Deteriorating UK Consumer Outlook Could Weigh on Pound
June 24 2022 - 5:44AM
Dow Jones News
Deteriorating UK Consumer Outlook Could Weigh on Pound
0852 GMT - The fall in U.K. retail sales in May wasn't hugely
surprising but the worsening outlook for the consumer might
continue to weigh on the sterling, MUFG Bank says. "The UK economic
outlook is far worse than elsewhere," MUFG analyst Derek Halpenny
says in a note. "Risks remain to the downside for GBP/USD although
increased speculation of a 50 basis points [interest rate] hike by
the Bank of England in August is helping provide some support at
these levels." Sterling showed little reaction after official data
showed U.K. retail sales fell 0.5% month-on-month in May after a
downwardly revised 0.4% increase in April. GBP/USD last trades flat
at 1.2259 but EUR/GBP rises 0.1% to 0.8593.
(renae.dyer@wsj.com)
Companies News:
Barclays to Buy Kensington Mortgage Co., Portfolio for Around
$2.8 Bln
Barclays PLC said Friday that it has agreed to acquire
Kensington Mortgage Co. and a related portfolio of U.K. mortgages
for around 2.3 billion pounds ($2.82 billion).
---
Ferguson Launches GBP375 Mln Share Buyback
Ferguson PLC said Friday that it is starting a share buyback of
375 million pounds ($459.8 million) in continuation of its $2
billion repurchase program.
---
Lamprell Says Blofeld Takeover Offer Is at a Significant
Discount
Lamprell PLC said Friday that it considers the takeover cash
offer from Blofeld Investment Management to be at a significant
discount to the prevailing share price and so far no agreement has
been reached.
---
RPS Group Says Five-Month Performance Was Better Than
Expected
RPS Group PLC said Friday that its performance in the first five
months of the year was better than expected.
---
Greencoat Renewables Agrees to Buy 134MW Swedish Wind Farm --
Deal Digest
ACQUIRER: Greencoat Renewables PLC, a renewable-infrastructure
company.
---
Trackwise Designs Sees 2022 Sales Below Market Views on Lower
Demand
Trackwise Designs PLC said Friday that sales for 2022 are
expected to be below market views due to reduced customer
demand.
---
Foresight Sustainable Forestry Raises GBP45 Mln Via Equity
Issue
Foresight Sustainable Forestry Co. said Friday that it has
raised 45 million pounds ($55.2 million) via share issue to acquire
further assets.
---
Essentra to Sell Packaging Businesses for GBP312 Mln
Essentra PLC said Friday that it will sell its packaging
businesses ESNT Packaging & Securing Solutions Ltd. and
Essentra Packaging US Inc. for 312 million pounds ($382.5 million)
in cash.
---
Southern Energy Completes Expanded Share Placing, Raises $31.0
Mln
Southern Energy Corp. said Friday that it has completed an
increased placing of shares in the U.K., bringing the size of its
total offering to $31.0 million from $30.0 million.
---
Ultra Electronics Takeover by Advent's Cobham Moves Closer to UK
Government Approval
Ultra Electronics Holdings PLC said Friday that it has noted the
U.K. government is minded to accept the undertakings proposed by
Advent International Corp.'s Cobham Group Holdings Ltd. to allow
its takeover of Ultra.
---
LSL Property Services to Extend Share Buyback for Three
Months
LSL Property Services PLC said Friday that it will extend its 10
million pound ($12.3 million) share-buyback program for an
additional three months, from the end of June to the end of
September.
---
Lamprell Shares Fall on Liquidity Constraints Warning
Shares in Lamprell PLC fell Friday after the company said that
it is looking for a solution to meet its immediate funding
obligations of $75 million in June and July as it continues to be
affected by low-margin projects and insufficient revenue
levels.
---
Gulf Keystone Petroleum Cuts Top End of Production Guidance
Gulf Keystone Petroleum Ltd. on Friday narrowed its 2022
production guidance toward the lower end of the range.
Contact: London NewsPlus; paul.larkins@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 24, 2022 05:29 ET (09:29 GMT)
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