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LONDON (Alliance News) - The following is a summary of top news stories Wednesday.
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COMPANIES
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UK television company ITV PLC reported higher revenue for the first quarter of 2014 thanks to a continued recovery in advertising revenue, and said it expects to get a further boost from its coverage of the football World Cup in June as well as the launch of new TV channels. The company reported that revenue in the three months to end-March rose to GBP672 million, from GBP666 million a year earlier, as net advertising revenue rose to GBP390 million, from GBP382 million. Its total external revenue rose 2.5% to GBP585 million, from GBP571 million.

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Food and support services company Compass Group PLC reported a higher pretax profit for the first half of the year, boosted by new business wins and a continued strong performance in North America and what it calls the Fast Growing & Emerging region. The group raised its interim dividend by 10% to 8.8 pence, and proposed capital return of GBP1 billion to shareholders via a special dividend and ongoing GBP500 million share buyback.

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British pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline PLC said it was taking allegations raised by Chinese authorities very seriously and continuing to co-operate with investigations, after the Chinese authorities accused a British Glaxo executive of ordering staff to bribe hospital officials to use its products. In a statement, Glaxo said it was deeply concerned about the allegations that had been made. It said the Ministry of Public Security in China had updated the company on its investigation and had now passed the case to the Changsha People’s Procurator in Hunan Province, which was now reviewing the case. “We will continue to fully co-operate with the authorities in this matter," Glaxo said.

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British drugs giant AstraZeneca PLC, the subject of a GBP63 billion takeover approach from US rival Pfizer Inc, said its MedImmune biologics arm would collaborate with Incyte Corp on an early-stage cancer treatment trial using a combination of the two companies' drugs. In a statement, AstraZeneca said the companies would conduct a phase I/II oncology study to evaluate the efficacy and safety of MedImmune's investigational anti-PD-L1 immune checkpoint inhibitor, MEDI4736, in combination with Incyte's oral indoleamine dioxygenase-1 inhibitor, INCB24360.

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BHP Billiton PLC is reviewing its Western Australian Nickel West business, comprising the Mt Keith, Cliffs and Leinster mines and associated concentrators, the Kalgoorlie smelter, Kambalda concentrator and the Kwinana refinery. The company said the review includes all options for the long-term future of Nickel West, including the potential sale of all or parts of the business, and follows the decision to cease operations in the sub-level cave at Perseverance Underground mine due to safety concerns in December 2013.

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Lloyds Banking Group PLC's plans to float retail bank TSB on the London Stock Exchange were Tuesday approved by the European Commission. In a statement, the European Commission said it had extended the original November 2013 deadline because it won't jeopardise the viability of TSB. Instead, the UK's request to push the deadline to December 31, 2015 has been approved. The European Commission required Lloyds to sell the 630 branches as a condition of its state bailout after it ran into trouble due to its acquisition of HBOS in the midst of the financial crisis.

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HSBC Holdings PLC is is trying to reach a deal with shareholders over the pay of Chairman Douglas Flint as it seeks to head off a revolt at its annual general meeting next week, The Guardian reported Tuesday. According to the newspaper, the bank could make a make a "partial climbdown" over plans to pay Flint a bonus in shares of up to GBP2.25 million. Flint's extra work on regulatory reform has been put forward by the bank as justifying the payout, The Guardian said, adding that HSBC declined to comment on talks with shareholders, it quoted an investor in the bank who said: "The word is it's going to be a one-off."

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Admiral Group PLC said first-quarter turnover dropped due to its UK car insurance business, partly offset by growth in its international car insurance business, as intense competition in the UK continues. The FTSE 100 motor insurer said group turnover fell to GBP514.0 million in the three months ended March 31, compared with GBP551.0 million in the corresponding quarter a year earlier, as UK car insurance turnover fell by GBP50.0 million to GBP420.0 million. UK car insurance premiums written fell by GBP384.0 million, from GBP432.0 million. Claims developed "in line with expectations" in the UK, Admiral said.

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ICAP PLC said annual pretax trading profit slipped 4.2% as a result of a tough year in which it was hit by new rules governing derivatives, deleveraging by banks, and low currency volatility and interest rates reducing trading volumes. In a statement, the interdealer broker, said pretax trading profit fell to GBP272.0 million in the year ended March 31, compared with GBP284.0 million a year earlier, after a 5% fall in revenue to GBP1.40 billion. ICAP has been left to adjust to a range of new rules aimed at making the financial services industry safer in the wake of the crisis. Chief Executive Michael Spencer said trading conditions have been "extremely difficult" and are likely to remain so.

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Mondi PLC said its underlying operating profit rose in the first quarter, as restructuring benefits and price increases for some products more than offset higher input costs and lower selling prices for paper in Europe. It was also positive about its outlook, citing its investment programme and discussions it is having about some more product price increases. The company said its underlying operating profit, which excludes items including restructuring costs and asset impairments, was EUR183 million in the three months to end-March, up from EUR162 million a year earlier and up from EUR161 million in the fourth quarter of 2013.

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Premier Oil PLC said its production for the first four months of 2014 is up on the previous year, and it has maintained its full-year production guidance as increases in production from its UK and Vietnam operations offset a fall in production from its Pakistan and Mauritania operations. The oil and gas producer said its average production for the four months ended April 30 was up 13% to 65,800 barrels of oil equivalent per day from 58,000 barrels, and it has reiterated its full-year guidance of an average between 58,000 and 63,000 barrels, after recognising planned maintenance operations in the second half of the year.

