Upstream Share Discussion Threads

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 23:56

US close: Stocks rise as jobless claims top forecasts

Wall Street saw gains in its major indices as the closing bell rang on Thursday, with investors closely monitoring the latest jobless claims figures from the Labor Department.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed by 0.85%, closing at 39,387.76,
while the S&P 500 posted gains of 0.51% to reach 5,214.08,
and the Nasdaq Composite managed a more modest increase of 0.27% to 16,346.26.

In currency markets, the dollar was last down 0.2% on sterling to trade at 79.85p, while it slipped 0.32% against the common currency to 92.74 euro cents.

"Today's US initial jobless claims report is softer than expected for the first time in a while, marking the weakest weekly print in eight months," said Ryan Brandham at Validus Risk Management.

"After a period of remarkable strength and resilience, signs are growing that the US labour market may be starting to soften."

Brandham noted that last Friday also saw a weaker-than-expected US employment report.

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 23:17

UK government approves Vodafone-Three merger with conditions

(Alliance News) - The proposed merger of Vodafone Group PLC's UK business with CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd's Three UK has been cleared by the UK government, under the National Security and Investment Act.

The Cabinet Office in a "final order" said the secretary of state had approved the proposal subject to conditions.

These include the establishment of a national security committee within the combined entity to "oversee sensitive work," and establishment of a technical group within the National Security Committee which will monitor a specified list of topics relating to cyber, physical and personnel security.

The Secretary of State considers that these measures mitigate any risks to national security.

In April, the UK's competition watchdog said the proposed merger would be the subject of a more in-depth probe.

The Competition & Markets Authority said any measures to soothe antitrust concerns were not offered to the regulator.

In a joint statement, Vodafone and Three UK said: "We are pleased our proposed joint venture has been approved by the Government under the National Security and Investment Act.

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 22:56

CCT 293p (17p / 6.16%%) / Character Group shares jump as it predicts full-year profit beat
(Alliance News) - Character Group PLC on Thursday said it was on track to beat full-year market expectations after reporting progress in the first half of the financial year.

In the six months ended February, the Surrey-based toy, games and giftware company said pretax profit multiplied to GBP2.2 million, up from GBP0.2 million a year prior. Basic earnings per share rose to 9.31 pence from a loss of 0.85p per share.

The improved profitability reflected lower selling and distribution costs, and came despite sales ticking down to GBP57.6 million from GBP57.9 million.

Character Group noted lower logistics costs associated with the its Scandinavian business, as inventory was significantly reduced from last year, and increased influencer sales in the UK domestic market producing a lower advertising to sales ratio.

Gross profit margin in the period improved slightly to 27.2%, compared to 26.9% in the same six month period in 2023 and 26.7% for the August 2023 financial year.

"We have been encouraged by the enthusiasm with which our product portfolio has been received by our customers. The industry buzz around some of our new releases, such as Terror Fried, and new additions to our established lines, like Goo Jit Zu, is very encouraging too", the company said.

"The group has a strong portfolio of products, underpinned by a strong balance sheet, and has a net cash position with substantial un-utilised working capital facilities in place. On the back of our first half-year's performance and these signs of the group's robust health, we anticipate profit before tax and highlighted items in respect of the full year to August 31 will exceed current market expectations."

"The board is comfortable that the group is on course to meet its targets," it added.

Character Group declared an unchanged interim dividend of 8.0p per share.

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 22:21

MARKET REPORT
LONDON MARKET CLOSE: FTSE 100 climbs after doveish BoE decision

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London closed higher on Thursday, with the FTSE 100 achieving another record high, supported by a Bank of England rate decision that had a doveish tilt.

At its May meeting, the BoE's Monetary Policy Committee voted by a majority of 7 to 2 to maintain bank rate at 5.25%. Two members preferred to reduce the bank rate by 0.25 percentage points, to 5.00%.

