Energean signs Israeli gas deal, Playtech fixes Israeli tax deal
London open
The FTSE 100 is expected to fall 30 points on Wednesday, having ended last year at 6,728.13.
Stocks to watch
Energean Oil and Gas said it had signed a $900m, 19 year gas sales deal with IPM Beer Tuvia. The contract is subject to necessary approvals and contingent on results of the company's 2019 drilling programme, which includes the drilling of four wells in Israel.
Playtech said it would pay an extra €28m in tax to Israel after an audit covering the 10 years to 2017. The company said it had reached a deal with the Israeli tax authorities over transfer pricing adjustments with no penalties imposed as a result of the audit.
Centamin executive chairman Josef El-Raghy will remain in the role as a non-executive director until 2020 after the Egyptian gold miner said it had not yet identified a suitable replacement. El-Raghy, whose executive duties were handed over to a new executive team last year, will be replaced by one of the three non-executive directors at the AGM next year.
Newspaper round-up
Rail passengers who spent 2018 wrestling with strike action, widespread cancellations and the worst punctuality in a decade will stage protests at railway stations around the country on Wednesday as fares rise by 3.1%. As commuters begin returning to work after the Christmas holiday, they face above-inflation ticket price increases described by Labour as an “affront” following well-documented disruption last year. – Guardian
Rail companies have been accused of “rewarding failure” after paying out £184 million to shareholders last year as the network was crippled by the chaotic introduction of new timetables. Analysis by the Trade Unions Congress (TUC) shows that companies collectively handed over more than £1 billion to shareholders over the past six years. - The Times
Mining giant Rio Tinto has further delayed the payment of a multi-million pound bonus to former boss Sam Walsh as it awaits the outcome of bribery investigations relating to its activities in Guinea. Mr Walsh has been waiting almost two years for the payment, which was first postponed in 2017 after Rio alerted the Serious Fraud Office and the US Department of Justice about payments in connection with the planned Simandou mine. – Telegraph
US close
US markets were closed on Tuesday but on Monday a final New Year's eve hurrah, thanks to signs of progress in US-China trade talks, was not enough to stop Wall Street from enduring its worst year since the financial crisis in 2008 and worst December since 1931.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended 2018 with a daily rise of 265.06 points or 1.2% at 23,327.46, but still falling almost 10% in December and 6% for the year as a whole. The S&P 500 gained 0.9% on the day to 2,506.85 but down 7% over the year, while the Nasdaq climbed 0.9% on the last day of the year but still recorded a dropof 5.3% for the past 12 months.
Indications of improving relations between the US and China helped to lift the tone after US President Donald Trump hailed "big progress" in talks over the weekend.