12th Mar 2026 07:59
(Alliance News) - Brent crude surged back above the USD100 mark after fresh attacks on cargo ships in the Gulf heightened supply fears.
In corporate news, Informa reported annual adjusted earnings growth, while Computacenter posted higher revenue but a dip in profit for 2025. Holiday retailer On the Beach Group meanwhile suspended its full-year guidance as the Middle East conflict dampens travel demand.
Here is what you need to know before the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: called lower 0.2% at 10,335.67
GBP: lower at USD1.3386 (USD1.3410 at previous London equities close)
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ECONOMICS
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Oil prices climbed sharply after explosions were reported on three more foreign ships in the Gulf. Brent crude traded at USD98.57 a barrel early Thursday, having earlier hit USD101.74 and fluctuating around the USD100 mark overnight, up from USD91.93 late Wednesday. The gains came despite efforts by major economies to calm markets by releasing oil from emergency reserves. The International Energy Agency said its members will release a record 400 million barrels from strategic reserves, equivalent to roughly four days of global oil consumption. The US Department of Energy confirmed it will release 172 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve starting next week, a process expected to take around 120 days. Tensions remain high in the Middle East, with Iran warning oil prices could climb as high as USD200 a barrel as attacks on shipping intensify in the Strait of Hormuz.
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China said that new trade investigations announced by the US into dozens of countries were "political manipulation". US President Donald Trump announced separate probes on Wednesday centred on overproduction and importing goods made with forced labour, targeting China, the EU, Japan, India and others. The efforts come weeks after the US Supreme Court struck down his global tariffs, saying he had exceeded his authority in tapping emergency economic powers to impose them on virtually all countries. China's foreign ministry said on Thursday that "so-called overcapacity is a false proposition". "China opposes using it as an excuse for political manipulation," ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a regular news conference, adding that "tariff and trade wars do not serve the interests of any party". Others subject to the excess capacity probe initiated Wednesday include Singapore, Switzerland, South Korea, Vietnam, Taiwan and Mexico. US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told reporters on Wednesday that the investigations "will focus on economies that we have evidence appear to exhibit structural excess capacity and production in various manufacturing sectors". He did not specify if the eventual penalties would differ based on the country.
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BROKER RATINGS
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UBS raises Rentokil to 'buy' - price target 540 pence
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RBC cuts Bodycote to 'sector perform' (outperform) - price target 775 pence
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JPMorgan raises Hochschild to 'overweight' (neutral) - price target 990 (890) pence
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Halma says trading in the second half of its financial year remains strong and in line with its upgraded guidance, putting the group on track to deliver its 23rd consecutive year of record adjusted profit. The Amersham, England-based safety products manufacturer expects mid-teens percentage organic revenue growth at constant currency for the year ending March 31, supported by strong demand across its end markets and continued premium growth in photonics within its Environmental & Analysis sector. Halma also forecasts an adjusted earnings before interest and tax margin of around 22%, excluding a one-off profit recorded in the first half. Order intake remains ahead of both revenue in the year to date and the comparable period last year, while full-year cash conversion is expected to be around the company's 90% target. Halma says it has invested a record GBP451 million in acquisitions during the year to date, completing five deals across its three sectors, and notes it continues to see a healthy acquisition pipeline. The company adds that sterling appreciation is expected to have a negative currency translation effect on its results.
