19th Feb 2014 11:24
LONDON (Alliance News) - The following is a summary of top news stories Wednesday.
----------
COMPANIES
----------
BAE Systems has said that the governments of the UK and Saudi Arabia have finally reached a deal on higher prices for the Typhoon jets that Saudi Arabia ordered back in 2005, ending an issue that has been weighing on the defence company's outlook for months. Its shares, as well as those of Rolls-Royce Holdings, which makes the engines for the jets, have risen strongly.
----------
Sports Direct International said gross profit grew by 14.6% in its fiscal third quarter, buoyed by double-digit revenue growth which was fueled by strong growth in retail and online sales, and it is confident it will meet its expectations for full-year underlying earnings.
----------
Royal Bank of Scotland Group has said it will sell certain structured retail investor products and equity derivatives businesses, as well as associated market-making activities, to BNP Paribas, as it continues its strategic repositioning programme. It didn't give a price.
----------
Royal Dutch Shell has chosen a USD2.4 billion offer from oil trader Vitol Group as its preferred bid for its downstream Australian assets, The Australian reported, citing a person familiar with the offer.
----------
ITV has acquired a 51% stake in New York-based television producer DiGa Vision, continuing a recent run of production company acquisitions as the British TV company tries to build a portfolio of international content it can show on its channels and, more importantly, sell around the world.
----------
Pets At Home Group has confirmed its intention to float on the main market of the London Stock Exchange, becoming the third retailer so far this year to confirm a planned UK listing.
----------
Anglogold Ashanti said it swung to a pretax loss in 2013 as a first annual increase in production for nine years failed to offset the decline in gold prices. The gold producer posted a pretax loss of USD2.53 billion, compared with a pretax profit of USD1.26 billion in 2012, as revenues fell 14% to USD5.71 billion, from USD6.63 billion, and its cost of sales rose.
----------
Packaging and paper company Mondi has confirmed it expects its underlying operating profit for the full-year is expected to come in above the EUR574 million reported in 2012, ahead of the release of its full results February 28.
----------
Ultra Electronics Holdings has acquired US-based specialist sonar provider 3 Phoenix Inc for USD70 million in cash, a deal that it expects to boost its earnings and enhance its relationship with the US Navy.
----------
Housebuilding and construction group Galliford Try reported an 18% jump in both pretax profit and revenue in the first half of its financial year, as the recovery in the UK housing market buoyed its housebuilding unit, and said it is targeting a doubling of profits over the next five years. Its construction division continued to struggle during the half, with revenues and margins both down in what it described as a still-challenging market. However, it said the strong first half overall gives it confidence that it will meet its own expectations for the full financial year.
----------
MARKETS
----------
UK stocks are mixed Wednesday, while the pound had taken a hit after UK unemployment rose to 7.2% in in December, from 7.1% in November. Following a rally that has seen the UK's leading share index gain about 1% each day so far this week, the FTSE 100 broke above 6,800 points in early trade before the rally lost momentum.
----------
FTSE 100: Down 0.3% at 6,775.39
FTSE 250: Down 0.3% at 16,287.47
AIM ALL-SHARE: Up 0.1% at 880.99
----------
The pound dropped about 0.6 cents against the dollar to a session low of USD1.6658, but has since recovered slightly and is now trading broadly flat. Against the euro, the pound is marginally higher.
----------
GBP-USD: Down at USD1.6673
EUR-USD: Down at USD1.3747
GOLD: Flat at USD1,320.20 per ounce
OIL (Brent): Down at USD110.20 a barrel
(changes since end of previous GMT day)
----------
ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
----------
The UK jobless rate unexpectedly rose in December, the first increase in nearly a year, data released by the Office for National Statistics showed. The ILO unemployment rate climbed to 7.2% in the December quarter, from 7.1% in the three months to November. The increase was the first since February last year, when the figure was 7.9%. Economists had expected the rate to remain unchanged at 7.1% in the fourth quarter.
