Randgold seeking extension to Tongon operation life, copper production falls at Anglo American
London open
The FTSE 100 was expected to open 84 points higher on Monday, having closed down 0.06% at 7,114.55.
Stocks to watch
Randgold Resources is seeking to extend the operation life of its Tongon gold mine in the Côte d'lvoire beyond its four-year lifespan. The move comes after the FTSE 100 miner conducted a review of its Nielle permit that hosts the Tongon, which confirmed multiple opportunities for extending the life of the operation at the mine.
Copper production fell in the first quarter at Anglo American, but full year guidance was kept unchanged across the board as amounts of iron ore, coal and diamonds unearthed all rose strongly. Chief executive Mark Cutifani said it was "a strong operational performance" helped by the continued ramp-up of Gahcho Kué diamond mine, Minas-Rio copper mine and Grosvenor coal project, which together delivered the group a 9% increase in production on a copper equivalent basis.
Independent IT infrastructure services provider Computacenter posted a trading update for the first quarter to 31 March on Monday - earlier than the date previously advised due to its performance in the first quarter and an improved outlook for the full year. The FTSE 250 company said group revenue for the first quarter increased 16% on an as-reported basis, and by 9% in constant currency.
Third quarter production at Petra Diamonds was flat year on year at 999,768 carats compared with 995,905 carats. Production for nine months to 31 March 2017 was up 15% to 3,014,856 carats. Petra said it maintained full year production guidance of around 4.4m carats. Revenue fell 1% in the quarter to $119.1m, with no revenue from exceptional diamonds. Nine month revenue rose 27% to $347.6m, including $10.9m from exceptional diamonds.
Newspaper round-up
The euro surged to its highest level in almost six months after early projections indicated that the runoff for the French presidency would come down to a second-round duel between independent centrist Emmanuel Macron and far-right leader Marine Le Pen. Investors cheered the early projections, which were announced an hour before foreign exchange markets opened in Australia. - Telegraph
Bank customers ripped off by “extortionate” overdraft fees will get support next week from a parliamentary bill that promises to protect the most financially vulnerable from escalating charges. Rachel Reeves, a Labour MP who sits on the Treasury select committee, will outline plans on Tuesday for regulators at the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to cap the maximum amount that banks can charge customers for unauthorised overdrafts, similar to the limit imposed on charges on payday loans of £24 a month. - Guardian
Experts have slammed the Conservative Party’s pledge to cap energy prices if it is elected in June, calling it a “clumsy and counterproductive” move that would ring the “death knell for competition”. Shares prices in energy companies are likely to slide when markets open on Monday after it was revealed that the Tory manifesto will outline plans to cap household bills for the seven in 10 households paying standard variable tariffs. - Telegraph
Europe’s highest court could still rule the City years after Brexit under plans being considered by the government in order to win a wider agreement on access to the single market. The European Court of Justice could have ultimate jurisdiction for three to five years after Brexit and possibly longer in financial disputes, despite the fact Theresa May has said that ending its role over UK affairs was a “red line”. - The Times
Britain’s biggest five-a-side football operators have revived talks over a potential £170 million-plus merger. Goals Soccer Centres is set to confirm today that it is in preliminary discussions with Powerleague, its private equity-backed rival, about a potential combination. - The Times
US close
Wall Street ended on a down note on Friday but slightly higher over the latest five-day stretch, its first weekly gain since the end of last month, after the White House indicated that much-awaited tax cuts will arrive before the end of 2017.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.15% or 30.95 points to close at 20,547.76, while the S&P 500 gave back 7.15 points or 0.30% to finish at 2,348.69, and the Nasdaq lost 0.11% to 5,910.52.
Meanwhile, West Texas Intermediate retreated $1.09 to $49.62 per barrel.
In parallel, the yield on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury note advanced two basis points to end at 2.25%.
Speaking at the Institute of International Finance Washington Policy Summit, Mnuchin said the White House will unveil a plan "very soon", adding that he hoped passing a tax overhaul will not "take till the end of the year".
"The difference of a little over 1 percent of GDP over a 10-year period of time can generate as much as $2.0trn of revenue in the U.S.. There’s no question: we’re looking at reforms that will pay for themselves with growth."