Market Pulse
Weir's CEO steps down as group reports drop in first half earnings
Weir Group announced on Thursday that chief executive Keith Cochane is stepping down as the engineering giant reported a drop in first half pre-tax profit.
Brexit may catapult UK to front of self-driving technology race
Britain could be in prime position to take advantage of new self-driving technology due to Brexit, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Motors (SMMT) has said.
Intu Properties raises full year guidance as first half earnings rise
Property management company Intu Properties on Thursday raised its full year guidance for rental income growth as it reported an increase in first half underlying earnings.
Compass confident after third quarter growth
Compass posted a third quarter trading update on Thursday, and said it continues to have a good year, with organic revenue growth of 5. 6% for the nine months to 30 June 2016.
RELX posts good underlying growth in first half
Global professional information and analytics company RELX Group posted its interim results for the six months to 30 June on Thursday, reporting continued underlying growth in revenue, operating profit and earnings in the first half of of the year.
Europe open: Stocks mixed as traders mull mixed signals
European stocks were mixed on Thursday morning, with Germany and France higher but the UK, Italy and Spain's benchmarks lower after the Federal Reserve statement overnight and ahead of Japan's stimulus decision.
Exchange rates hurt first half at British American Tobacco
Cigarette manufacturing giant British American Tobacco posted its half-year results for the six months to 30 June on Thursday, with group revenue up 7. 8% at constant rates of exchange to £6. 9bn, or 6. 0% on an organic basis.
Facebook blows estimates away with 59% quarterly revenue growth
Social network giant Facebook easily surpassed analyst estimates in its second quarter results on Wednesday evening, with its total revenue growing 59. 2% to $6. 44bn compared to the corresponding period last year.
Construction workload slows due to Brexit uncertainity, says RICS
Construction workloads and employment in the sector continued to grow slowly as Brexit uncertainty delayed investment in recent months, according to the industry body for chartered surveyors.
AstraZeneca earnings see serious fall in first half
Drug giant AstraZeneca posted its first half results on Thursday, with total revenue down by 3% at constant exchange rates to $11. 718bn as expected, reflecting a 2% decline in product sales to $11. 034bn.
Lloyds to slash 3,000 more jobs as interim profits beat forecasts
Lloyds Banking Group generated a bigger pre-tax profit in the first half of the year that was expected and has begun the process of cutting 3,000 jobs, closing 200 branches and selling almost third of other properties to cut costs.
Asset management declines lead slide at Schroders
Asset management company Schroders posted its half-year results to 30 June on Thursday, with profit before tax dropping to £282. 3m from £290. 3m.
BT beats profit forecasts for first quarter and confirms outlook
BT got off to an encouraging start to its financial year, with profits beating market expectations helped by a healthy contribution from the continuing integration of mobile arm EE since January's acquisition.
Informa improves revenue and earnings, cash flow slows
Publishing and events company Informa posted its interim results for the six months to 30 June on Thursday, describing “accelerating organic revenue growth” of 2. 5%, against 0. 2% in in the first half of 2015 and 1. 0% in the 2015 fiscal year.
OM Asset Management raising $400m in note offerings
Old Mutual announced on Thursday morning that its OM Asset Management division has made underwritten public offerings of $400m aggregate principal amount of senior notes, consisting of $275m of senior notes due 2026 - the ‘Institutional Notes’ - and $125m of senior notes due 2031 - the ‘Retail Notes’.
Hammerson acquisition of Grand Central gets regulatory clearance
Hammerson received some positive news on Thursday morning, with an announcement from the Competition and Markets Authority that it has unconditionally cleared the acquisition of Grand Central, Birmingham.
Sky revenue and earnings ahead as customer numbers grow
Subscription broadcaster Sky posted results for the year to 30 June on Thursday morning, reporting a 7% increase in revenue to £11. 965bn, with adjusted operating profit up 12% to £1. 558bn.
Thursday newspaper round-up: EU customs union, RBS, oil glut, London City Airport
Theresa May is under growing pressure from Liam Fox, the trade secretary, to pull out of the EU customs union, a move required to facilitate post-Brexit bilateral trade deals but which would impose costs on exporters and could strain Anglo-Irish relations. The issue is looming as a battleground in discussions over whether the UK will pursue a “hard” or “soft” Brexit. It will have to be resolved before London triggers Article 50, the starting gun for withdrawal negotiations with the EU.
London pre-open: Stocks seen falling slightly as earnings glut digested
London stocks were expected to fall seven points on Thursday's open after a slightly more hawkish statement from the US Federal Reserve over night and ahead of expected stimulus from the Japanese and and UK central banks in coming few days.