7th Aug 2024 07:48
(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are called to open higher on Wednesday, with markets calming after Monday's global sell-off.
In early economic news, annual growth in UK house prices quickened last month, numbers from mortgage lender Halifax showed.
Markets in Asia bounced back on Wednesday, following Wall Street's rally on Tuesday.
Yet, SPI's Stephen Innes warned that "the market mood seems as changeable as the weather."
Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: called up 1.0% at 8,110.50
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Hang Seng: up 1.4% at 16,873.56
Nikkei 225: closed up 1.2% at 35,089.62
S&P/ASX 200: closed up 0.3% at 7,699.80
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DJIA: closed up 294.39 points, 0.8%, at 38,997.66
S&P 500: closed up 1.0% at 5,240.03
Nasdaq Composite: closed up 1.0% at 16,366.85
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EUR: down at USD1.0914 (USD1.0930)
GBP: down at USD1.2708 (USD1.2711)
USD: up at JPY146.55 (JPY144.70)
GOLD: up at USD2,395.90 per ounce (USD2,386.99)
OIL (Brent): up at USD76.54 a barrel (USD76.46)
(changes since previous London equities close)
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ECONOMICS
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Wednesday's key economic events still to come:
10:30 EDT US EIA crude oil stocks
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Annual growth in UK house prices quickened last month, numbers from mortgage lender Halifax showed Wednesday. UK house price growth quickened to 2.3% in July annually, picking up speed from a 1.6% increase in June. This is the highest annual growth rate recorded since January. House prices increased by 0.8% in July on-month, after falling by 0.2% in June from May. The monthly rise in July was expected to be 0.3%, according to the FXStreet-cited consensus. The average UK house price in July stood at GBP291,268, up from GBP289,042 in June. Halifax noted that Northern Ireland continues to record the strongest annual house price growth in the UK. "Last week's Bank of England's Base Rate cut, which follows recent reductions in mortgage rates, is encouraging for those looking to remortgage, purchase a first home or move along the housing ladder. However, affordability constraints and the lack of available properties continue to pose challenges for prospective homeowners," said Halifax Head of Mortgages Amanda Bryden. "Against the backdrop of lower mortgage rates and potential further Base Rate reductions, we anticipate house prices to continue a modest upward trend throughout the remainder of this year."
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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Barclays raises Mondi to 'equal weight' (under weight) - price target 1,470 (1,380) pence
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Barclays cuts DS Smith to 'equal weight' (overweight) - price target 435 (420) pence
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RBC cuts BP to 'sector perform' (outperform) - price target 550 (650) pence
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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WPP reported that revenue in the first half of 2024 was flat compared to last year, coming in at GBP7.23 billion. Pretax profit fell 3.8% to GBP525 million from GBP546 million. WPP left its dividend unchanged at 15.0p. Looking ahead, Chief Executive Mark Read said: "As a team, our priority continues to be improving our competitiveness by delivering a modern, global, creative and integrated offer for our clients. The steps we have taken since January to integrate our offer, bring in new talent and invest in AI represent strong progress towards delivering on our medium-term financial targets and to shareholders." It also lowered its outlook for the year, expecting like-for-like revenue less pass-through costs growth of -1% to 0%. WPP previously expecting growth of 0% to 1%. In a separate announcement, WPP said it has sold its majority stake in FGS Global at an enterprise value of USD1.7 billion. It will sell its shareholding to Kite Bidco Inc, an entity controlled by investment funds managed or advised by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts.
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Rightmove named Ruaridh Hook as its new chief financial officer, effective from September 15. Alison Dolan will step down as CFO on the same data. Rightmove said that Dolan will remain at the company in a supporting position for a short transitionary period until a date for her departure has been finalised. Hook has been head of Commercial Finance and Financial Planning & Analysis at Rightmove since 2020, having joined the Company in 2016. CEO Johan Svanstrom says: "I am delighted with the appointment of Ruaridh as CFO of Rightmove. Ruaridh has tremendous knowledge of our business, commercial model and the market, and of course is already well known to so many team members across our organisation and outside it. He has worked closely alongside Alison and me in recent years, and was instrumental in developing our strategy, which we outlined last year."
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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TP ICAP reported that revenue in the first half of the year edged up to GBP1.14 billion from GBP1.13 billion a year earlier. Pretax profit surged 32% to GBP120 million from GBP91 million. The company left its interim dividend unchanged at 4.8p. TP ICAP also announced a new GBP30 million share buy back. "As ever, our second half outlook is largely subject to market conditions. Ongoing geopolitical uncertainty should continue to drive volatility that is supportive for Global Broking and Energy & Commodities, while the prospect of some interest rate reductions should be positive for Liquidnet. Parameta Solutions will continue to benefit from the growing demand for OTC pricing data," the company added.
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4imprint reported that in the 26 weeks ended June 29, revenue rose to USD667.5 million from USD635.5 million a year earlier. Pretax profit jumped 11% to USD73.0 million from USD66.0 million. 4imprint upped its interim dividend to 62.7p from 50.8p. "Based on our first half financial results and recent internal forecasts, the board expects that 2024 full year group revenue will reflect a growth rate similar to the first half of the year. As a result of improving financial dynamics in the business, particularly higher gross profit percentage and the flexibility of the marketing mix, it is expected that profit before tax for the 2024 full year will remain within the current range of analysts' forecasts," said Chair Paul Moody. "The board is confident in the group's ability to manage through the current market conditions, blending resilient near-term financial results with attractive prospects for significant further organic growth over the medium term."
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OTHER COMPANIES
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Coca-Cola Europacific Partners reported revenue of EUR9.83 billion in the first half of the year, up 9.5% from EUR8.98 billion a year ago. Pretax profit, however, fell to EUR1.05 billion from EUR1.10 billion. Coca-Cola EP explained that the fall was due to higher expenses and finance costs. Coca-Cola EP confirmed 2024 guidance, expecting comparable revenue growth of 4% and operating profit growth of 7%. "Looking ahead, we are well placed operating in categories that remain resilient. We continue to invest for growth and have strong commercial plans in place for the rest of this year and beyond to engage customers and consumers. We remain focused on driving profitable revenue growth, actively managing our pricing and promotional spend to remain affordable and relevant to our consumers, alongside our focus on productivity and free cash flow. In that context, we reaffirm our full year guidance for 2024," said CEO Damian Gammell.
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By Sophie Rose, Alliance News senior reporter
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