Pound Likely to Fall on Covid-19 Fears, UK-EU Tensions
Uncertainty over the rapidly spreading Delta coronavirus variant
and a potential escalation in U.K.-EU tensions are likely to weigh
on the pound in the short-term, MUFG Bank says. U.K. interest rate
rise expectations will remain subdued for the remainder of the
summer due to concerns about the economic impact of coronavirus and
post-Brexit tensions, MUFG analyst Derek Halpenny says. Rising U.K.
coronavirus cases will reduce social mobility and hurt economic
activity, he says. Meanwhile, the U.K. is set to present its
proposals for overhauling post-Brexit trading arrangements between
Britain and Northern Ireland later Wednesday. "The EU is unlikely
to accept these changes reinforcing the prospect of a fresh trade
conflict," Halpenny says. EUR/GBP is last flat on the day at
0.8643, having hit an 8-week high of 0.8671 overnight.
Companies News:
PCI-PAL Sees Significant FY 2021 Revenue Growth
PCI-PAL PLC said Wednesday that it expects its fiscal 2021
revenue to rise 66% on year, and for its adjusted pretax loss to be
slightly better than current expectations.
---
EKF Diagnostics 1H Revenue, Adjusted Ebitda Rose
EKF Diagnostics Holdings PLC said Wednesday that revenue and
profits in the first half of the year increased amid continued
strong business.
---
Mysale FY 2021 Total Revenue Fell; FY 2022 Group Revenue Seen
Ahead of Market Views
Mysale Group PLC said Wednesday that total revenue for fiscal
2021 fell, and that the board expects group revenue for fiscal 2022
to be ahead of current market expectations.
---
Tristel Shares Fall on Writedown of Medical-Device
Investment
Shares in Tristel PLC fell Wednesday after the company said it
expects to book a noncash impairment of around 800,000 pounds ($1.1
million) on the full value of its investment in a medical-device
company focused on women's health.
---
Centaur Media 1H Pretax Loss Narrowed as Revenue Recovered
Centaur Media PLC said Wednesday that pretax loss for the first
half of 2021 narrowed as revenue recovered from the hit caused by
the coronavirus pandemic, and that it is on track to meet its 2023
targets.
---
Concurrent Technologies Appoints New CFO
Concurrent Technologies PLC said Wednesday that it has promoted
Financial Controller Jonathan Martin to chief financial officer
with effect from Aug. 1.
---
Arena Events Repays Finance Facility
Arena Events Group PLC said Wednesday that it has repaid and
canceled its short-term financing facility in full--as well as
500,000 pounds ($681,500) of compound interest--and that repayment
was made from its existing cash resources.
---
Bushveld Minerals 2Q Vanadium Production Rose 29% Over the
Previous Quarter
Bushveld Minerals Ltd. on Wednesday reported that its vanadium
production increased in the second quarter from the previous
quarter.
---
Simec Atlantis Energy Chairman John Neill to Leave
Simec Atlantis Energy Ltd. said Wednesday that Chairman John
Neill won't offer himself for re-election at the annual
meeting.
---
Quartix Technologies Appoints Richard Lilwall as Next CEO
Quartix Technologies PLC said Wednesday that it has appointed
Richard Lilwall as its next chief executive officer, replacing
co-founder Andy Walters, who is set to retire.
---
Nuformix Shares Fall After CEO Decides to Exit Role
Shares in Nuformix PLC fell Wednesday after the company said
Chief Executive Officer Anne Brindley has decided to step down from
her role.
---
Gresham Technologies 1H Revenue Rose; Says FY Market
Expectations Are On Track
Gresham Technologies PLC said on Wednesday that first-half
revenue rose 19%, and that it was on track to achieve full-year
market expectations.
---
Tricorn Shares Drop 25% After It Issues Going-Concern Warnings
Over Funding
Tricorn Group PLC shares fell sharply Wednesday after it issued
warnings over its ability to continue as a going concern, and said
its current funding facilities wouldn't be sufficient to return the
company to profitability.
---
Bakkavor 2Q Sales Rose as Covid-19 Restrictions Eased
Bakkavor Group PLC said Wednesday that it saw strong sales
growth in the second quarter as coronavirus restrictions were
eased, with reported revenue rising on year.
---
H&T Group Experiencing Good Momentum Since April
H&T Group PLC said Wednesday that it has experienced good
momentum since coronavirus-related trading restrictions were
relaxed in April.
---
Mulberry Swung to FY 2021 Profit; Current Growth Boosted by UK,
Asia Performance -- Update
Mulberry Group PLC reported Wednesday a swing to pretax profit
for fiscal 2021 on lower costs and said that its year-to-date
performance has been boosted by its U.K. operations and continuing
growth in Asia.
