24th Jul 2025 07:58
(Alliance News) - London's FTSE 100 was called higher on Thursday, as the UK agree a GBP6 billion trade deal with India that will see the reduction of tariffs on some British goods.
In early corporate news, Lloyds Banking lifts its interim dividend payout by 15% and BT Group reports a 10% decline in first-half profit, plus the appointment of Virgin Media O2's current chief financial officer to its board.
Here is what you need to know before the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: called up 0.5% at 9,107.89
GBP: down at USD1.3567 (USD1.3571 at previous London equities close)
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ECONOMICS
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Keir Starmer and India's Narendra Modi are set to sign off on a trade deal worth GBP6 billion in investment for the British economy. The UK prime minister and his Indian counterpart also agreed ahead of their meeting on Thursday to ramp up joint efforts to tackle illegal migration and organised crime. The UK-India trade deal is understood to be the largest of its kind for its economic impact on Britain. It will see tariffs on an array of British goods reduced from an average of 15% to 3%, with the aim of boosting the GBP11 billion of imports into the south Asian nation. Whisky tariffs will be slashed in half, according to the government, and will fall further over successive years, while other industries including soft drinks, cars and cosmetics are also expected to see cheaper duties.
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UK vehicle manufacturing fell in the first half of the year as the sector continued to grapple with global economic and trade uncertainty. British car output fell 7.3% in the first six months of the year, while van and other commercial vehicle production plummeted by 45.4%, according to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders, SMMT. According to the organisation, production was slowed or halted by some manufacturers due to uncertainty around the global economy and earlier threats of US tariffs. However, the SMMT said a new trade deal struck between Prime Minister Keir Starmer and US President Donald Trump would become a "basis for future growth".
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BROKER RATINGS
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Kepler Cheuvreux starts Taylor Wimpey with 'buy' - price target 150 pence
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Berenberg cuts Breedon price target to 540 (590) pence - 'buy'
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RBC cuts Valterra Platinum price target to 3,500 (3,520) pence - 'outperform'
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Relx reports pretax profit of GBP1.28 billion for the six months that ended June 30, falling 0.9% from GBP1.30 billion. Revenue grows 2.2% to GBP4.74 billion from GBP4.64 billion. The provider of business, scientific and legal information declares an interim dividend of 19.5 pence per share, up 7.1% on-year from 18.2p. "Relx delivered strong revenue and profit growth in the first half of 2025, in line with full year 2024 but with a higher quality growth profile: Risk with continued strong growth, Scientific, Technical & Medical with continued good growth and developing momentum, Legal with a further step up in growth, and Exhibitions now established at strong ongoing growth," says Chief Executive Officer Erik Engstrom. "Our improving long-term growth trajectory continues to be driven across the group by the ongoing shift in business mix towards higher growth analytics and decision tools that deliver enhanced value to our customers." Looking ahead, Relx anticipates "strong" underlying growth in full-year revenue and adjusted operating profit, as well as strong growth in adjusted earnings per share on a constant currency basis.
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Lloyds Banking posts pretax profit of GBP3.50 billion for the six months that ended June 30, up 5.4% from GBP3.32 billion the year before. Net income rises 6.2% to GBP8.91 billion from GBP8.39 billion. Underlying net interest income is up 5.0% to GBP6.66 billion from GBP6.34 billion. Total costs increase 2.3% to GBP4.91 billion from GBP4.80 billion. The bank lifts its interim dividend by 15% to 1.22 pence per share from 1.06p a year earlier. "Our strategic progress and sustained strength in our financial performance allows us to re-affirm our 2025 guidance and gives us confidence in our 2026 commitments. It also underpins our delivery of higher, more sustainable returns for our shareholders," says Chief Executive Officer Charlie Nunn. Lloyds continues to expect underlying net interest income of around GBP13.5 billion for 2025, against GBP12.8 billion in 2024, and expects operating costs of about GBP9.7 billion, compared to GBP9.4 billion in the prior year. In 2026, Lloyds maintains guidance for a cost to income ratio of less than 50%, a return on tangible equity of more than 15%, and the company aims to pay down to a CET1 ratio of around 13.0%. Lloyds it "remains cognisant of the continued relatively elevated interest rate environment especially in, but not limited to, sectors reliant upon consumer discretionary spend."
