Smiths annual profits rise, United Utilities FY revenues seen slightly higher

London pre-open

The FTSE 100 was being called to open 14.4 points lower ahead of the bell on Friday after closing out the previous session just 0.09% firmer at 7,467.38.

Stocks to watch

Water supplier United Utilities said on Friday that recent trading had been in line with internal expectations for the year ending 31 March.

United Utilities stated its full-year guidance remained unchanged, with net revenue expected to be approximately 3% higher year-on-year, largely reflecting higher consumption from business customers, while underlying operating profits were anticipated to be broadly flat as the increased revenues were offset by higher underlying operating costs, largely as a result of inflationary increases in its core costs.

Diversified UK engineer Smiths Group reported a rise in interim profit on Friday but said it expected to face a more challenging aviation market in an uncertain geopolitical and macroeconomic environment.

Smiths posted a 14% rise in operating profits to £189.9m and also maintained its guidance for full-year revenue growth at 3%.

Newspaper round-up

The UK government has set a new target to increase the number of electric car chargers more than ten times to 300,000 by 2030 after heavy criticism that the rollout of public infrastructure is too slow to match rapid growth in sales. The Department for Transport said it would invest an extra £450.0m to do so, alongside hefty sums of private capital. Sales of new cars and vans with petrol and diesel engines will be banned from 2030. - Guardian

Ocado is redesigning a new logo for its fast-track Zoom service less than a week after it was launched, after drawing comparisons to the Russian battle symbol used on tanks and other military vehicles in Ukraine. The online grocer unveiled the logo, featuring a white swishy Z on a pink circle background, last Friday. But on Thursday, the company said it was having a rethink after its design quickly drew comparisons with the "Zwastika". - Guardian

The cost of living crisis risks sparking a wave of rioting in Britain because its economy is one of the most fragile in Europe, a French investment bank has warned. L'Atelier BNP Paribas said that there is a danger of "social unrest, protest and extremism" after the UK ranked 35th out of 36 countries for its ability to deliver higher wages, lower costs and social mobility. - Telegraph

Apple is considering launching a monthly subscription for the iPhone and other gadgets in a move that could encourage users to pay regularly for access to the latest devices. The company is working on the service, which would mean consumers paying for devices in installments rather than upfront, ahead of a potential launch later this year, Bloomberg reported. - Telegraph

City regulators have taken the first step towards creating a British rulebook for cryptocurrencies amid worries that the fast-growing $1.7trn market will eventually pose a threat to the wider financial system. The Bank of England's financial policy committee began to set out its thinking yesterday on how the cryptocurrency sector should be supervised in a move that potentially heralds a turning point for digital assets, which so far have been almost entirely unregulated. - The Times

Judges have quashed a second conviction in what has been described as the UK's biggest bribery scandal, increasing the pressure on the Serious Fraud Office. The Court of Appeal ruled yesterday that failures by the SFO to disclose evidence meant the conviction of Paul Bond should be set aside. Judges rejected a request for a retrial. - The Times

US close

Wall Street stocks closed higher on Thursday, bouncing back from some heavy losses in the previous session.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.02% at 34,707.94, while the S&P 500 added 1.43% to 4,520.16 and the Nasdaq Composite was ahead 1.93% at 14,191.84.