LONDON MARKET PRE-OPEN: Astra's Covid-19 Vaccine Authorised In UK

(Alliance News) - London stock prices are set for a marginally higher open on Wednesday, as the post-Brexit trade deal moves toward implementation and the first jabs of the AstraZeneca vaccine are set to begin early in the New Year.

AstraZeneca said its Covid-19 vaccine has been authorised for emergency supply in the UK.

In other early company news, Energean reported an up to USD405 million purchase of the remaining stake in its Israel unit.

IG says futures indicate the FTSE 100 index of large-caps to open 9.65 points, or 0.2%, higher at 6,612.30 on Wednesday. The FTSE 100 closed up 100.54 points, or 1.6%, at 6,602.65 on Tuesday.

Sterling was quoted at USD1.3550 early Wednesday, rallying from USD1.3509 at the London equities close on Tuesday.

UK house prices surged in December to post their fastest growth in six years, according to the house price index from mortgage lender Nationwide on Wednesday.

House prices jumped 7.3% year-on-year in December, accelerating from rises of 6.5% in November and 5.8% in October to achieve the highest annual growth rate since 2014.

Month-on-month, house prices rose 0.8%, a touch slower than the 0.9% growth seen in November.

The average UK house price stood at GBP230,920 in December versus GBP229,721 in November.

House prices ended the year 5.3% above the level prevailing in March, when the pandemic struck the UK.

The euro traded at USD1.2284 early Wednesday, firming from USD1.2246 late Tuesday.

The UK and EU will on Wednesday sign a mammoth trade pact to put the seal on their drawn-out Brexit divorce in the dwindling hours before they part ways definitively at the dawning of 2021.

EU chiefs Ursula von der Leyen and Charles Michel will ink the 1,246-page Trade & Cooperation Agreement at 0830 GMT, officials in Brussels said, days after it was clinched on Christmas Eve following months of hard-fought talks.

The hefty document will then be flown by the Royal Air Force to London for UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson to add his signature, as the UK parliament embarks on a rushed debate to clear the decks before a December 31 deadline.

According to Downing Street, Johnson will tell MPs that the agreement heralds "a new relationship between Britain and the EU as sovereign equals, joined by friendship, commerce, history, interests and values".

The government only released the accompanying UK legislation on Tuesday afternoon – less than 24 hours before the debate is to start in Parliament an hour after the signing in Brussels.

AstraZeneca said its Covid-19 vaccine has been approved for emergency supply in the UK, with the first doses being released on Wednesday so that vaccinations may begin early in the New Year.

The healthcare company said it aims to supply millions of doses in the first quarter as part of an agreement with the UK government to supply up to 100 million doses in total.

The vaccine was authorised by the UK Medicines & Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, recommending two doses administered with an interval of between four and 12 weeks. Clinical trials showed the vaccine to be safe and effective at preventing symptomatic Covid-19, with no severe cases and no hospitalisations more than 14 days after the second dose.

Energean said it has agreed with Kerogen Investments, an affiliate of Kerogen Capital, for the acquisition of Kerogen's 30% shareholding in Energean Israel, which would result in Energean owning 100% of Israel unit share capital.

A total consideration of between USD380 million and USD405 million, the gas exploration and production company said.

Energean said the acquisition adds 2P reserves of 29.5 billion cubic metres of gas and 30 million barrels of liquids, representing 219 million barrels of oil equivalent in total, to the company.

Taking a 100% interest in Energean Israel will enable Energean to fully control its capital structure, it said, enhancing its ability to maximise total shareholder returns.

Exploration and development company Indus Gas reported a decline in pretax profit for the six months to the end of September to USD20.9 million from USD26.1 million a year earlier, as adjusted revenue declined to USD23.2 million from USD27.7 million.

The company said its administrative expenses rose to USD586,360 from USD303,970 year-on-year.

"While the pandemic has presented unprecedented operational challenges, the company remains focused on executing our strategy to maximize value for all of our stakeholders," said Chair Peter Cockburn.

In the US on Tuesday, Wall Street ended lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 both ending down 0.2% and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.4%.

In Asia on Wednesday, the Japanese Nikkei 225 index closed down 0.5%. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY103.31, slightly down from JPY103.51.

"The US dollar continued to beat a modest retreat overnight, weakening across the board versus G-10 and Asian currencies," noted Halley.

In China, the Shanghai Composite closed up 1.1%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was up 1.9%. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed down 0.3%.

"Asia has a pre-New Year's Eve look about it today, as an empty data calendar combined with an ever-present headline risk leaves the region's financial markets content to drift on the currents," said Halley.

Gold was quoted at USD1,880.65 an ounce early Wednesday, slightly lower than USD1,882.29 on Tuesday. Brent oil was trading at USD51.44 a barrel early Wednesday, firm from USD51.16 late Tuesday.

By Evelina Grecenko; evelinagrecenko@alliancenews.com

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