Future postpones two UK events, Standard Life Aberdeen adjusted profits fall

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Specialist media company Future said it was postponing two UK events due to the coronavirus but said it did not expect any impact on profits for the fiscal year from the epidemic. The company on Tuesday said it was postponing the Photography Show and the Homebuilding & Renovating Show, both of which were scheduled to be held at the NEC in Birmingham later this month but were now expected to run in September and July respectively.

Asset manager Standard Life Aberdeen reported a fall in adjusted full year profits as revenues fell due to lower fee income. Fee based revenue fell 13% to £1.63bn, reflecting the impact of net outflows in 2018 and 2019. Underlying pre-tax profit, which stripped out one-off gains and losses from asset sales and write-downs, fell 10% to £584m. The company said the outlook for markets and the wealth management industry in 2020 was “turbulent” given the additional complexity of the coronavirus.

TP ICAP said its group revenue rose 4% on a reported basis to £1.83bn in its final results on Tuesday, or by 1% at constant currency. The FTSE 250 company said its global broking revenue was down 1% on a reported basis as resilient rates operations were offset by weaker credit and equities divisions, while its energy and commodities revenue was ahead 15% thanks to strong organic growth, strategic hires, the Axiom acquisition and “favourable” markets. Its operating profit was up to £279m from £276m for the year ended 31 December, although its basic earnings per share fell to 33.8p from 34.2p.

Newspaper round-up

Food delivery and digital subscription services are witnessing a surge in sales while department stores, fashion chains and restaurants are taking a hit, as consumers opt to stay in with a takeaway to avoid the recent storms and the coronavirus outbreak. In the latest blow to retailers already suffering from the shift to online shopping, more than a quarter of shoppers said they were avoiding high streets and other busy places because they were afraid of contracting the bug, according to a survey by debit and credit card operator Barclaycard. – Guardian

The chancellor, Rishi Sunak, is facing mounting pressure to announce a package of emergency measures in Wednesday’s budget designed to support companies and households through the worst of the coronavirus outbreak. Business leaders warned that the growing scale of the disruption for the economy amid widespread panic on financial markets meant urgent steps were required to shore up confidence. The Institute of Directors said Sunak needed to announce measures on Wednesday to provide UK companies with extra breathing space to spread out their tax payments. – Guardian

The battered retail industry suffered a fresh hit last month as shoppers stayed at home to escape storms Ciara and Dennis and the threat of coronavirus loomed. Widespread flooding led to a 0.4pc slowdown in sales at stores open more than a year compared to 12 months earlier, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and KPMG said. – Telegraph

A post-election “Boris bounce” in the confidence of business leaders has been destroyed by the coronavirus outbreak, a new survey has revealed. More than one in five bosses believe the outbreak of Covid-19 poses a “high” or “severe” threat to their companies, as employers encourage staff to work remotely and cancel travel plans. – The Times

Sales of the iPhone in China fell 61 per cent last month as the coronavirus epidemic took hold, a report showed yesterday. Apple sold 494,000 of its smartphones in the country compared with 1.27 million in the same month last year, according to the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology. Sales of iPhones in January stood at two million. – The Times

US close

Stocks on Wall Street plunged by unprecedented amounts on Monday, as coronavirus fears rolled on, which combined with an unexpected price slash from oil producer Saudi Arabia to make for a particularly dark day.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 7.79% to 23,851.02, the S&P 500 was down 7.6% to 2,746.56, and the Nasdaq Composite was 7.29% lower at 7,950.68.

“Stock markets in freefall and it seems unlikely central banks and governments in the short-term can do anything,” said Oanda’s Edward Moya.

“Technical selling is getting ugly and even though expectations are high the Fed will take rates to the zero bound, the retail investor will likely want to wait this one out.”

Moya said it seemed the collapse with oil prices had added a log to the deflationary fire the Fed wanted to try and extinguish.

“Virus fears, deflationary risks, and growing stress in the credit markets, means markets will see the Fed launch a new QE program very soon.”

At the open, a 7% drop on the S&P 500 triggered the so-called ‘circuit breaker’ mechanism, designed to help delay a complete market crash, which led to a short halt to trading.

A drop below 2,710 points would have seen the benchmark gauge enter so-called 'bear market" territory.