Seven members, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey, Sarah Breeden, Ben Broadbent, Megan Greene, Jonathan Haskel, Catherine Mann and Huw Pill voted in favour of the status quo.

Swati Dhingra and BoE Deputy Governor Dave Ramsden voted for a cut.

The FTSE 100 index ended up 27.30 points, 0.3% at 8,381.35. The FTSE 250 closed up 39.31 points, 0.2%, at 20,531.30, and the AIM All-Share ended up 3.87 points, 0.5%, at 783.70.

The Cboe UK 100 rose 0.4% to 837.33, the Cboe UK 250 also added 0.4% to 17,820.39, and the Cboe Small Companies climbed 0.3% to 16,039.15.

"We think the [Monetary Policy Committee] has laid the groundwork for a June rate cut. But the path to a late spring rate cut will have to go through two rounds of inflation and wage data. Big beats in the forthcoming inflation data could further delay the start of a gradual easing cycle, but we think the bar for large hawkish surprises is very high given the tweaks to the bank's near-term projections. Overall, we continue to expect the MPC to deliver three quarter-point rate cuts this year (75bps) – in line with our long-held view," Deutsche Bank analyst Sanjay Raja commented.

The Bank of England on Thursday moved a step nearer to a summer interest rate cut, but would not commit on whether this would come as soon as June.

"The progress we are seeing in the key economic data is encouraging, but we are not yet at the point of cutting interest rates. We need to see more evidence that inflation will stay low before we can do that," the BoE said.

At a press conference following the decision, BoE Governor Andrew Bailey said "we are not yet at a point where we can cut bank rate".

Sterling was quoted at USD1.2511 late on Thursday afternoon, recovering from some of the weakness it showed immediately after the BoE decision, higher than USD1.2495 at the London equities close on Wednesday.

Also rising were interest rate sensitive stocks in London. Property portal Rightmove added 1.8%, housebuilder Taylor Wimpey climbed 1.7% and estate agent Foxtons shot up 5.8%.

In European equities on Thursday, the CAC 40 in Paris added 0.7%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt surged 1.0%, hitting a record high.

The euro traded at USD1.0775 at the time of the European equities close on Thursday, higher than USD1.0749 late Wednesday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY155.61, up slightly versus JPY155.55.

In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.5%, the S&P 500 was 0.3% higher and the Nasdaq Composite also added 0.3%.

US initial jobless claims increased in the week just gone, coming in ahead of a market forecast, according to numbers on Thursday, suggesting the labour market is cooling.

The US Department of Labor said initial unemployment insurance claims totalled 231,000 in the week to May 4, rising from 209,000 a week prior. The prior reading was upwardly revised from 208,000.

The latest reading topped the FXStreet-cited market consensus of 210,000. It was also the highest number of initial jobless claims since the week to August 26, when they totalled 234,000.

Oxford Economics analyst Nancy Vanden Houten commented: "One week's rise in initial jobless claims doesn't change our forecast for the Fed to keep policy steady until September. The Fed likely welcomes evidence of a further loosening in labour market conditions, which will contribute to slowing in wage growth and inflation.

"Unless the labour market weakens substantially, which we don't expect, changes in Fed policy will be determined almost exclusively by readings on inflation. We think the Fed needs to see a string of reports showing inflation is heading back to a sustainable path toward 2% before lowering interest rates."

In the FTSE 250, Harbour Energy rose 7.7%.

The oil and gas company said first quarter production averaged 172,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, down from 202,000 barrels a year earlier.

It proposed a final dividend of 13 US cents, up from 12 cents a year earlier, in line with its USD200 million annual dividend policy and representing around 9% growth year-on-year.

Harbour Energy Chief Executive Officer Linda Cook commented: "During the first quarter, we continued to deliver safe and responsible operations, maximise the value of our UK production base and advance our organic growth projects. At the same time, we made significant progress towards completion of the Wintershall Dea acquisition which will transform our portfolio and capital structure and support enhanced and sustainable shareholder returns."

