PageGroup first-half profit falls, Clarkson's jump on back of broking

Stocks to watch

PageGroup reported a decline in operating profit in its half-year results on Monday, to £63.9m from £115.3m year-on-year. The firm also saw a decrease in its conversion rate to 12.1%, and a reduction in total headcount by 5.0% to 8,572 employees. However, it declared a 4.5% hike in its interim dividend and a special dividend, with its full-year operating profit outlook remaining consistent with prior projections.

Shipping services specialist Clarkson reported a sharp jump in first-half profit, driving by a strong performance in its broking division. The company on Monday said pre-tax profit for the six months to June 30 came in at £52.2m, up from £42m a year earlier. “The broking teams delivered a very strong first half, with standout performances from the tanker, specialised product, gas, offshore and sale and purchase sectors,” Clarkson said in a statement.

Newspaper round-up

MPs have been paid £10m from second jobs and freelance work over the past year, largely driven by the size of Boris Johnson’s earnings as well as former Tory ministers taking up a slew of highly paid roles, a Guardian analysis has found. Almost 18 months after the furore around second jobs led to promises of a crackdown, MPs’ earnings from work outside parliament have continued to rise. – Guardian

Ministers have resurrected proposals to send illegal migrants to Britain’s overseas territories as part of alternative options to tackle the small boats crisis. Ascension Island is one of the territories being looked at again as a possibility to take migrants to before a permanent destination for them is found. – The Times

Hiring migrants illegally will be “financially ruinous” for businesses under a new crackdown to stop Britain from being seen as soft on immigration. Fines for bosses who employ migrants in the UK illegally will triple to up to £60,000 per employee, making the practice so economically damaging that it can “put them out of business”. – Telegraph

Business confidence fell last month amid jitters over the slowing UK economy dampening company plans to hire more staff, according to a survey of more than 4,000 firms. Optimism has declined, with higher interest rates and weak global demand contributing to gloom across the services and manufacturing sectors. – Guardian

BP is considering building two huge offshore wind farms in British waters without government subsidy contracts in what would be a first for the sector. Bernard Looney, the energy group’s chief executive, said it could start building the Morgan and Mona projects in the Irish Sea as soon as “late next year” and may not seek contracts from the government to guarantee their revenues. The wind farms together would boast up to 214 turbines about 20 miles off the coasts of north Wales and northwest England and could power 3.4 million homes. – The Times

NatWest has granted itself “sweeping new powers” to limit cash deposits and withdrawals, fuelling warnings that banks are forcing customers towards a “cashless society”. The high-street bank has told current account holders it is bringing in new conditions “giving us the right to set limits on inbound and outbound payments”. – Telegraph

US close

Stocks on Wall Street closed in negative territory on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 0.43% at 35,065.62.

The S&P 500 was off 0.53% at 4,478.03, and the Nasdaq Composite was 0.36% lower at 13,909.24.