Market Talk:
Wickes's Strong Update Leaves Further Upgrade Potential, Says
Liberum
0954 GMT - Wickes Group's strong trading update reflects its
well-balanced, digitally-led, market-leading customer proposition,
supported by long-term structural tailwinds in the repair,
maintenance and improvement market, Liberum says. While the home
improvement retailer expectations look prudent, this suggests risks
are weighted to the upside, and Wickes looks like one of the best
ways to invest in the sector, the brokerage says. Given Wickes
looks far too cheap for the high quality growth, upgrade momentum
and strong cash generation on offer, investors should expect the
share price to re-rate positively from current levels as it
establishes its track record, Liberum says. The brokerage retains
its buy rating and target price of 420.0 pence. Shares are up 1.2%
at 250.0 pence.
---
Bloomsbury Publishing Hints at Potential Forecast Upgrades
0952 GMT - Bloomsbury Publishing's strong performance has
continued into the first four months of fiscal 2022, which suggests
that potential for forecast upgrades later in the year has
increased, Peel Hunt says. Shares in the London-based publisher
have progressively rerated, as the success of its strategy became
apparent both before and during the coronavirus pandemic, Peel Hunt
says. "It has strength in diversity--of subject, route to market,
territory. It is a huge store of value in its library of publishing
rights. And it has cash to fund dividends--the special dividend
announced with the prelims is indicative of this--and to fund
acquisitions," the brokerage says. Shares rise 3.7% to 363 pence,
and are up 65% compared with a year ago.
---
Antofagasta 1H Earnings Forecasts Set to Rise After 2Q
0923 GMT - Shares in Antofagasta rise 3% after the Chilean
copper miner reported higher second-quarter gold production and
maintained its full-year production guidance, despite lower copper
output. RBC Capital Markets says copper and gold production fell
short of its estimates, though molybdenum production topped hopes
and costs were better than expected. "Despite the slight miss on
production, we would expect consensus H1 EBITDA to increase on the
back of these results," RBC analyst Tyler Broda says, though the
brokerage is keeping its under-perform rating due to
weather-related production risks in the second half.
---
Hochschild Mining 2Q Cash Suggests Costs Remain High
0919 GMT - Despite benefiting from stronger than expected
pricing for gold and silver production, Hochschild's second-quarter
cash was reported at $257 million, 7% below Peel Hunt's
expectations. With prices providing a strong offset to weak
production but cash still coming in below forecast, the brokerage
is assuming below-the-line costs and taxes remained high in the
first half of 2021 much as they were in the second half of 2020.
Shares rise 2.8% to 150.4 pence.
---
Next PLC Benefits From Strong Sales at Both Physical and Online
Stores
0907 GMT - Fashion retailer Next could leverage a number of
tailwinds in recent times to continue to fuel its overperformance,
AJ Bell analyst Russ Mould says. "Consumers have had the need and
means by which to go on a spending spree, and that's created a
tailwind for Next. The retailer has a habit of beating expectations
and its latest update is true to form," Mould says. Furthermore,
Next has managed to keep its physical stores relevant amid the rise
of e-commerce by using them for a combination of click and collect,
customer services and as a showcase for products, while also
capitalizing on strong online sales, the analyst says. Shares are
up 8.3% at 8,006 pence.
---
Political Worries Around Antofagasta Seem to Be Dissipating
0901 GMT - It feels like some of the political worries that
built earlier this year around Antofagasta are dissipating, Peel
Hunt says. The FTSE 100 copper miner said in its second-quarter
trading update that the Chilean senate's discussions over resetting
mining royalty rates were much wider-ranging than the bill
presented to the senate by congress, suggesting that the eventual
form of revised royalties would be materially different to the
bill, Peel Hunt says. Shares rise 3.4%.
---
Next Deserves a More Generous Rating, Interactive Investor
Says
0900 GMT - Next's market ratings seem rather harsh, given the
continued positive performance of the fashion retailer, Interactive
Investor analyst Richard Hunter says. "Even prior to today's
strongly positive reaction to the update the shares had risen by
46% over the last year, as compared to a hike of 9.7% for the wider
FTSE 100," the analyst says. What is surprising is that despite its
progress over recent years, Next has remained stuck at just a hold
in terms of consensus rating, albeit a strong one, Hunter says.
Shares are up 8.8% at 8,046 pence.
Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires;
+44-20-7842-931
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 21, 2021 06:22 ET (10:22 GMT)
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