25th Feb 2019 08:50
LONDON (Alliance News) - London stock prices were mixed on Monday as positive news about a potential US-China deal were offset by some disappointing UK company updates.The FTSE 100 was 7.58 points higher, up 0.1%, at 7,186.18 early Monday. The FTSE 250 was down 45.36 points, or 0.2%, at 19,224.23, and the AIM All-Share was flat at 909.86.The Cboe UK 100 was unchanged at 12,202.82, while the Cboe UK 250 was 0.3% lower at 17,133.65 and the Cboe UK Small Companies down 0.1% at 12,705.46.In mainland Europe, the CAC 40 in Paris and the DAX 30 in Frankfurt were up 0.2% and 0.3%, respectively."Calls for a positive open come after a strong rally in Asia," said Accendo Markets analyst Artjom Hatsaturjants. "This follows tweets from President Trump noting 'significant progress' in US-China trade talks and extending the March 1 deadline for imposition of US tariffs on GBP200 billion worth of Chinese goods."The Japanese Nikkei 225 index closed up 0.5%. In China, the Shanghai Composite ended up 0.7%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong closed up 0.5%.In the US on Friday, Wall Street closed higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.7%, S&P 500 up 0.6% and Nasdaq Composite up 0.9%.The US will not impose a new slew of tariffs on some USD200 billion worth of Chinese goods, US President Donald Trump announced on Sunday as negotiators from both sides wrapped up six straight days of talks in Washington."Assuming both sides make additional progress, we will be planning a Summit for President Xi and myself, at Mar-a-Lago, to conclude an agreement. A very good weekend for US & China!" Trump said on Twitter.On the London Stock Exchange, miners extended Friday's gains, with Glencore up 1.9%, Antofagasta up 1.4% and Evraz up 0.9%. On Friday, mining sector bounded higher as investors cheered news on potential US-China trade deal.Persimmon was the worst performer in the blue-chip index, down 7.7%. The housebuilder's right to sell Help to Buy homes is under scrutiny amid UK government concerns over the company's behaviour.An extension of contracts for the scheme from April 2021 is soon to be reviewed by Housing Secretary James Brokenshire."James has become increasingly concerned by the behaviour of Persimmon in the last 12 months," a source close to the minister told the Press Association.Bunzl was down 2.9%, despite reporting earnings growth in 2018. In addition, the outsourcing company said it intends to buy a further safety business in the US for an undisclosed sum.Bunzl's pretax profit rose 4% in 2018 to GBP424.8 million from GBP409.3 million on a revenue, that increased by 6% to GBP9.08 billion from GBP8.58 billion. On a constant currency basis, revenue improved by 9%.The growth was due to the benefit of acquisitions and "good" contributions from all business areas. During the year Bunzl completed seven acquisitions for a total of GBP165.2 million.The FTSE 100-listed company declared a final dividend of 35.0 pence, taking the total payout to 50.2p, up 9% year-on-year."Looking forward, despite mixed macroeconomic conditions, with an active pipeline of acquisition opportunities we believe that the prospects of the group are positive due to its strong market position and well established and successful strategy to grow the business both organically and by acquisition," said Chief Executive Frank van Zanten. AB Foods slipped 1.2% after saying that it expects its interim adjusted earnings per share to be broadly in line with the same period last year. For the full year, the food producer and clothing retailer's outlook is unchanged, with adjusted operating profit and adjusted earnings per share expected to be in line with last year.For its Grocery division, AB Foods expects revenue and operating profit to be ahead of last year, with a further improvement in margin. Meanwhile, the Sugar unit's revenue from continuing operations is expected to be lower than in the first half the year prior due to lower sugar prices.In addition, sales at Primark are expected to be 4% ahead of last year in the first half, driven by increased retail selling space partially offset by a 2% decline in like-for-like sales.In the FTSE 250, Centamin was the worst performer, down 7.2%, after reporting a decline in pretax profit to USD152.7 million in 2018 from USD207.4 million a year before, as revenue decreased 11% to USD603.2 million.The gold miner's earnings were hurt by lower gold sales, which fell 10% year-on-year to 484,322 ounces, while the average gold sales price remained broadly unchanged at USD1,267 per ounce.Gold production also declined in 2018 to 472,418 ounces from 544,658 ounces, due to the "operational challenges". For 2019, gold production guidance is between 490,000 and 520,000 ounces.Provident Financial opened down 3.6% at 562.40 pence, as it said that a takeover offer by sub-prime lending peer Non-Standard Finance does not reflect the underlying value and upside potential of the company.On Friday, Provident has secured a GBP1.3 billion all-share offer from Non-Standard Finance, which is down 0.5%. Non-Standard Finance offered to issue 8.88 of its own shares per Provident share, valuing Provident's shares at around 511 pence each.As of Friday, shareholders with over 50% of Provident had indicated they will accept the deal, including Woodford, Invesco, and Marathon."It is extremely disappointing that Non-Standard Finance has chosen to announce an unsolicited and highly opportunistic offer for Provident Financial," said Provident Chair Patrick Snowball. "The board of Provident Financial believes that the offer does not reflect the underlying value of the company and its prospects."UK interest rates could be slashed into negative territory for the first time in history to combat the fallout from a chaotic no-deal Brexit, a former Bank of England policymaker has warned.David "Danny" Blanchflower - who sat on the Bank's Monetary Policy Committee from June 2006 to June 2009 - told the Press Association that policymakers may be left with little option but to take rates below zero if a no-deal Brexit sends shockwaves through the economy.It comes after the central bank's controversial "doomsday scenario" report, published at the request of MPs on the Treasury Select Committee, warned that interest rates could rise as high as 5.5% if a plunging pound sent inflation soaring.
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PFG.LCentamin PLCNSF.LEvrazPersimmonBunzlAntofagastaGlencoreAB FoodsAntofag.5%pr