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BT Group taps Virgin Media O2's current Chief Financial Officer Patricia Cobian to replace Simon Lowth in the role. Lowth was with BT as CFO for nine years. Cobain will join the BT board in summer 2026, and Lowth will retire following a managed handover. BT will announce the date of Cobain's appointment "in due course". BT also reports pretax profit of GBP468 million in its first quarter that ended June 30, down 10% on-year as a result of an increase in net finance costs, as well as depreciation and amortisation. Adjusted revenue for the three-month period slips 3.4% to GBP4.88 billion from GBP5.05 billion due to "weaker handset sales in Consumer and continued challenging international trading". "BT has had a solid start to the year, with our full fibre broadband now reaching more than 19 million homes and businesses and our 5G network available to over 87% of the UK population," says Chief Executive Officer Allison Kirkby. "We're seeing strong customer demand for our next-generation broadband and mobile connectivity across all our brands, with record Openreach fibre take-up again this quarter. And we're delivering on our transformation, as we radically simplify our business while improving customer experience." BT maintains its existing full-year guidance for financial 2026.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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IG Group reports pretax profit of GBP499.2 million for the year that ended May 31, 25% higher than GBP400.8 million a year earlier, on net trading revenue growth of 12% to GBP942.8 million from GBP844.9 million. The contracts-for-difference trading platform declares a total dividend of 47.2 pence per share, up 2.2% from 46.2p the year before. "Looking forward, we are confident of meeting market expectations for total revenue and cash [earnings per share] in FY26. Beyond FY26, we expect total revenue to compound in a mid-to-high single-digit percentage range per annum on an organic basis, accelerating within this range over time, with cost discipline," says Chief Executive Officer Breon Corcoran. IG anticipates GBP1.11 billion in revenue for financial 2026, alongside cash EPS of 110.4p.
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Wizz Air says total revenue for its first quarter that ended June 30 is EUR1.43 billion, up 13% on-year from EUR1.26 billion. Net profit for the three-month period multiples to EUR38.4 million from EUR1.2 million, impacted by unrealised foreign exchange tailwinds, and earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation rise 9.3% to EUR300.2 million from EUR274.6 million. Ebitda margin is down to 21.0% from 21.8% and load factor is slightly higher at 91.1% against 91.0%. Looking ahead, the budget carrier expects a flat load factor in the second quarter, compared to its prior guidance for a 2 point decline. "Our management team has demonstrated a high degree of adaptability in recent years when faced by severe challenges, and this year will likely continue to call on that strength as we refocus our business. We see this encompassing some significant changes to our operations but with active execution and a strong balance sheet to support this, I am excited by the long-term prospects for the company," says Chief Executive Officer Jozsef Varadi.
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OTHER COMPANIES
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Scotch Corner Designer Village Ltd considers an initial public offering on the Aquis Real Asset Market of the Aquis Stock Exchange. The real estate firm is developing a retail outlet and leisure destination of a motorway side location in the North of England, comprising around 180,000 square feet of retail stores, cafes and restaurants. The firm is led by Simon Waterfield, who has 30 years of experience in renewing and redeveloping 14 "major" properties and sites around the UK. The planned opening of Scotch Corner Designer Village is in Spring 2027. "We believe that this potential transaction is an exceptional opportunity to develop a first class, largely pre-let, and therefore derisked, development in the highest growth retail subsector," says Scotch Corner Management Developer & Owner Waterfield. "Scotch Corner is perfectly located on the 'crossroads of the North' where it is passed by roughly 29 million vehicles each year and enjoys a catchment of some 4.5 million consumers living within an hour's drive, and the leasing success we've had to date proves the desirability of the location. We are considering being the first company to seek an IPO on the newly launched Aquis Real Asset Market, which we believe can play an important role for developers such as us to access capital, while allowing all investors the possibility of achieving private equity style returns, usually reserved for professional investors and developers."
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By Emily Parsons, Alliance News reporter
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