29th Aug 2018 12:02
LONDON (Alliance News) - Stocks in London were lower at midday with mining stocks weighing on the FTSE 100, as enthusiasm over the US-Mexico trade deal evaporated. Investors were looking to news from high-stakes talks between the US and Canada.Canada's Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland has arrived in Washington to resume talks about the future of the three-nation North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA, after the US and Mexico agreed to a new trade deal on Monday."US President Donald Trump had previously threatened to proceed with a US-Mexico trade agreement as a replacement for NAFTA, in effect cutting Canada out, which could have had a significant impact on the Canadian economy. While this was more than likely a bluff aimed at forcing the hand of the Canadians, it is a relief that no such move will likely be necessarily as it would have been harmful for all concerned," said Oanda senior market analyst Craig Erlam.The FTSE 100 index was down 0.6%, or 47.30 points at 7,569.92. The FTSE 250 was down 0.5%, or 97.85 points, at 20,751.39, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.1%, or 1.51 points, at 1,100.12.The Cboe UK 100 was down 0.7% at 12,833.28, the Cboe UK 250 was down 0.7% at 18,804.42, and the Cboe UK Small Companies was flat at 12,364.84."The UK index plunged back under 7,600, to sit a few points above 7,560. Its miners, fearing the stronger dollar, were responsible for the brunt of the losses," said Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell.On the London Stock Exchange, miners were weighing on the large cap index amid a decline in copper prices as the dollar staged a mild recovery. Antofagasta was down 2.2%, Anglo American was down 1.8%, Rio Tinto down 1.2% and BHP Billiton down 1.0%. Conversely, GVC Holdings was up 2.2% after Morgan Stanley started coverage on the online betting group with an Overweight rating.Micro Focus International was up 1.9% after the Newbury-based software firm announced a new share buyback programme. Micro Focus did not say how much the overall buyback would be worth, but it is to return USD200 million to shareholders in the first tranche, running from Wednesday until October 24 with Citigroup in charge. The company also said shareholders approved the sale of its open-source software business SUSE to Marcel Bidco for USD2.54 billion. United Utilities and Centrica were up 1.5% and 0.8%, respectively, after Citigroup upgraded the utility stocks to Buy from Neutral.In the FTSE 250, James Fisher & Sons was up 2.7% after the marine services provider expressed a positive outlook for future growth as its profit rose 26% in the first half of 2018. The company said pretax profit grew in the six months to the end of June to GBP21.5 million from GBP17.1 million reported for the same period a year earlier, as revenue rose by 12% to GBP260.5 million from GBP232.5 million. On a constant currency basis, revenue increased by 14%. James Fisher upped its interim dividend by 10% to 10.3 pence per share from 9.4p paid the year before. Diploma was up 2.3% after the medical devices, hydraulic seals and specialised wiring manufacturer said it remains on track to deliver full-year results in line with expectations, but believes that a change of chief executive officer is "in the best interests of the company". The company said Richard Ingram has stepped down from his role as CEO with immediate effect. The company has already started a process to identify a successor. Non-Executive Chairman John Nicholas will take over from Ingram as interim executive chairman until a permanent new CEO is appointed. Diploma also said it continued to trade robustly in the second half of 2018. As a result, for the year to the end of September, the company expects to report revenue growth of 7%, as the negative impact from currency movements has eased during the period and is expected to be around 3%. Elsewhere, Aston Martin is lined up for a spot in the London's FTSE 100 index after the luxury car maker announced plans to list on the London Stock Exchange.The 105-year-old auto maker was founded in 1913. Its iconic sports cars have appeared in 11 James Bond films.The company did not give any financial details of its IPO, nor what its ticker might be. Global joint coordinators are Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan Securities, while financial advisor is Lazard. A prospectus will be published on or around September 20.Aston Martin is aiming for a premium listing on the London Main Market, floating at least 25% of its shares. It said Germany's Daimler, which currently has a 4.9% stake, will remain a shareholder. The car maker was owned partially or fully by the US's Ford Motor Co from 1987 to 2007.AJ Bell Investment Director Russ Mould is looking at a GBP5 billion valuation for Aston Martin, putting it at number 93 in the FTSE 100, ahead of the likes of Royal Mail. The pound was flat against the dollar quoted at USD1.2896, compared to USD1.2891 at the London equities close Tuesday, as investors shifted focus to the ongoing Brexit negotiations between the UK and the EU.According to Bloomberg, citing senior officials, both sides now aim to finalise divorce terms by mid-November, later than the October deadline regularly mentioned in public.In Paris the CAC 40 was down 0.1%, while the DAX 30 in Frankfurt was down 0.2%. The euro down against the greenback, quoted at USD1.1667 compared to USD1.1718 late Tuesday. Stocks in New York were set for a flat to higher open ahead of US GDP data and personal consumption expenditure prices index readings at 1330 BST. The latter is the Federal Reserve's preferred monitor for US inflation.The US economy is forecast to have expanded 4% annually between April and June, down from the initial estimate of 4.1%.The DJIA and the S&P 500 index were called flat and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.2%.Related Shares:
Anglo AmericanRio TintoBHP Billiton PLCGVC.LDiplomaCentricaMCRO.LAntofagastaJames Fisher and SonsUnited UtilitiesAntofag.5%pr