Market Pulse
Pub and restaurant sales fall flat in February, Peach Tracker finds
Pub and restaurant sales were flat last month and the industry expects to endure a tougher year than last, according to a respected industry survey.
London open: Stocks rally ahead of BoE policy announcement
London stocks rallied on Thursday as investors continued to digest the previous day’s UK Budget and UK jobs data and looked towards the Bank of England’s policy announcement.
Softcat profit slips but full year expectations reaffirmed
IT infrastructure company Softcat, which listed on the London stock Exchange last year, posted a drop in full year operating profit despite an uptick in revenue.
Europe open: Stocks in the black as Fed signals slower pace of rate hikes
European stocks rose in early trade as investors welcomed the Federal Reserve’s decision to move more slowly on interest-rate hikes.
GSK's Advair Diskus proves non-inferior in paediatric safety study
A study to determine the safety GlaxoSmithKline's combined asthma treatment in children has hit its primary end point.
Expanded Kier Group lifts revenue, underlying profit
Kier Group saw revenue and underlying profit rise sizeably in the last six months of 2015, with its interim results on Thursday showing a 32% increase in revenue to £2. 1bn. Like-for-like revenue rose 9%.
Crest Nicholson forward sales up 16%
In a brief statement to be given at the annual general meeting, Crest Nicholson said the trading environment remains positive, with sales up to 11 March “correspondingly strong”.
Spire Healthcare swings to profit in 2015
FSTE 250 hospital group Spire Healthcare swung to a profit in 2015 as revenue edged higher.
LondonMetric adds three new warehouses
LondonMetric Property added three distribution warehouses to its estate on Thursday, spending £21. 8m on the 212,600 square feet of space. The net initial yield on the purchase was 6. 6%, contractually rising to 6. 9% within two years.
OneSavings lifts profit, grows loan book in 2015
OneSavings Bank lifted its profits and grew its loan book in 2015, it reported in its preliminary results on Thursday. Underlying profit before tax was up 52% to £105. 9m, and loans and advances grew 31% to £5. 1bn.
London pre-open: Stocks seen a little higher ahead of BoE announcement
London stocks are set to open a little higher on Thursday as investors digest the Federal Reserve’s decision to stand pat on rates and look to the Bank of England’s latest policy announcement.
Thursday newspaper round-up: Budget, PwC, Asda, Barclays
Small businesses were big winners in the Budget, with a host of tax cuts and other support. Emma Jones, founder of Enterprise Nation, a small business adviser, described it as “incredible”. “There’s reduced corporate tax, tax relief for sharing economy and no business rates for 600,000 small businesses. ” The Federation of Small Businesses also said the measures were welcome. – Financial Times.