Among London's small-caps, Avon Protection rose 4.2%.

The personal protection equipment company said it won a contract from the UK Ministry of Defence worth up to GBP38 million for the continued supply of general service respirator and associated in service support.

The contract runs for four years with five further 12-month option periods.

Brent oil was trading at USD83.62 a barrel late on Thursday, higher than USD83.48 late Wednesday. Gold was quoted at USD2,332.88 an ounce, higher than USD2,317.69 on Wednesday.

Friday's economic calendar has a UK gross domestic product reading at 0700 BST.

The local corporate calendar has first-quarter results from British Airways parent International Consolidated Airlines Group.

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 22:05

DOW

Finishing in a good mood all day with 331 points higher

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 16:49

Barclays sees huge upside for NatWest despite recent rally

(Sharecast News) - NatWest's share-price surge since the start of the year could well continue, according to analysts at Barclays, who hiked their target price for the stock on Thursday.

Barclays reiterated its 'overweight' rating on the stock, which has gained 15% over the past month and 45% since the start of the year.

"Despite strong share-price performance (+45% YTD), we continue to see significant upside," Barclays said in a research note.

As a result of higher earnings and lower cost of equity, Barclays hiked its target price from 330p to 400p, a level not seen since 2015, compared with Wednesday's closing price of 317p.

"EPS momentum is turning positive, we are 10%+ ahead of [consensus], and with an exit of UK government firmly in sight, we expect an ongoing re-rating on strongly growing tangible net asset value," Barclays said.

NatWest shares were up 0.4% at 318.3p by 1551 BST.

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 16:30

How the UPS are performing during last month

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 16:17

How the UPS are performing today

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 15:44

BREAKOUT

SALT 78p +12.50p

Has broken up the previous Intraday high 72.50p with volume

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 14:42

DOW

Opening down 33 points

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 13:50

EEE 7.20p +0.35p

Gold price was slowly moving higher earlier but now is at $2,329 +20 which helps on today's movent up

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 13:14

MARKET REPORT
LONDON MARKET MIDDAY: Stocks climb as BoE holds but two back cut

(Alliance News) - The FTSE 100 was higher on Thursday afternoon, after the Bank of England maintained the benchmark UK interest rate at 5.25%, albeit with a vote split that encouraged rate cut expectations.

Threadneedle Street maintained bank rate at a 16-year high for the sixth meeting in-a-row. However, two members of its Monetary Policy Committee backed a 25 basis point cut. Seven, Governor Andrew Bailey included, supported the hold.

Sterling was quoted at USD1.2458 at midday on Thursday, lower than USD1.2495 at the London equities close on Wednesday, and down from USD1.2488 just before the BoE decision.

The BoE said: "Headline CPI inflation has continued to fall back, in part owing to base effects and external effects from goods prices. The restrictive stance of monetary policy is weighing on activity in the real economy, is leading to a looser labour market and is bearing down on inflationary pressures. Key indicators of inflation persistence are moderating broadly as expected, although they remain elevated."

The FTSE 100 index was up 37.96 points, 0.5% at 8,392.01. The FTSE 250 was up 37.15 points, 0.2%, at 20,529.14, and the AIM All-Share was up 2.43 points, 0.3%, at 782.26.

The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.5% at 838.19, the Cboe UK 250 was 0.3% higher at 17,806.89, and the Cboe Small Companies was up 0.5% at 16,076.45.

In European equities on Thursday, the CAC 40 in Paris was marginally down, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was up 0.4%, hitting a record high.

The euro traded at USD1.0736 at midday on Thursday, lower than USD1.0749 late Wednesday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY155.90 versus JPY155.55.

In the FTSE 100, BAE Systems rose 0.7%.

The aerospace and defence manufacturer said trading is in line with expectations, backed by increased defence spending.

In a statement ahead of its annual general meeting, Chief Executive Charles Woodburn said: "Operational performance continues to be strong and our backlog and programme incumbencies underscore our confidence in our long-term value-creating model."

