago. Excluding transfers to Asset Purchase Facility, the deficit totaled GBP0.8 billion compared to a GBP1.6 billion shortfall last year. In July, public sector net debt excluding financial interventions came in at GBP1.299 trillion, equivalent to 76.5% of gross domestic product.
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The Eurozone private sector growth slowed by more than expected in August as manufacturing posted its weakest expansion in 13 months, flash data from Markit Economics showed. The composite output index fell to 52.8 in August from 53.8 in July. The indicator was expected to fall marginally to 53.4. The headline index has now remained above the neutral 50.0 mark for 14 successive months. The services Purchasing Managers' Index declined more-than-expected to 53.5 in August from 54.2 in July. The expected reading for August was 53.7. Similarly, the manufacturing PMI fell to 50.8, a 13-month low, from 51.8 in July. It was forecast to fall to 51.3.
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The US Federal Reserve debated when to hike interest rates amid signs the labour market has moved closer to normal, according to the minutes of the Fed's July policy meeting issued late Wednesday. At the meeting held July 29-30, the Federal Open Market Committee voted 9-1 to maintain its current policy of very gradually withdrawing stimulus from the US economy. Fed forecasts show most officials expect to start raising rates next year, but some members are now making the case for a "relatively prompt" rate hike. The majority of Fed voters, however, think the Fed should be patient before hiking rates, as slack in the labor market remains a concern. The jobless rate rose to 6.2% in July.
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The manufacturing sector in China continued to expand in August, although it slowed dramatically, the latest flash purchasing managers' index from HSBC revealed on Thursday - with a three-month low score of 50.3. That was well shy of forecasts for a score of 51.5 and down sharply from 51.7 in July. A score above 50 means expansion in a sector, while a reading below 50 signals contraction.
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The manufacturing sector in Japan continued to expand at an accelerating pace in August, the latest flash purchasing managers' index from Markit Economics revealed on Thursday - with a score of 52.4. That handily beat forecasts for a score of 51.5 following the 50.5 reading in July.
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US President Barack Obama Wednesday vowed that the US and its allies will be "vigilant and relentless" in striking against the Islamic State terrorist group and condemned the beheading of a US journalist. Speaking from Martha's Vineyard where he is on vacation with his family, Obama called for Middle Eastern nations and others to join together to "extract this cancer so it does not spread." A video released Tuesday by the terrorist group showed a masked extremist with a British accent beheading James Foley, 40, who went missing in Syria in November 2012.
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Israeli jets fired at 20 targets in the Gaza Strip overnight, a military spokeswoman said, as the United Nations made a renewed call for a ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian militant groups. The airstrikes hit various sites across Gaza, the military said. One rocket launched at Israel during the night was intercepted, the Israeli army said, following some 175 that were fired on Wednesday. The UN Security Council late Wednesday called on Israel and Palestinian negotiators to return to the table and "urgently reach a sustainable and lasting ceasefire."
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Afternoon Watchlist (all times British Summer Time)
13:30 US Jobless Claims
14:45 US Markit Manufacturing PMI Preliminary
15:00 EU Consumer Confidence Preliminary
15:00 US Existing Home Sales
15:00 US Philadelphia Fed Manufacturing Survey
15:30 US EIA Natural Gas Storage change
20:00 US American Petroleum Institute Monthly Report
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Friday's Key UK Corporate Events
HellermannTyton Half Year Results
AGA Rangemaster Half Year Results
Henry Boot Half Year Results
Highcroft Investments Half Year Results
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Friday's Key Economic Events (all times British Summer Time)
All Day US Jackson Hole Symposium
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7 Mar 2016 12:20