Upstream Share Discussion Threads

[master rsi] 05/4/2024 08:53

German factory orders rise 0.2% in February

(Sharecast News) - German factory orders rose by 0.2% month-on-month in February, according to the Federal Statistical Office, missing estimates for a 0.8% jump but recovering from January's revised 11.4% tumble - the steepest fall since April 2020.

Orders grew for manufacturing electrical equipment, pharmaceuticals, and the chemical industry, while new orders contracted for automotive and manufacturing metal products.

Incoming orders expanded 2.2% for consumer goods and 1% for intermediate ones but fell 0.6% for capital goods.

Domestic orders gained 1.5%, while foreign orders dropped 0.7%, with demand from the Eurozone dropping 13.1% and demand outside the Eurozone rising 7.8% month-on-month.

The less volatile three-month average saw incoming orders from December 2023 to February 2024 rise 2.8% than in the previous three months. On an annualised basis, calendar-adjusted factory orders sunk 10.6%, steeper than the 6.2% fall seen in January.

[master rsi] 05/4/2024 08:25

FTSE

Well down at the start with 77 points lower after the DOW poor performance yesterday

[apotheki] 05/4/2024 07:44

Roquefort Therapeutics plc / LSE:ROQ

Response to Share Price Movement

Roquefort Therapeutics (LSE:ROQ, OTCQB:ROQAF), the Main Market listed biotech company focused on developing first in class medicines in the high value and high growth oncology market, notes recent bulletin board speculation about a placing that the Company may be undertaking.

The Company recently engaged its advisers to commence a process of market soundings in relation to a potential fundraise. However, in response to incorrect bulletin board comments regarding a speculative placing price and resulting unusual share price movements, the Board has decided to not proceed with any potential placing at this time.

As previously announced, Roquefort Therapeutics remains focused on completing an out-licensing agreement during the course of 2024 with potential Big Pharma partners and will update the market when a binding agreement is entered into.

[master rsi] 05/4/2024 00:20

US close: Fedspeak sinks shares ahead of jobs report

(Sharecast News) - US stocks fell sharply on Thursday with the Dow falling for the fourth straight day after a late-afternoon slump on the back of hawkish comments from members of the Federal Reserve.

The all-important non-farm payrolls number for March is due out on Friday and was dominating newsflow during the trading session, in light of recent upside surprises to economic data.

Investors are concerned that any pick-up in economic activity could lead to price pressures reigniting and delay a potential interest-rate cut by the Federal Reserve. Market forecasts are still pointing to a June rate cut, but resilient data this week has cast that prediction into doubt.

The Dow and Nasdaq both dropped 1.4% while the S&P 500 fell 1.2%. This 3.04% slump on the Dow over the past four sessions was the worst four-day losing streak since October last year.

Data and Fedspeak

Six members of the Fed took part in scheduled speeches on Thursday, as investors continued to watch comments closely for any hint at future adjustments to monetary policy. Among them was Richmond Fed president Thomas Barkin, who said it would be "smart for the Fed to take [its] time" before cutting rates. "No one wants inflation to reemerge," he said.

Meanwhile, head of the Chicago Fed Austan Goolsbee warned that the biggest "danger" to the inflation outlook was continued price increases in the housing services sector.

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 23:04

MARKET REPORT
LONDON MARKET CLOSE: US initial jobless claims hotter than expected

Stock prices in London closed up on Thursday, as investors first digested words from US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell overnight, before reacting to hotter-than-expected US initial jobless claims.

The FTSE 100 index closed up 38.45 points, 0.5%, at 7,975.89. The FTSE 250 ended up 119.55 points, 0.6%, at 19,873.19, and the AIM All-Share closed up 0.50 of a point at 742.58.

The Cboe UK 100 ended up 0.5% at 796.99, the Cboe UK 250 closed up 0.7% at 17,294.15, and the Cboe Small Companies ended up 0.6% at 14,746.83.

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

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that jobless claims increased to 221,000 in the week ended March 29, up from 212,000 and higher than the FXStreet-cited consensus of 214,000.

"Initial jobless claims rose to the highest level since late January in the week ended March 30, but remain comfortably below a level that would signal a significant weakening in labour market conditions," said Oxford Economics analyst Nancy Vanden Houten.

