Market Pulse
Investec upgrades Barclays to 'buy'
Investec upgraded Barclays to ‘buy’ from ‘hold’ and lifted the price target to 200p from 195p.
Primary Health Properties makes first foray into Ireland
Primary healthcare facilities investor Primary Health Properties announced on Wednesday that it has completed the acquisition of its first primary care centre in the Republic of Ireland.
W Resources confirms first shipment from La Parrilla
Spain and Portugal focused tungsten, copper and gold, production, exploration and development company W Resources confirmed the first shipment of tungsten concentrate since plant start-up at La Parrilla, Spain in September on Wednesday.
UK unemployment rate holds steady, though slight cracks appear
The headline rate of UK unemployment remained unchanged over the summer, according to official figures released on Wednesday, though jobless claims figures for September provided a positive surprise.
Europe open: Stocks nudge lower as investors mull China data
European stocks drifted a little lower in early trade as investors sifted through more corporate releases and mulled over the latest data from China.
Laird plunges to five year low after profit warning
Although trading at Laird improved slightly in the third quarter, helped by currency shifts, it warned profits for the full year would be lower than expected due to delays in the mobile devices cycle and increased margin pressure.
London open: Stocks drift lower on disappointing earnings, softer China data
London equities began the morning slightly lower, weighed down by the latest updates out of Reckitt Benckiser and Travis Perkins, and slightly weaker than expected industrial numbers out of China.
Chinese GDP growth steady in third quarter of 2016
China´s gross domestic product grew at a steady clip during the third quarter of 2016, but some economists cautioned that the expansion was running on borrowed time.
Customer service focus leads to growth at Softcat
IT infrastructure products and services provider Softcat reported strong revenue and profit growth for the 12 months to 31 July, in its full-year results on Wednesday, with revenue improving 12. 8% to £672. 4m.
GW Pharmaceuticals to cancel London listing, keep Nasdaq
GW Pharmaceuticals plans to cancel its shares from trading on AIM on 5 December, with the last day of trading on the 2nd, but will keep its listing on the Nasdaq, where most of its shares are held and traded.
Foxtons revenue slips amid weak London market
Estate agent Foxtons reported a drop in quarterly sales on Wednesday amid ongoing weakness in the London market.
Rentokil Q3 revenue rises on strong pest control performance
Rentokil reported a jump in revenue for the third quarter following an “excellent” performance from the pest control business.
Production down but guidance unchanged at BHP Billiton
BHP Billiton posted its operational review for the three months to 30 September on Wednesday, with all of its production and unit cost guidance remaining unchanged for the 2017 financial year - though guidance for the Olympic Dam was under review after a state-wide power outage in South Australia.
Wednesday newspaper round-up: SoftBank, EU summit, Philip Green
Not for the first time in his career, a problem of resources was preventing Masayoshi Son, the billionaire Japanese technology investor, from realising his ambitions. His company SoftBank had recently stretched its balance sheet to splash $32bn on UK chip designer Arm. But the serial dealmaker, who believes in his ability to see into the future, wanted more. – Financial Times.
Travis Perkins closes 30 branches amid uncertain construction backdrop
One of the first companies in the construction sector to provide an update on the third quarter, Travis Perkins reported that market conditions have worsened and it has decided to close more than 40 sites and launch a cost-cutting programme.
London pre-open: Stocks seen up on upbeat US cues, China data
Stocks in London were set to open a touch higher on Wednesday, taking their cue from a positive close in the US and following the release of decent Chinese data.