BAE Systems said its full-year 2024 guidance remains unchanged. It expects 2024 sales growth between 10% to 12% from GBP25.28 billion in 2023, with underlying earnings before interest and tax to grow between 11% to 13% from GBP2.68 billion. Underlying earnings per share are predicted to grow between 6% to 8% from 63.2 pence in 2023.

In the FTSE 250, Harbour Energy rose 6.9%.

The oil and gas company said first quarter production averaged 172,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, down from 202,000 barrels a year earlier.

It proposed a final dividend of 13 US cents, up from 12 cents a year earlier, in line with its USD200 million annual dividend policy and representing around 9% growth year-on-year.

Harbour Energy Chief Executive Officer Linda Cook commented: "During the first quarter, we continued to deliver safe and responsible operations, maximise the value of our UK production base and advance our organic growth projects. At the same time, we made significant progress towards completion of the Wintershall Dea acquisition which will transform our portfolio and capital structure and support enhanced and sustainable shareholder returns."

Among London's small-caps, Avon Protection rose 2.9%.

The personal protection equipment company said it won a contract from the UK Ministry of Defence worth up to GBP38 million for the continued supply of general service respirator and associated in service support.

The contract runs for four years with five further 12-month option periods.

On AIM in London, Robinson surged 20%.

The plastic and paperboard packaging manufacturer said it is in "advanced discussions" over the appointment of a new chief executive officer, after a "thorough search process with a leading recruitment agency".

In August last year, it reported that Helene Roberts would resign as CEO in September, with senior independent non-executive director Sara Halton taking over on an interim basis while the company searched for a new CEO.

Meanwhile, in a trading update, Robinson said the momentum that it experienced in the second half of 2023 has continued into 2024.

Sales volumes in the first four months of 2024 are up 12% from a year earlier. With the effect of sales price and foreign exchange movements, total revenue is up 8%.

Looking ahead, the company expects 2024 revenue and profit to be ahead of 2023 and current market expectations.

Stocks in New York were called lower. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 were each called down 0.1% and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.2%.

Brent oil was trading at USD84.22 a barrel at midday on Thursday, higher than USD83.48 late Wednesday.

Two top Israeli officials criticised US President Joe Biden on Thursday for threatening to stop certain arms supplies to Israel if it invades the crowded Gaza city of Rafah.

Israel has defied international objections by sending in tanks and conducting "targeted raids" in the eastern areas of Rafah.

It says Rafah is home to Hamas's last remaining battalions but the city on the border with Egypt is also crammed with displaced Palestinian civilians.

"If they go into Rafah, I'm not supplying the weapons that have been used... to deal with the cities," Biden told CNN, in his starkest warning to Israel since the start of the war.

"Civilians have been killed in Gaza as a consequence of those bombs," Biden said. "It's just wrong."

Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Gilad Erdan, said Biden's comments would be interpreted by Israel's foes Iran, Hamas, and Hezbollah as "something that gives them hope to succeed".

Gold was quoted at USD2,310.71 an ounce at midday on Thursday, lower than USD2,317.69 on Wednesday.

Still to come on Thursday's economic calendar, the latest US jobless claims figures are out at 1330 BST.

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 13:03

Bank of England holds interest rates at 5.25%
Summary
The Bank of England holds interest rates again at 5.25%
Of the nine members of the Monetary Policy Committee - which makes the decision - seven voted to hold, and two to cut
The governor of the Bank says it needs to "see more evidence" of falling inflation before cutting the base rate
But Andrew Bailey adds he is "optimistic that things are moving in the right direction"
High interest rates are supposed to reduce inflation by making borrowing more expensive, which reduces consumers' spending power
Inflation in the UK has fallen to 3.2% - but is still above the Bank's target of 2%
-------------------
Rate cuts may be faster than markets predict, says Bailey

Returning to the Bank's news conference, Governor Andrew Bailey says the pace of future cuts to rates may need to be faster than currently priced in by financial markets to try to ensure inflation does not fall below the Bank's 2% target.