"The claims data and other labour market indicators are consistent with a job market that is still quite healthy. The Fed doesn't require a significant weakening in the labor market to begin cutting interest rates but does need to be confident the job market is balanced enough to support slower wage growth.

"However, based primarily on recent inflation data, we have pushed the timing of the first rate cut in our forecast from May to June."

On Wednesday evening, Fed Chair Powell told a conference in California that the current risks to the US economy were "two-sided," with negative consequences for the economy if policymakers moved to cut rates too fast or too slow.

"The risk, though, of moving too soon, really is...that inflation does move up," he said, adding that it "would be quite disruptive if we were to have to then come back in."

But if the US economy continues to evolve as expected, most Fed participants still expect it will be "appropriate to begin lowering the policy rate at some point this year," he said.

Eyes now turn to Friday's nonfarm payrolls reading, which is expected to show the pace of jobs growth eased to 200,000 in March, from 275,000 in February, according to FXStreet.

Numbers on Wednesday from payroll processor ADP showed the US private sector added more jobs in March than a month earlier.

Private sector employment increased by 184,000 jobs in March, rising from 155,000 in February. March's jobs growth topped the FXStreet cited consensus of 148,000.

The pound was quoted at USD1.2667 at the London equities close on Thursday, up from USD1.2630 late Wednesday. The euro stood at USD1.0865, rising from USD1.0827. Against the yen, the dollar was down to JPY151.67 from JPY151.72.

Stocks in New York were higher at the London equities close, with the DJIA up 0.4%, the S&P 500 index up 0.7%, and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.9%.

In London's FTSE 100, Entain led gains, rising 5.0%, after the sports betting and gambling firm said Interim Chief Executive Officer Stella David will replace Barry Gibson as chair by the end of September.

Gibson may step down earlier than September, Entain said, depending on the timing and appointment of a new CEO.

Entain noted it is continuing its search for a new CEO following Jette Nygaard-Andersen's departure in December.

Miners also fared well, with Antofagasta up 4.7%, Fresnillo up 3.2% and Anglo American 3.1%, while oil majors Shell and BP rose 0.6% and fell 0.8% respectively.

Brent oil was quoted at USD89.13 at the London equities close on Thursday, falling from USD89.69 at the London equities close on Wednesday. Brent had risen as high as USD89.95 on Wednesday, however.

Gold was quoted at USD2,292.67, rising from USD2,286.90 at the time of the London equities close on Wednesday. It had spiked to USD2,304.89 earlier on Thursday.

Lenders also fared well in the FTSE 100, with Lloyds up 3.0%, NatWest up 2.9%, and Barclays up 2.5%.

In the FTSE 250, Future surged 14%, after it said it was on course to deliver on expectations after returning to organic revenue growth in the second quarter.

The online magazine publisher and owner of the Go Compare price comparison site said the return to growth has been driven by a strong performance in Go Compare, alongside good growth in business to business, and a resilient performance in magazines.

However, this has been offset by a more challenging performance in affiliate products and digital advertising as macroeconomic pressures and low visibility continue to impact the wider sector.

Future said it was on-track to deliver on expectations for the financial year, subject to impact of foreign exchange translation. Cash conversion in the half has been strong, and it is highly cash generative, Future said.

Among London's small-caps, Gulf Marine Services rose 14%, after the provider of self-propelled and self-elevating support vessels for the offshore oil, gas, and renewable energy sectors reported double-digit earnings growth in 2023 and set out lofty 2024 guidance.

Revenue in 2023 rose 14% to USD151.6 million from USD133.2 million, while pretax profit jumped 66% to USD44.9 million from USD27.1 million.

Gulf Marine Services said earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were 22% higher at USD87.5 million from USD71.5 million. For 2024, it expects an adjusted Ebitda between USD92 million and USD100 million, possibly a rise of 14%.

On AIM, Gelion surged 70%, after it said it achieved a milestone with its lithium-sulphur battery development, increasing its energy density by around 60%.

The London-based battery technology company said this was by fabricating a 395 watt-hour per kilogram lithium-sulphur 9.5 ampere-hour pouch cell in a commercial cell format. Gelion said the energy density increase is compared with current lithium-ion batteries, which provide around 250 watt-hours per kilogram.

