Barratt still seeing strong demand, Diversified shares tumble on gas leak reports

Stocks to watch

House builder Barratt said strong demand for its homes had continued into the current fiscal year despite a reduction in government incentives, adding it was on track to deliver full-year medium targets. In a trading update covering July 1 - October 10, Barratt said net weekly private reservations averaged 281 down 2.3% year on year, but up 18.1% against a pre-pandemic comparative.

Shares in Diversified Energy tumbled 21% on Tuesday, after it was reported that some of its aging gas wells were leaking methane. Journalists from Bloomberg assessed US well sites owned by Diversified, and reportedly found methane leaks “at most” of the places it had visited. The report sent the shares tumbling, and by 1300 BST they had lost 21% at 99.98p.

Newspaper round-up

Apple may slash the number of iPhone 13s it will make this year by up to 10m because of a shortage of computer chips amid a worldwide supply chain crunch that led the White House to warn that “there will be things that people can’t get” at Christmas. Apple was expected to produce 90m units of the new iPhone models this year but has told its manufacturers that the number would be lower because chip suppliers including Broadcom and Texas Instruments were struggling to deliver components, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday. - Guardian

The EU will offer to remove a majority of post-Brexit checks on British goods entering Northern Ireland as it seeks to turn the page on the rancorous relationship with Boris Johnson. Up to 50% of customs checks on goods would be lifted and more than half the checks on meat and plants entering Northern Ireland would be abandoned under the bold offer from Brussels. - Guardian

Steel, chemical and ceramics manufacturers hit by soaring energy prices are to be offered state-backed rescue loans in return for limiting bosses’ bonuses and dividends under plans being considered by ministers. Kwasi Kwarteng, the Business Secretary, is understood to have submitted the proposal to the Treasury as one of several options to save energy-intensive companies from collapse in the face of rocketing wholesale gas prices. - Telegraph

The world’s largest shipping firm has diverted giant cargo ships away from the UK, leading to fears of a shortage of toys, clothes and electronics at Christmas. Maersk, the Danish shipping giant, announced that larger vessels would be ordered to dock elsewhere in Europe to avoid growing congestion at Felixstowe Port in Suffolk caused in part by a shortage of lorry drivers. - Telegraph

A key investor presentation intended to soothe City jitters over The Hut Group backfired spectacularly yesterday when it was followed by a barrage of sell orders and £1.9 billion was wiped from the company’s value. Matt Moulding, co-founder, chief executive and executive chairman of the online retailer, said at the start of the virtual meeting that he intended to set the record straight about the scepticism over the company’s Ingenuity platform — doubts that have already led to some short-selling attacks on the company. - The Times

US close

Wall Street closed in negative territory on Tuesday after the International Monetary Fund cut its global growth forecast.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.34% at 34,378.34, the S&P 500 lost 0.24% to 4,350.65, and the Nasdaq Composite was off 0.14% to 14,465.92.

The Dow closed 117.72 points lower on Tuesday, adding on to the losses it recorded in Monday’s session.

Earlier in the day, the IMF cautioned that the Federal Reserve should be ready to tighten monetary policy if inflation ran too hot.

In its World Economic Outlook, the IMF said it expects global gross domestic product to grow by 5.9% in 2021, a 0.1% decrease on its July estimate.