"It's likely that we will need to cut bank rates over the coming quarters and make monetary policy somewhat less restrictive over the forecast period - possibly more so than currently priced into market rates," he told reporters.

"This will be consistent with ensuring that inflation does not fall noticeably below target at the end point of the forecast."

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 12:51

How the UPS are performing during last month

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 12:00

How the UPS are performing today

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 11:31

PAF 24.15 (0.50 / 2.11%%) - Pan African Resources predicts "robust" yearly production
(Alliance News) - Pan African Resources PLC said on Thursday it has lifted the bottom end of its annual production guidance after stopping to process surface material at its mine in Mpumalanga, South Africa.

The Rosebank-headquartered gold producer now expects production to range between 186,000 ounces and 190,000 ounces for the financial year ending June 30, from 180,000 ounces to 190,000 ounces forecast previously. For financial 2023, output was 175,209 ounces.

The miner said it had ceased processing of marginal surface sources at Evander Gold Mines in the second half because it had become uneconomical. This business contributed about 2,500 ounces in the first half of the 2024 financial year

If production from these sources was maintained in the second half, full-year production would have exceeded 190,000 ounces, it said.

Pan African maintained all-in sustaining cost guidance for financial 2024 at between USD1,325 and USD1,350 an ounce, compared to USD1,327 in 2023.

"The robust production results, combined with record rand gold prices, should see the group deliver an excellent financial performance for the year," Chief Executive Officer Cobus Loots said.

Production guidance for the 2025 financial year is between 215,000 ounces and 225,000 ounces.

The gold producer said the Mogale tailings retreatment project is on schedule for commissioning and steady state production during December. It has said this project will add about 50,000 ounces per year.

Pan African also said it will proceed with the necessary permitting and servitudes required for the re-mining and processing of the Soweto cluster, with a final investment decision in due course.

In October 2022, Pan African acquired Mogale Gold Pty Ltd and Mintails' SA Soweto Cluster Pty Ltd for ZAR50.0 million.

An internal pre-feasibility study for the Soweto cluster was completed in March 2024, Pan African said on Thursday.

Under consideration, the company may develop re-mining, overland piping and pumping infrastructure at the Soweto cluster resource to process the material at the Mogale tailings retreatment plant.

Pan African expects to release its financial results on September 11.

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 11:03

Harbour Energy makes significant progress to complete Wintershall deal
(Alliance News) - Harbour Energy PLC on Thursday said it was on track to complete the acquisition of Wintershall Dea in the fourth quarter after receiving further regulatory clearances.

Harbour is an oil and gas company operating in the UK North Sea, with additional assets in Indonesia, Vietnam, Mexico and Norway.

Shares in the company rose 4.5% to 292.30 pence in London on Thursday.

In a trading update ahead of Thursday's annual general meeting, Harbour Energy said it made "significant progress" on the various approvals required to complete the acquisition of the Wintershall Dea portfolio.

All regulatory, anti-trust and foreign direct investment approvals required for completion continue to progress as planned, including clearance received from the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Action in Germany, which satisfies the German foreign direct investment closing condition.

Analysts at Jefferies said the regulatory approvals mean the deal completion risk "appears to be significantly reducing."

It described the German approval as a "significant positive."

In December, Harbour Energy said it had reached an agreement with BASF SE and LetterOne to acquire "substantially all" of the Wintershall Dea's upstream assets for USD11.20 billion.

In the first quarter, Harbour Energy said production averaged 172 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day, down from 202 kboepd a year prior. Full year guidance of 150 to 165 kboepd was reiterated.

Operating costs averaged around USD18/boe, up from USD15/boe a year ago. The full year forecast was unchanged at around USD18/boe.

Harbour Energy said total capital expenditure in the quarter was around USD250 million. Full year guidance of around USD1.2 billion was reiterated.