The economic calendar for Friday has construction PMIs for the eurozone and Germany out at 0830 BST, and for the UK at 0930 BST. Halifax's UK house price index is out at 0700 BST, while eurozone retail sales figures are out at 1000 BST

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 22:06

DOW

After being high in the morning it finished 530 points lower

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 17:30

How the UPS are performing during last month

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 17:08

How the UPS are performing today

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 16:41

BTC - Bitcoin $67.611

Is managing to get over the 66.5K being the resistance lately

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 15:50

UPS

GGP 5.775p (5.75 v 5.80p )

Has been down to a 6 month low or double bottom. News some time back about Havieron project and the Feasibility Study works will continue, got the shares up to 11.75p. All Indicators are oversold at the moment and share price is at lower Bollinger Band ( buy time they say)
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INDICATORS

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 15:24

Gooch & Housego confident despite some reduced demand
Photonic components and systems specialist Gooch & Housego said in an update on Thursday that in its first half, it saw some customers in its industrial and medical laser markets adjusting their inventory levels, resulting in reduced demand for certain products.

The AIM-traded firm said that destocking phase was, however, expected to finish by the end of the year, with revenue from those markets set to rebound.

Conversely, the company said it had experienced growth in its medical diagnostic and fibre optic businesses, particularly in serving the semiconductor infrastructure markets.

Revenue for the six-month period was anticipated to be around £67.5m, slightly down from the £71.3m it reported for the same period last year.

That decrease was partly offset by contributions from two acquisitions completed in the prior financial year.

The company said it expected a stronger performance in the second half of the year compared to the 2023 period.

Gooch & Housego said it had received strong new orders from the semiconductor, subsea data cable, and aerospace navigation markets.

Notably, the company secured significant orders for a new fibre optic amplifier module and medical diagnostic products.

Additionally, there was promising interest in its optical systems solutions for armoured vehicles, with expectations to convert several requests into firm orders in the latter half of the year.

As of 31 March, the group's order book stood at £115.8m, making for a slight decrease from the previous year but an organic constant currency increase of 3.6%.

The group said it maintained a robust financial position with a healthy balance sheet and substantial funding available for future growth initiatives, with net debt at approximately £32m.

Strategically, Gooch & Housego said it was continuing to execute its plan announced last year.

The recent divestment of its EM4 business allowed it to concentrate resources on areas within its A&D portfolio where it could achieve better returns.

Moreover, the transfer of selected product lines to contract manufacturing partners in lower-cost regions was progressing, with the expansion of its medical diagnostic facility in Rochester, serving the North American market, being a significant milestone.

"Despite the lower volumes in the first half of the financial year resulting from a prolonged period of inventory adjustment by some of our customers we have continued to focus on the delivery of our strategic objectives. In line with our commitment to become a more customer focused business, we have further improved our operational performance reducing our overdue backlog and lead times," said chief executive officer Charlie Peppiatt.

"Our investment in new technologies and products is recognised by our customers and we have secured important new contract wins in the period."

Peppiatt said that after strategically adding the GS Optics and Artemis Optical businesses in 2023, the company had already been rewarded with new customer orders due to its enhanced portfolio.

"The divestment of our EM4 business in March this year represented an important milestone on our journey to focus our A&D business on those areas where we can secure acceptable returns, supporting the group's path to mid-teens profitability."

Gooch & Housego said it would announce its interim results for the six months ended 31 March on 4 June.

At 1408 BST, shares in Gooch & Housego were up 3.37% at 533.4p.

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 14:37

DOW

Opening higher with 265 points

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 13:59

Oil prices slip from highs; Middle East tensions, steady OPEC output offer support
Oil prices edged lower Thursday, retreating slightly from five-month highs after worsening geopolitical conditions in the Middle East presented more potential supply disruptions.

At 05:55 ET (09:55 GMT), West Texas Intermediate crude futures fell 0.1% to $85.39 a barrel, while Brent oil futures expiring in June fell 0.1% to $89.27 a barrel, both having previously climbed to their highest levels since October.

"Brent is facing some resistance at the US$90/bbl level, with it unable to break above it so far," ING analysts said, in a note.

Middle East tensions, Russian disruptions boost oil prices
The crude market had seen demand after Iran threatened retaliation for a perceived Israeli strike on its embassy in Damascus, pointing to worsening conditions in the Middle East. The threat also came as the Israel-Hamas war showed little signs of de-escalating, as a slew of recent ceasefire proposals fell through.

