30th Nov 2015 11:16
LONDON (Alliance News) - The following is a summary of top news stories Monday.
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COMPANIES
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BHP Billiton and Vale said a total of 13 fatalities have been recorded so far after the pair's tailings dam in Brazil burst earlier this month, as the clean-up operation commences. The pair each own a 50% stake in the Samarco joint venture, which was responsible for the Fundão dam which burst in early November. A further six people are still missing. On Friday, the Brazilian federal government tabled plans to sue BHP and Vale for causing an environmental catastrophe in the region. The Attorney General of the Union, the Brazilian prosecutor, and the Minas Gerais and Espirito Santo states, filed a civil suit against the two companies along with the Samarco joint venture itself, for up to BRL20.0 billion, or USD5.2 billion, for the environmental damage caused by the Fundão dam bursting. On Monday, the two companies said they are still committed to establishing a separate, voluntary, non-profit fund to support the recovery of the Rio Doce river system, which was affected by the dam burst.
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Aberdeen Asset Management reported stable profit in its last financial year, as weak investor sentiment towards Asia and emerging markets in general weighed on the asset manager's results, with heavy net outflows hitting assets under management. Pretax profit fell to GBP353.7 million in the year ended September 30, compared with GBP354.6 million the prior year. On an underlying basis, which is stated before amortisation of intangible assets and acquisition-related items, pretax profit edged up to GBP491.6 million from GBP490.3 million. Aberdeen increased its dividend for the full year to 19.5 pence from 18.0p.
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Chinese bidders are understood to be eyeing a bid for InterContinental Hotels Group after rival Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide agreed to be acquired by rival Marriott, The Daily Telegraph reported. City sources told the newspaper that IHG has been left vulnerable by the merger of Starwood and Marriott, and three Chinese suitors - including Shanghai Jin Jiang International Hotels Group, airline owner HNA Group and sovereign wealth fund China Investment Corp - all were understood to have run the rule over Starwood prior to the deal.
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Belgian-American brewer Anheuser-Busch InBev plans to sell two of Anglo-South African brewer SABMiller's best-known beer brands, Grolsch and Peroni, as the world's largest brewer seeks to ease European regulatory concerns over its pending acquisition of SABMiller, the Sunday Times reported citing people familiar with the matter. No deal has been struck and a sale isn't certain.
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HSBC Holdings has decided to close its private banking unit in India, where the company is facing intense competition. Its customers will be given the option to move to the company's retail arm HSBC Premier. The process is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2016. HSBC's private banking business has about 70 employees in India.
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Food company Cranswick said its pretax profit ticked higher in the first half, held back slightly by an impairment charge, as revenue came in slightly ahead of its expectations. The pork and poultry producer said its pretax profit for the six months to the end of September was GBP25.5 million, 3.0% higher than the GBP24.6 million it posted a year earlier and held back somewhat by a GBP4.6 million goodwill charge the company booked on its sandwiches business. Cranswick said it will pay an interim dividend of 11.6 pence per share, up from 10.6p.
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IG Group Holdings said revenue in the second quarter of its financial year will be slightly ahead of the first, although the online financial trading company thinks it is still too soon to comment on how it will fare across the year as a whole. IG, which provides contracts for difference and spread betting products to allow retail investors to take positions on different asset classes, said it performed well in "quieter" markets in the three months to November 30.
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Gaming technology company Playtech said it has won a five-year contract with News UK to operate the Sun Bingo and Fabulous Bingo websites and mobile services. The sites will launch in August 2016 following the migration of the sites to Playtech's platform. News UK is the UK newspaper business of News Corp. No financial details on the agreement were disclosed.
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Ladbrokes outlined the fourth quarter and full-year results for the parts of Gala Coral Group with which it will merge, showing adverse sporting results are currently holding back the business. Ladbrokes shareholders approved the GBP2.1 billion last week, despite opposition to the deal from prominent shareholder Dermot Desmond, an Irish billionaire. Ladbrokes said net revenue for the Coral Retail, Eurobet Retail and Online businesses in the year to September 26 was GBP1.01 billion, 6.0% ahead year-on-year, as earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation grew 1.0%, helped by strong growth in the online business.
