2nd Sep 2026 08:00
(Alliance News) - BP appoints Ian Tyler as permanent chair and Halma agrees to acquire US water quality monitoring specialist Pyxis. Airlines Wizz Air and Ryanair report higher August passenger traffic, with the latter cutting its annual traffic target amid higher fuel costs.
Here is what you need to know before the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: called down 0.4% at 10,747.58
GBP: lower at USD1.3505 (USD1.3527 at previous London equities close)
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ECONOMICS
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Oil prices rise sharply after US forces strike Iran's Revolutionary Guards in response to what Washington says are attempted attacks on commercial shipping and American troops, fuelling fears of further disruption around the Strait of Hormuz. Brent crude climbs to USD95.35 a barrel early Wednesday from USD92.48 late Tuesday after President Donald Trump says the strikes retaliate for Iran's alleged attempt to lay sea mines in the strategic waterway and missile launches towards a US base in Jordan, warning Tehran of a tougher response to any retaliation. Iranian state media reports explosions in the country's south, while Iran's Revolutionary Guards later claim responsibility for a ballistic missile attack on a US base in Jordan. Jordan's military says it intercepts most of the missiles and reports no injuries.
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Revenue from Taiwan's semiconductor chip sector is expected to soar 40% this year, a top industry official said, driven by skyrocketing demand for artificial intelligence technology. The island is a global powerhouse in the manufacturing of chips that are used in everything from smartphones to electric vehicles, with nearly all of the most advanced ones made there. Taiwan's dominance of the critical sector has been a source of friction with the US, with President Donald Trump accusing it of stealing the American chip industry and pressuring Taiwanese companies to build more on US soil. "We are in a new era of the semiconductor industry from a technology point of view," Wu Chih-i, president of the Taiwan Semiconductor Industry Association, said at the opening of the SEMICON expo in Taipei, noting AI has pushed the development of new technology. "This year Taiwan's semiconductor industry performs even better. Our total revenue is projected to be close to USD300 billion. That's more than 40% growth over last year," Wu said.
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BROKER RATINGS
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Berenberg cuts DCC Energy to 'hold' (buy) - price target 6,700 pence
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Exane BNP cuts Reckitt Benckiser to 'neutral' - price target 5,800 pence
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Morgan Stanley cuts Barclays to 'equal-weight'
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Morgan Stanley raises NatWest to 'overweight'
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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BP promotes Ian Tyler to permanent chair with immediate effect following an extensive search process involving internal and external candidates. Tyler, who joined the board as a non-executive director in April 2025, has served as interim chair since May and currently also chairs Grafton Group and serves as senior independent director at Anglo American . BP says the board unanimously backs his appointment. Separately, Senior Independent Director Amanda Blanc says she will not stand for re-election at the 2027 annual general meeting and will leave the board once a successor has been appointed, after overseeing the chair succession process. Blanc is the chief executive officer of insurer Aviva.
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Halma acquires Texas-based water quality monitoring specialist Pyxis for an initial cash consideration of USD170 million, around GBP126 million, with up to USD30 million in additional earn-out payments tied to performance through March 2029. The acquisition, funded from existing facilities, brings a provider of real-time water quality sensors and monitoring systems into Halma's Environmental & Analysis sector. Pyxis, founded in 2013 and headquartered near Houston, is forecast to generate unaudited revenue of about USD39 million, around GBP29 million, in the 12 months to March 31, 2027, and will continue to operate as a standalone business under its existing management team.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Wizz Air says it carries 8.70 million passengers in August, up 26% from 6.91 million a year before, as capacity rises 25% to 9.10 million seats. The airline's load factor improves to 95.6% from 94.8%. Over the rolling 12 months to August, passenger numbers increase 18% to 77.8 million from 66.1 million, while the load factor edges down to 91.0% from 91.1%. Wizz Air also says it recently announced a new base at Santiago de Compostela in Spain and launched an upgraded mobile app as part of its Customer First Compass initiative.
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Avon Technologies says its Team Wendy Ceradyne business receives a further USD20.3 million delivery order from the US Defense Logistics Agency under the second-generation Advanced Combat Helmet framework contract awarded in 2022. The order fulfils the maximum volume authorised for the current option year. Chief Executive Jos Sclater says: "This additional delivery order is another strong endorsement of Team Wendy's performance and reliability. Bringing the current option year to its maximum ordering volume demonstrates the confidence DLA has in our ability to manufacture and deliver ACH Gen II helmets to schedule."
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OTHER COMPANIES
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Ryanair says it carries 22.2 million passengers in August, up 6% from 21.0 million a year earlier, while the load factor remains unchanged at 96%. The Dublin-based airline says it operated over 120,500 flights in August, compared to over 120,800 flights it had reported for July. The company said that over 400 flights were cancelled in August due to Mount Etna eruptions in Sicily. Ryanair cuts its financial 2027 traffic target to 214 million passengers from 216 million to reduce exposure to unhedged winter fuel costs, warning that short-haul fares will rise materially if higher oil prices persist. Over the rolling 12 months to August, passenger numbers increase 5% to 214.4 million, while the load factor remains at 94%.
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Cairn Homes reports first-half revenue rises 60% to EUR455.5 million from EUR284.5 million, while pretax profit increases to EUR67.3 million from EUR37.0 million. The Irish housebuilder launches a EUR50 million share buyback programme and upgrades its financial 2026 guidance, now expecting revenue of about EUR1.08 billion, operating profit of around EUR185 million and return on equity of about 17.0%. Cairn says it expects to deliver around 6,000 new homes across 2026 and 2027, citing "exceptionally strong demand" for housing, and notes its buyback programme is due to run until September 1, 2027 at the latest.
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By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News senior economics reporter
Comments and questions to [email protected]
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