On the Russia-Ukraine front, attacks on key Russian refineries heralded more supply disruptions for Moscow. Several Russian oil and fuel refineries either cut production or were taken out of commission in the wake of Ukrainian drone strikes.

At the same time, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies voted to maintain its current band of production cuts on Wednesday, presenting a tight outlook for crude in the near-term.

Improving Chinese economy aids demand outlook
Crude prices were also cheered by improving economic conditions in top importer China, following a string of positive purchasing managers index readings for March.

Chinese manufacturing activity rose back into expansionary territory, while service sector growth also improved.

But the world’s largest oil importer still has a long road ahead in shoring up its economy, especially as it still grapples with the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mixed US inventories cap oil gains
Crude was held back by mixed readings on U.S. inventories, especially as official data showed an unexpected build in overall crude stockpiles.

The build came as U.S. production remained near record highs- a trend that is expected to somewhat offset a tight outlook for oil markets.

But U.S. fuel demand was also seen rebounding from winter lows, with gasoline inventories seeing a bigger-than-expected draw in the past week. The trend pointed to robust demand in the world’s largest fuel consumer.

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 13:34

React says three new contracts demonstrate demand and opportunities

(Alliance News) - React Group PLC on Thursday announced a continued trading momentum, as it noted new contracts.

The Birmingham, England-based cleaning, hygiene and decontamination firm said it has been awarded three material contracts for over GBP1.3 million per year.

The contracts include the renewal and expansion of a facilities management soft services agreement with an NHS trust in the Midlands.

Chief Executive Officer Shaun Doak said: "We are delighted that the company has continued its trading momentum winning new customers and expanding its services with existing ones. These three material contracts have been awarded in addition to a stream of small and medium sized wins which demonstrates both the demand and the cross selling opportunities for our services and as such, underpins our confidence in financial year 2024 performance."

React shares rose 3.7% to 68.44 pence each on Thursday afternoon in London

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 12:47

MARKET REPORT
LONDON MARKET MIDDAY: Stocks up as Fed chair calms some rate nerves

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London were in the green on Thursday afternoon, with mining stocks powering the FTSE 100 higher, as investors digested words from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

The FTSE 100 index added 32.56 points, 0.4%, at 7,970.00. The FTSE 250 was up 57.98 points, 0.3%, at 19,811.62, and the AIM All-Share was up just 0.04 of a point to 742.12.

The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.5% at 796.83, the Cboe UK 250 also rose 0.5% at 17,248.84, while the Cboe Small Companies was 0.1% higher at 14,675.84.

The CAC 40 in Paris and the DAX 40 in Frankfurt both edged up 0.1%.

Equities in New York are called to open higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is called up 0.2%, the S&P 500 up 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.4%.

Powell told a conference in California that the current risks to the US economy were "two-sided," with negative consequences for the economy if policymakers moved to cut rates too fast or too slow.

"The risk, though, of moving too soon, really is...that inflation does move up," he said, adding that it "would be quite disruptive if we were to have to then come back in."

But if the US economy continues to evolve as expected, most Fed participants still expect it will be "appropriate to begin lowering the policy rate at some point this year," he said.

Eyes now turn to Friday's nonfarm payrolls reading, which is expected to show the pace of jobs growth eased to 200,000 in March, from 275,000 in February, according to FXStreet.

Numbers on Wednesday from payroll processor ADP showed the US private sector added more jobs in March than a month earlier.

Private sector employment increased by 184,000 jobs in March, rising from 155,000 in February. March's jobs growth topped the FXStreet cited consensus of 148,000.

Still to come on Thursday, the latest US jobless claims reading is at 1330 BST.

The pound was quoted at USD1.2662 early Thursday afternoon, up from USD1.2630 late Wednesday. The euro stood at USD1.0858, rising from USD1.0827. Against the yen, the dollar was unmoved at JPY151.72.

BDSwiss analyst Daniel Takieddine commented: "The Japanese yen continued to trade sideways after reaching the lows recorded during the last two years and could remain subdued. FX traders could refrain from significant moves as they monitor signals regarding potential interventions by Japanese authorities to curb the yen's weakness. Hiroshi Watanabe, a former top currency diplomat, suggested that government action is unlikely unless the yen falls below 155 per dollar, which could leave some manoeuvring room for traders."

While there was little impetus in yen trade, gold powered higher.