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MARKETS
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UK indices were trading mixed with IHG among the best performers and BHP the biggest large-cap faller. Wall Street also was pointed toward a mixed open.
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FTSE 100: down 0.2% at 6,362.73
FTSE 250: up 0.2% at 17,295.44
AIM ALL-SHARE: up 0.1% at 732.61
GBP: flat at USD1.5026 (USD1.5044)
EUR: flat at USD1.0507 (USD1.0590)
GOLD: down at USD1,056.30 per ounce (USD1,057.60)
OIL (Brent): up at USD45.45 a barrel (USD44.96)
(changes since previous London equities close)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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UK mortgage approvals increased marginally in October, the Bank of England reported. The number of mortgages approved for house purchases rose to 69,630 in October from 69,012 a month ago. It was also above the average of 68,099 over the previous six months but slightly below the expected level of 69,900. Lending secured on dwellings increased by GBP3.6 billion in October, compared to the average monthly increase of GBP2.8 billion over the previous six months. At the same time, consumer credit increased by GBP1.2 billion in October, slightly smaller than September's growth of GBP1.3 billion. It was expected to rise again by GBP1.3 billion.
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China is on the cusp of a milestone that its leaders have long coveted, as the International Monetary Fund decides Monday whether to include the yuan in the crisis lender's so-called currency basket. The chances look good for the move, which would put the Chinese economy into an exclusive club alongside the US, the eurozone, Britain and Japan. IMF chief Christine Lagarde has endorsed the acceptance of China's yuan, as the Washington-based agency's staff recommended. Observers expect the IMF's executive board to vote favourably. The currency basket is a daily average of the market exchange rates of the dollar, euro, yen and pound sterling, which is more stable than any of the individual major currencies alone. The average is used as a measure of value for the IMF's special drawing rights, which quantify how much reserve currency each of the 188 member countries can call on.
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British domestic demand and household spending are expected to remain strong, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney said in an interview with the Gazette, a regional newspaper, on Friday. "The UK economy is one of the strongest of the advanced economies and we continue to see strong domestic demand and households spending money because real incomes are growing," he said.
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Germany's retail sales declined more than expected in October, figures from Destatis showed. Retail sales dropped by real 0.4% in October from September, when it remained flat. Sales were expected to decrease 0.2%. On a yearly basis, growth in retail sales slowed to 2.1% from 3.5% a month ago.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered a slew of economic sanctions be imposed on Turkey, in retaliation for the downing of a Russian warplane over the Syrian border. The package of measures bans the import of some goods from Turkey, prohibits employers from hiring Turkish nationals beginning next year, and suspends visa-free travel for Turkish citizens, the Interfax news agency reported. The decree signed by Putin also outlaws travel operators from selling tours to Turkey, a favourite destination for Russian holidaymakers, and bans charter flights between the two countries.
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The EU agreed to grant Turkey EUR3 billion in refugee aid and promised to boost relations with the long-standing membership candidate, in return for efforts to curb migration flows into the bloc. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu proclaimed a "new beginning" for EU-Turkey relations, which have been strained by clashes over territorial issues, democracy and fundamental rights. But the deal struck Sunday comes with many conditions attached. "We expect a major step towards changing the rules of the game when it comes to stemming the migration flow," said EU President Donald Tusk, adding that Turkey and the EU had agreed a "clear plan for the timely re-establishment of order at our shared frontier."
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Governments of major world economies and the World Bank announced more than USD700 million in funding for climate change adaptation on the first day of global climate talks. Eleven countries pledged USD250 million in new money to help countries adapt to new challenges presented by climate change. Separately, the World Bank announced with four European countries a USD500 million project aimed at providing incentives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
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Hollande sharply criticized climate activists who demonstrated Sunday in Paris, despite an order banning marches in the wake of the November 13 terrorist attacks. "These demonstrations are not authorized. We knew that there were trouble-making elements who have nothing to do, by the way, with defenders of the environment," Hollande said in Brussels, where he attended a summit between the EU and Turkey. Protesters demanding action to curb global warming clashed with police in central Paris on the eve of the international climate summit at which more than 140 heads of state were expected to try to broker a deal to limit man-made emissions.
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By Arvind Bhunjun; [email protected]; @ArvindBhunjun
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