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Informa reports revenue and adjusted profit growth for 2025, driven by continued demand for its global B2B events and specialist information services. The London-based business information publisher and events organiser says revenue increased to GBP4.04 billion from GBP3.55 billion a year earlier. Adjusted operating profit rose to GBP1.14 billion from GBP995.0 million, while adjusted pretax profit climbed to GBP996.1 million from GBP915.4 million. Adjusted diluted earnings per share increased to 55.6 pence from 50.1p, marking the fifth consecutive year of double-digit growth. Free cash flow rose to GBP884.8 million from GBP812.1 million, supported by strong operating profit growth and cash conversion. On a statutory basis, however, the company reported a pretax loss of GBP64.3 million compared with a profit of GBP407.3 million the year before, reflecting higher intangible amortisation and a previously announced non-cash impairment relating to Informa TechTarget. Chief Executive Stephen Carter says: "The Informa Group delivered an outstanding performance in 2025, delivering double-digit growth in revenues, adjusted earnings per share and cash flow. The Power of Live, the value of proprietary First Party Data, deep international reach and the deployment of AI technology are driving strong customer demand for our specialist brands, underpinning our confidence in the compounding growth opportunities for Informa." Informa recommends a final dividend of 15.0 pence for 2025, up from 13.6p in 2024. This would bring the total payout for 2025 to 22.0p, up from 20.0p. Further, it increases its share buyback commitment by GBP50 million to GBP250 million.
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M&G reports strong inflows and a return to profit for 2025, citing momentum in its asset management and life insurance businesses. The London-based investment manager says net inflows from open business totalled GBP7.8 billion in 2025, compared with outflows of GBP1.9 billion the year before, driven largely by GBP7.0 billion of inflows from external clients in its Asset Management division. Assets under management and administration rose to GBP375.9 billion from GBP345.9 billion. Adjusted operating profit before tax was broadly unchanged at GBP838 million compared with GBP837 million in 2024. However, M&G swung to an IFRS profit after tax of GBP314 million from a loss of GBP347 million a year earlier. The company reports a shareholder solvency II coverage ratio of 242%, up from 223%, and raises its total dividend to 20.5 pence per share from 20.1p. M&G says it remains confident in its outlook and is committed to its 2025–2027 targets, expecting momentum in asset management inflows and life insurance activity to continue into 2026. CEO Andrea Rossi says: "2025 was a year of strong commercial momentum and strategic progress for M&G. We continued to invest in our business, setting it up for long-term growth and expanding our international distribution and investment capabilities. In May, we also entered into a long-term strategic partnership with Dai-ichi Life HD, now our largest shareholder. We expect this momentum across the business to continue in 2026, as we move forward on our growth journey also leveraging our recently launched With-Profits BPA proposition."
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Savills reports higher revenue and profit for 2025, citing strong growth across its global real estate advisory and management businesses. It also announces the acquisition a real estate investment bank. The London-based real estate services provider says revenue rose 6.1% to GBP2.55 billion from GBP2.40 billion a year earlier. Underlying pretax profit increased 11% to GBP145.3 million, while reported pretax profit climbed 14% to GBP101.0 million from GBP88.3 million. Underlying basic earnings per share rose to 77.2 pence from 66.2p, and the company proposed a total dividend of 33.8p per share, up from 30.2p. Savills says revenue growth was delivered across all business areas and regions, with its less transactional divisions - including property and facilities management, consultancy and investment management - continuing to show strong momentum. Savills says: "It is difficult at this stage to assess the potential impact of the conflict in the Middle East, including any broader macroeconomic or geopolitical effects. The group has approximately 800 colleagues in the region, representing c. 5% of underlying profit before tax in financial 2025...Notwithstanding the above, we have seen continued momentum across global real estate markets during the first couple of months of 2026 and are expecting progressive growth in investment activity across our key markets in the year." CEO Simon Shaw says: "Whilst our Transaction Advisory business faced more challenging market conditions during Q2 and Q3 in some of our key markets, we continued to build strong transactional pipelines and were well positioned as clients' confidence and appetite to transact accelerated into Q4." Separately, Savills says it has agreed to acquire real estate investment bank Eastdil Secured Holdings LLC for an enterprise value of USD1.11 billion, as it looks to strengthen its capital markets advisory business. The deal will be funded through debt and the issue of new Savills shares representing around 16% of the enlarged share capital and is expected to complete in the second or third quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals. Savills says the acquisition will transform its positioning in real estate investment banking, particularly in North America and EMEA, and create a broader global advisory platform. Eastdil Secured generated revenue of USD633 million and underlying Ebitda of USD113 million in 2025. Savills expects the transaction to generate at least GBP60 million in additional revenue and GBP15 million in Ebitda annually over the medium term.