Net debt fell to USD0.1 billion at end of March from USD0.2 billion at the end of 2023.

Harbour Energy said it continues to expect to be marginally free cash flow positive in 2024, and expects to generate significantly higher free cash flow next year resulting in a net cash position by year end 2025.

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 10:16

SALT 71.50p +4.00 (5.93%) / Shares magazine - Blue sky potential : MicroSalt (SALT:AIM) 70.5p
Excess sodium consumption is a major contributor to hypertension and heart disease with a big part of the typical person’s intake hidden in processed foods. With this health crisis front of mind, the WHO has set a target for slashing global sodium consumption by 30% by 2025, which it estimates will save 7 million lives by 2030.

One market minnow on a mission to reduce sodium consumption and heart disease is MicroSalt (SALT:AIM), producer of a patented full-flavour, low-sodium salt for food manufacturers and consumers that is strengthening its intellectual property position and could reward a punt if its technology fulfils its tasty potential over the next decade, though the market newcomer is no stock for widows and orphans.

Revenue remains modest and the company chalked up operating losses of $2.5 million in the year to December 2022 followed by a $1.7 million deficit in the six months to June 2023 due to ongoing investment in the MicroSalt brand and new product formulations. Liquidity is also thin given TekCapital’s (TEK:AIM) majority stake.

Nevertheless, the shares are up 65% on February 2024’s 43p IPO (initial public offering) price in recognition of its potential to disrupt the food industry and growth scope in a global sodium reduction ingredients industry worth an estimated US$5.5 billion in 2021 and forecast to reach US$9.6 billion by 2032.

Management believes the £30.5 million cap, whose consumer products include 50% less sodium salt shakers and SaltMe! low sodium crisps selling on Amazon (AMZN:NDQ) and stocked on retail shelves across the pond, is well positioned to capture growth in the low sodium market and enter the larger salt market, with major, though as yet unnamed, food, drink and snack manufacturers developing and trialling MicroSalt across their products.

MicroSalt has also secured its first placement into the premium food service sector with Carma, a chain of restaurants in Canada, which CEO Rick Guiney said demonstrates ‘the wide appeal of Microsalt and offers a real-world example of our potential in the foodservice channel’. [JC]

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 09:20

MARKET REPORT
LONDON MARKET OPEN: Stocks muted pre-BoE interest rate decision

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened muted on Thursday, ahead of the latest interest rate decision from the Bank of England.

The FTSE 100 index opened down just 2.68 points at 8,351.37. The FTSE 250 was down 10.32 points, 0.1%, at 20,481.67, while the AIM All-Share was up 1.41 points, 0.2%, at 781.24.

The Cboe UK 100 was marginally up at 833.97, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.1% at 17,770.89, and the Cboe Small Companies was marginally up at 16,004.35.

In European equities on Thursday, the CAC 40 in Paris was marginally up, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was up 0.2%.

The BoE is expected to leave the benchmark bank rate unchanged again on Thursday, but focus will be on whether the central bank lays the groundwork for a June cut.

The central bank announces its latest rate decision at 1200 BST, alongside the monetary policy report of economic projections. A press conference with Governor Andrew Bailey follows at 1230 BST.

The BoE's 25 basis points hike in August meant it has lifted rates by 5.15% during the current hiking cycle. Threadneedle Street has left rates unmoved in each of the five meetings since, however.

"Today's Bank of England update is expected to keep policy interest rates on hold at 5.25% for a sixth meeting in a row. However, the key issue is what signals will be given on future policy changes, including the timing of a first rate cut and the number of cuts," said Lloyds Bank.

"As is the case elsewhere, financial markets have pared back their expectations for a UK rate reduction. A June reduction is now seen as having a 50% probability, and while a first cut by August is pretty much fully discounted, the number of cuts expected in total this year is around two, down from six at the start of the year. That change is partly a response to the recalibration of expectations for US interest rates but it also reflects domestic uncertainties.