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Property development and investment firm British Land Company PLC reported an increase in profit for the full year, as its UK portfolio was valued 8.3% higher than a year earlier. The real estate investment trust posted pretax profit of GBP1.11 billion for the year ended March 31, up from GBP260 million a year earlier, after a valuation movement gain of GBP615 million compared with GBP88 million in financial year 2013. Underlying pretax profit rose to GBP297 million from GBP274 million a year before.

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Old Mutual PLC said it has chosen two new executive directors, promoting a new finance boss and chief operating officer from within its ranks. Old Mutual which is engaged in investments, savings, insurance and banking, said Ingrid Johnson, the current managing executive of retail and business banking for majority-owned subsidiary Nedbank Group Ltd, will succeed outgoing Finance Director Philip Broadley. Old Mutual also said it has appointed Paul Hanratty as its new Chief Operating Officer. Old Mutual is currently trying to expand in Africa, while building its retail investment business in the UK. It is planning on a minority initial public offering in the US of its US asset management business in 2014, subject to market conditions.

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John Wood Group PLC said its Engineering and Production Services businesses are performing slightly ahead of expectations on the year-to-date, but financial performance at its Turbine joint ventures has been adversely hit by delays to its Dorad contract in Israel. The oil services company said that in its Engineering operations the pace of achieving awards remains slow, reflecting how operators are currently focusing on capital budgets but it remains active on a number of offshore projects and it expects to secure further opportunities during the remainder of 2014.

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Shares in Patisserie Holdings Ltd, owner of cafe chain Patisserie Valerie, started conditional dealings respectably above its offer price, after it became the latest retail chain to list on London's AIM market. Patisserie Holdings shares were quoted at 185 pence Wednesday morning, 8.8% above its IPO price of 170 pence. It also rose at the open, from an opening price of 177.25 pence. The shares start unconditional dealings on Monday next week. The Birmingham-based company, which operates across five brands, which also includes Philpotts sandwiches, said it raised GBP32.8 million before expenses via the initial public offering of 46.6 million new and existing shares with institutional and other investors. Patisserie's IPO price gave it a market capitalisation of around GBP170 million.

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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: down 0.1% at 6866.74
FTSE 250: down 0.2% at 16011.20
AIM ALL-SHARE: down 0.03% at 808.34
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GBP-USD: down at USD1.6789
EUR-USD: up at USD1.3721

GOLD: up at USD1300.32 per ounce
OIL (Brent): up at USD109.65 a barrel

(changes since end of previous GMT day)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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The UK unemployment rate fell to a five-year low in the first quarter, as economic recovery added more jobs, and pay growth exceeded consumer price inflation. The ILO jobless rate declined to 6.8% during January to March, the lowest since February 2009, from 7.2% in October to December, data from the Office for National Statistics showed. Last year, the Bank of England pledged not to hike interest rate until the jobless rate hit 7%. As the unemployment rate started falling faster than estimated, the bank assured markets that interest rates will not be raised before the second quarter of 2015. Partly due to more self-employed people, employment rose by 283,000 from the prior quarter to 30.43 million in January to March period.
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UK Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne is endangering the recovery by “washing his hands” of rising house prices and passing the buck to a Bank of England still coming to terms with new regulatory powers, the Financial Times quoted Labour shadow chancellor Ed Balls as saying Wednesday. The paper quoted Balls saying that Osborne needed to rein in the Help to Buy scheme in London, and put fresh effort into building new towns and more social housing to boost supply.
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Germany's EU measure of inflation accelerated for the first time since December as initially estimated, final data from Destatis showed. The harmonized index of consumer prices advanced 1.1% year-on-year in April, following a 0.9% rise in March. Meanwhile, the index slipped 0.3% on month, offsetting March's 0.3% rise. The statistical office confirmed April figures
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Eurozone industrial production in March unexpectedly dropped from a year ago, logging the first decline in seven months, figures from Eurostat showed. Industrial production fell a working-day adjusted 0.1% year-on-year, after gaining 1.7% in the previous month. Economists had expected 0.9% growth.
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An index measuring domestic corporate goods prices in Japan was up 2.8% on month in April, the Bank of Japan said - standing at 105.7. That was in line with expectations following the flat reading in March. On a yearly basis, prices were up 4.1% - topping forecasts for 4.0% and up from 1.7% in the previous month. Export prices fell 0.1% on month and 1.7% on year, the bank said, while import prices dipped 0.5% on month and 1.1% on year.
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Separatists in eastern Ukraine said that they killed eight government soldiers in a night-time battle outside their stronghold in Sloviansk. "The enemy launched a fresh attack around 1 a.m. (0400 GMT) but we fought back," the city's self-proclaimed mayor Vyacheslav Ponomaryov told Russia's Interfax news agency. Ponomaryov said that his men killed eight soldiers and destroyed a number of armoured vehicles. He added that the separatists also suffered losses, but failed to give further details. The Ukrainian government did not immediately comment on Ponomaryov's claims.
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Turkey declared three days of mourning as the death toll from the country's worst mining disaster in more than two decades reached 205, with fears that the number could climb much higher. Of the 787 workers who were in the coal mine when the explosion and fire occurred late Tuesday, only 363 of them have been accounted for, including those killed. "It's much worse than we initially expected," Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said.
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