----------
Policymakers of the Bank of England unanimously decided to leave the key interest rate at 0.50% and quantitative easing at GBP 375 billion, the minutes of the meeting showed. The committee indicated that even when rates do rise, the new "norm" for rates may well be lower than was perceived before the financial crisis."Even when the economy had returned to normal levels of capacity, and inflation was close to target, the appropriate level of Bank Rate was likely to be materially below the 5% level set on average by the Committee prior to the financial crisis," the minutes say.
-----------
The UK has scope to expand further before the Bank of England would need to raise interest rates, Monetary Policy Committee member Ian McCafferty told LBC radio. He said the risk of deflation is "pretty minimal." The BoE will lift interest rates only gradually when it does eventually hike it from the current 0.50%.
----------
Britain is to further tighten benefits for European workers, the Department for Work and Pensions announced, the latest in a series of measures aimed at cracking down on immigration. From March, immigrants from the European Economic Area will have to prove that they earn around 150 pounds (250 dollars) a week in order to qualify for "worker" status, which gives them access to better benefits.
----------
Eurozone construction output recovered in December after declining for three consecutive months, Eurostat reported. Production in the construction sector grew 0.9% from a month ago, when it was down by 0.2% in November. Building construction grew 0.6%, reversing the 0.7% drop in November. Civil engineering expanded at a faster pace of 3.8% after rising 1.1%.
----------
The US central bank has now adopted new regulations on international financial groups that could force some to set aside billions of dollars in capital. The Federal Reserve's rules will affect large European banking firms such as Deutsche Bank AG, Credit Suisse Group AG, UBS AG, Barclays PLC and others with operations in the US. Foreign banking organizations with US non-branch assets of more than 50 billion dollars will be required to establish an US intermediate holding company over their subsidiaries. The holding companies will be subject to the same risk-based and leverage capital standards applicable to US bank holding companies, including regular capital plans and stress tests.
----------
Australia will urge G20 finance ministers and central bankers meeting in Sydney this weekend to put economic growth ahead of deficit reduction and set ambitious national targets for output and jobs. Treasurer Joe Hockey, who is hosting the gathering in his hometown, admitted to reporters that some of the finance chiefs would not be enthused about his call to "shift the dial" and strive to beat this year's global growth forecast of 3.7%.
----------
The Japanese economy will continue to recover at a moderate pace in the near term, supported by a further improvement in industrial production and external demand, a report from the Bank of Japan revealed. The bank, however, cautioned that growth will be affected by the front-loaded increase and the subsequent decline in demand before and after the consumption tax hike. Adverse developments in the emerging markets, the European debt crisis and the pace of the U.S recovery also pose risks to growth.
----------
Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has denounced protests in which 25 people were killed as the work of criminals and called for fresh talks with the opposition as an EU campaign to impose sanctions over the unrest gained momentum. Yanukovych defended Tuesday's crackdown on anti-government protesters, saying the opposition had overstepped its bounds by calling its supporters to arms. He called upon opposition leaders to distance themselves from "radical forces who provoke bloodshed."
----------
Thai opposition leader Abhisit Vejjajiva has called on the government to open talks on holding a new election to get the country out of its political deadlock. It comes after anti-government protesters in Bangkok surrounded the temporary office of caretaker Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, the day after a police crackdown left five dead in the capital's centre. Suthep Thaugsuban, secretary general of the People's Democratic Reform Committee, led a convoy of 200 cars to the Permanent Secretary of Defence office in northern Bangkok, which Yingluck and the cabinet have been using as a temporary office since protesters closed down Government House in December. Yingluck and her caretaker cabinet were not there, and the building was heavily guarded by soldiers behind barbed wire.
----------
Copyright © 2014 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
Related Shares:
ULE.LGalliford TryRBS.LBAE SystemsSports DirectITVRolls-RoyceMondi