26th Sep 2018 12:02
LONDON (Alliance News) - Trade was cautious on Wednesday ahead of the US Federal Reserve's expected rate hike alongside a set of updated economic projections, as the rate path for 2019 and beyond is eyed.The latest decision from the Federal Open Market Committee is due at 1900 BST, and will be followed by a press conference with Fed Chair Jerome Powell."It's one of 'those' days for markets - waiting for an FOMC meeting this evening at which a 25bp rate hike is pretty much universally expected. That's a lot of waiting for not a lot to happen," said Kit Juckes, a strategist at Societe Generale.He added: "Our US economics team look for the introduction of a 2021 dot to see a 3.6y% projection, which would reinforce the idea that as long as the economy is growing above trend, the FOMC may need to take rates further into 'tight' territory."The FTSE 100 was up 0.1%, or 10.13 points, at 7,517.69 at midday, while the FTSE 250 was flat, 7.68 points lower at 20,453.38. The AIM All-Share was up 0.3% at 1,100.73.The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.2% at 12,757.00, the Cboe UK 250 down 0.1% at 18,583.25, and the Cboe UK Small Companies flat at 12,230.07.In mainland Europe, the CAC 40 in Paris was up 0.3% while the DAX 30 in Frankfurt was down 0.1% at midday.Wall Street is pointed towards a higher open ahead of the Fed decision, with the Dow Jones and S&P 500 both seen up 0.2% and the Nasdaq called 0.4% higher.Prior to the latest interest rate decision in the US are new home sales data at 1500 BST.In the UK, figures showed mortgage approvals decreased in August, while credit card spending increased.The number of mortgages approved for house purchases in August decreased to 39,402 from 39,619 in July. In the same period last year, approvals totaled 41,141.Credit card spending climbed 7.6% from last year in August. Meanwhile, outstanding overdraft borrowing dropped 7.2%."Growth in card spending remained fairly strong, reflecting the boost to retail sales from the warm weather as well as the growing use of credit cards as a preferred means of payment," Peter Tyler, director, UK Finance, said.In London's FTSE 100 at midday, Croda International was up 2.3% after Citigroup raised the chemicals company to Neutral from Sell. Towards the other end of the blue-chips was gold miner Randgold Resources, down 2.3% on Wednesday but remaining 8.3% higher since the start of the week on its proposed merger with Barrick Gold.RBC raised its rating on the miner to Sector Perform from Underperform previously, while JPMorgan's recommendation on the stock came down to Neutral from Overweight before.Stalled at the bottom of the FTSE 250 was AA with its losses extending as Wednesday's session progressed, quoted 13% lower at midday.For the six months to the end of July, the roadside rescue service reported a 65% drop in pretax profit to GBP28 million from GBP80 million. AA's revenue increased 1.9% to GBP480 million from GBP471 million.The combination of higher planned operational expenses as well as additional unplanned costs from third-party garaging due to the "exceptionally" higher number of breakdowns in the period drove the reduction in profit.Support services firm Kier Group was down 3.5% after JPMorgan cut the stock to Neutral from Overweight.Consumer goods firm PZ Cussons was up 1.8% after it said good trading in Europe and Asia helped to offset challenges in Nigeria. The Imperial Leather soap maker said it performed in line with expectations during the three months to the end of August. The company said its results were helped by a robust and innovative product pipeline and tight control of costs. In Nigeria, consumer disposable income remains subdued ahead of the general elections which are scheduled for February next year, PZ Cussons explained. Elsewhere on the Main Market, Mitie Group was down 7.7% after the facilities management company said the majority of its businesses are performing "well" and it expects to deliver "modest" top-line growth in its financial year.The company expects 2% to 3% revenue growth in the first half due to a "solid" performance from the majority of its divisions. In the half-year ending September 30, Mitie expects its operating profit to be flat to slightly down, which is in line with management forecasts.On London's junior AIM market, online fashion retailer boohoo rose 8.0% on upgraded revenue guidance following a strong first half.For the six months to August 31, revenue jumped 50% to GBP395.3 million as pretax profit increased 22% to GBP24.7 million.Following the half, boohoo said it expects revenue growth for the year ending February 2019 to be between 38% to 43%, up from guidance of 35% to 40% previously, with an adjusted Ebitda margin between 9% and 10%."Anyone worried about Boohoo not being able to sustain a strong pace of growth should be relieved by the impressive sales figures in its latest half year results. Also helping to quash any fears about momentum in the business is the fact that its overseas operations now account for 41% of group revenue. This suggests BooHoo is striking a chord with people in different markets and has the right ingredients to truly become a global business," said Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell.The solid results from boohoo boosted the share price of ASOS, up 2.6% at midday, in a positive read-across.Related Shares:
MitieKierRandgold ResourcesAA..LCroda InternationalASOSBoohooPz CussonsCroda Int.6.6pf