Gold was quoted at USD2,292.62 on Thursday afternoon UK time, rising from USD2,286.90 at the time of the London equities close on Wednesday. It had spiked to USD2,304.89 earlier on Thursday.

XTB analyst Kathleen Brooks commented: "The gold price appears to rally every time there is a rise in expectations of rate cuts from the Fed. We expect this theme to continue to drive the gold price in the near term, and the precious metal could be volatile as we move towards the non-farm payrolls report on Friday."

Brent oil was quoted at USD89.19 midday Thursday, falling from USD89.69 at the London equities close on Wednesday. Brent had risen as high as USD89.95 on Wednesday, however.

BP traded 0.3% lower in London on Thursday afternoon, while Shell added 0.4%. The duo have climbed 2.7% and 5.1% so far this week, on the back of robust Crude prices.

Metal prices were also on the rise, AJ Bell analyst Russ Mould noted.

"Miners were in demand as commodities prices continued to surge – an inflationary development which might provoke some nervousness about the fate of long-awaited interest rate cuts," Mould said.

Anglo American added 3.2%, while Antofagasta climbed 3.0%. Both were among the best FTSE 100 performers.

PageGroup surged 5.5%. UBS raised the recruiter to 'buy' from 'neutral'.

CAB Payments jumped 12% after the cross-border payments and foreign exchange company's Dutch subsidiary secured a payment service provider licence with De Nederlandsche Bank. It means it will now be eligible to provide its services across the entire European Economic Area operating under the name of CAB Payments Europe.

CAB Payments has had a rocky time since listing. A revenue growth warning knocked 72% off its value in a single day in October. Shares are down around two-thirds from the GBP3.35 initial public offering price, despite Thursday's lofty share price rise.

AIM-listed Cirata fell 27%, as it reported annual results that were clouded by the possible fraud saga that hurt its reputation back when it was named WANdisco.

The data analysis platform posted a decline in revenue and bemoaned a "seemingly endless series of 'whack-a-mole' challenges".

Revenue in 2023 fell 31% to USD6.70 billion from USD9.69 billion. Its pretax loss widened to USD36.5 million from USD29.6 million.

"As I reflect on the past year, it is clear that we have navigated through the most challenging period in our company's history," Chief Executive Officer Stephen Kelly said.

The company added last year's events required "continuous firefighting". It almost collapsed in 2023 after the discovery of illegitimate purchase orders.

As part of its effort to move on, the company changed its name to Cirata from WANdisco in early October. Cirata noted that it had been placed under 'watchlist' by some customers in March of last year, "leading to a pause in activities and the then embryonic sales pipeline coming to a standstill".

Analysts at Stifel said the yearly results showed "some healthy signs of progress".

"Better than expected cash was already announced at the trading update and today revenue is comfortably ahead of our estimate. This is coupled with costs that have reduced further providing continuity with our existing forecasts which we leave unchanged at this time. The company appears to have made meaningful progress, transforming itself into a more professional organisation and maintains its target of reaching run-rate cash flow breakeven in the current year, despite ongoing deal slippage and an understandable second-half weighted bookings expectation," Stifel added.

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 12:34

How the UPS are performing during last month

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 12:17

How the UPS are performing today

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 12:04

UPS

HE1 1.175p ( 1.15 v 1.20p )

Some retrace from the high of the day, the expectation is high on the results of the drilling
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INDICATORS

[master rsi] 04/4/2024 11:54

Gulf Marine shares rise as posts annual growth and sets out guidance

(Alliance News) - Gulf Marine Services PLC on Thursday reported double-digit earnings growth in 2023, and it set out its lofty 2024 guidance.

Shares in Gulf Marine jumped 11% to 21.76 pence each in London on Thursday morning.

The provider of self-propelled and self-elevating support vessels for the offshore oil, gas, and renewable energy sectors said pretax profit jumped 66% to USD44.9 million from USD27.1 million the year before. This was due to impairment losses of property equipment reducing by 73% to USD3.6 million from USD13.2 million the year before.

Revenue in 2023 rose 14% to USD151.6 million from USD133.2 million the year before. This was driven by increased utilisation on E-Class and K-Class vessels and higher average day rates across all vessel classes, Gulf Marine explained.

Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were 22% higher at USD87.5 million from USD71.5 million.

Looking ahead, Gulf Marine said it expects an adjusted Ebitda of between USD92 million and USD100 million.