"In particular, several Monetary Policy Committee members still seem concerned about the persistence of domestic inflationary pressures, including wage growth and service prices. Nevertheless, with headline inflation set to fall close to the 2% target in April and interest rates in restrictive territory, there is scope for a signal that current market pricing on rates may be too pessimistic."

Sterling was quoted at USD1.2474 early Thursday, lower than USD1.2495 at the London equities close on Wednesday.

The euro traded at USD1.0732 early Thursday, lower than USD1.0749 late Wednesday. Against the yen, the dollar was quoted at JPY155.82 versus JPY155.55.

In the FTSE 100, 3i lost 4.1%. The infrastructure investment trust said net asset value per share on March 31 was 2,085 pence, up from 1,745p a year earlier.

Across financial 2024, it recorded a total return of 23%, down from 36% a year earlier. 3i said operating pretax profit fell to GBP3.83 billion from GBP4.58 billion, which it blamed on foreign exchange loss on investments versus gain.

It declared a dividend of 34.5p per share, up from 29.75p a year earlier, taking its total financial 2024 dividend to 61p from 53p a year earlier.

In the FTSE 250, Harbour Energy rose 6.0%.

The oil and gas company said first quarter production averaged 172,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, down from 202,000 barrels a year earlier.

It proposed a final dividend of 13 US cents, up from 12 cents a year earlier, in line with its USD200 million annual dividend policy and representing around 9% growth year-on-year.

Harbour Energy Chief Executive Officer Linda Cook commented: "During the first quarter, we continued to deliver safe and responsible operations, maximise the value of our UK production base and advance our organic growth projects. At the same time, we made significant progress towards completion of the Wintershall Dea acquisition which will transform our portfolio and capital structure and support enhanced and sustainable shareholder returns."

Elsewhere in London, Metals Exploration lost 8.6%, after the AIM-listed, Philippines-focused gold producer said two of its lenders dispute a lower interest rate of 7%, as opposed to 15%, should apply to the company's debt facilities.

It said Runruno Holdings Ltd and D&A Holdings Ltd claim several events of default have occurred under the debt facilities.

Metals Explorations noted the claims would result in USD2.0 million being owed to both lenders, although it disputes these allegations.

In Asia on Thursday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo ended down 0.3%. In China, the Shanghai Composite ended up 0.8%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was up 1.1% in late dealings. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed down 1.1%

In the US on Wednesday, Wall Street ended mixed, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.4%, the S&P 500 little changed and the Nasdaq Composite down 0.2%.

Brent oil was trading at USD84.01 a barrel early Thursday, higher than USD83.48 late Wednesday.

President Joe Biden said he would stop US weapons supplies to Israel if it attacks Rafah in southern Gaza, his most direct warning to date over the prosecution of the war against Hamas.

In an interview with CNN, Biden also deplored the fact that civilians had been killed by the dropping of US bombs on the Palestinian territory.

His fresh warning came after the US last week halted a shipment of huge American bombs to Israel as it appeared ready to proceed with a major attack on Rafah – a city packed with Palestinian civilians sheltering near the Egyptian border.

Gold was quoted at USD2,308.07 an ounce early Thursday, lower than USD2,317.69 on Wednesday.

Still to come on Thursday's economic calendar, the latest US jobless claims figures are out at 1330 BST.

[master rsi] 09/5/2024 08:54

China imports smash forecasts as exports also rise

(Sharecast News) - China's exports rose 1.5% in April, while imports surged 8.4%, beating forecasts, according to data released by the customs agency on Thursday.

Economists had tipped imports to increase 4.8%. The figure also reversed a 1.9% fall in March.

Exports to the US fell 2.8%, while shipments to Russia were 13.56% lower year on year.

"The notable increase in imports suggests potential policy stimulus driving the surge. However, the rise in exports may exacerbate tensions with US leaders contemplating tariff hikes," said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.