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Computacenter reports sharply higher revenue for 2025 but slightly lower pretax profit, while raising its dividend and expressing confidence in further progress in 2026. The Hatfield, England-based technology services provider says revenue rose 32% to GBP9.19 billion from GBP6.96 billion a year earlier, driven by strong growth in its technology sourcing business. Pretax profit slipped 2.5% to GBP238.5 million from GBP244.6 million. Adjusted operating profit increased 11% to GBP274.7 million, while adjusted pretax profit rose to GBP272.0 million from GBP254.0 million. The company also lifted its total dividend to 74.6 pence per share from 70.7p. Computacenter says it enters 2026 with a record product order backlog of GBP7.1 billion and expects further strategic and financial progress, although it remains mindful of macroeconomic, political and supply chain challenges. Separately, broker Jefferies cut its price target on the stock to 3,700 pence from 3,800p but maintains a 'buy' rating. CEO Mike Norris says: "North America had an outstanding year with both enterprise and hyperscale customers, leading to profits nearly doubling and now accounting for nearly 40% of the group. The UK was back to growth, and Germany's better second half performance was supported by a recovery in the public sector towards the end of the year. We have plans in place to improve our performance in France after a disappointing year."
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Trainline reports higher ticket sales for its 2026 financial year, supported by continued growth in leisure travel and stronger demand from business clients. The rail and coach ticketing platform says total group net ticket sales rose 7% year-on-year to GBP6.32 billion in the year to February 28, while revenue increased 2% to GBP453 million. UK consumer ticket sales climbed 6% to GBP4.14 billion, driven by strong leisure travel demand and a recovery in commuter journeys. However, UK revenue fell 2% to GBP204 million following a reduction in commission rates introduced in April 2025. International consumer ticket sales increased to GBP1.10 billion, while Trainline Solutions - the group's business-to-business distribution segment - saw net ticket sales jump 15% to GBP1.08 billion. Trainline says adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation are expected to rise by between 10% and 13% for the year, supported by operating leverage and cost discipline. CEO Jody Ford says: "In the UK, we focused on deepening and strengthening engagement across our 18 million customers, supported by the expansion of our digital railcard base. This helped mitigate the impact of rail operators promoting features on their own online channels that we are not permitted to offer."
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OTHER COMPANIES
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On the Beach Group suspends its full-year profit guidance after the conflict in the Middle East triggered a sharp slowdown in holiday bookings to key destinations. The online holiday retailer says demand has weakened significantly for trips to Turkey, Greece, Cyprus and Egypt following the outbreak of the conflict, despite having limited direct exposure to the Middle East. As a result, the company has temporarily withdrawn its guidance for adjusted pretax profit of GBP39 million to GBP43 million for the year. The group notes that trading earlier in the financial year had been strong, with bookings up 10% year-on-year and repeat customer bookings rising 19% in the period to February 28. On the Beach adds that it continues to trade profitably and generate cash, supported by its asset-light operating model, though the timing of a recovery in travel demand remains uncertain. CEO Shaun Morton says: "Momentum has been building since we entered 2026, recording our highest ever volume trading day on February 1 and a 34% increase in Q2 travelled/departed volumes. Our customer loyalty continues to grow with repeat customers up 19% in the period." The company says investment in its mobile app is driving stronger customer engagement, with bookings made directly through the app rising 58% during the period and accounting for 38% of total bookings. On the Beach adds that its artificial intelligence strategy is progressing, with integrations linking its holiday inventory to major AI platforms. The group recently submitted its app to ChatGPT, which it says opens a new distribution channel and highlights its readiness for an AI-driven travel market.
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By Eva Castanedo, Alliance News reporter
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HalmaInformaRentokil InitialBodycoteHochschildM&GSavillsOn The BeachTrainlineComputacenter