Upstream Share Discussion Threads

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 13:16

MARKET REPORT
LONDON MARKET MIDDAY: FTSE 100 up despite UK economy slowdown

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in Europe were mostly higher on Friday at midday, as poor UK data weighed on the pound, while over in Paris President Emmanuel Macron named a new prime minister.

The FTSE 100 index traded up 12.74 points, 0.2%, at 8,324.50. The FTSE 250 was up 23.30 points, 0.1%, at 20,972.34, and the AIM All-Share was down 1.59 points, 0.2%, at 735.97.

The Cboe UK 100 was 0.2% higher at 835.95, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.1% at 18,474.70, and the Cboe Small Companies fell 0.2% to 16,245.49.

The CAC 40 was up 0.3% in Paris. The DAX 40 in Frankfurt was 0.2% higher.

French President Emmanuel Macron named Francois Bayrou as his sixth prime minister. Bayrou has served as mayor of the south-western commune of Pau since 2014. He is a member of the centre-right Mouvement democrate, or Democratic Movement.

The German economy will post only modest growth next year after a decline of 0.2% in gross domestic product this year, the central bank predicted.

The Bundesbank cut its forecasts for both years from its predictions in June, and said economic recovery in 2026 would be weaker than previously forecast.

"The German economy is not only battling economic headwinds, but also structural problems," Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel said. Industry and its exports and investment were particularly affected, he said.

The eurozone's industrial production decline was softer than expected in October, data published by Eurostat showed.

Industrial production fell by 1.2% on-year in October, slowed from a decline of 2.2% in September, the latter of which was upwardly revised from a previously reported 2.8% fall. October's was less steep than the FXStreet-cited market consensus, which had expected a contraction of 1.9%.

Oxford Economics Assistant Economist James Kitchen said: "We think the eurozone's industrial production is near its lowest point and will soon embark on a gradual recovery as it is set to benefit from monetary easing next year."

Rabobank analysts expect the Bank of England to keep interest rates on hold at its meeting next week Thursday, despite weaker than expected economic data.

"We also expect the Monetary Policy Committee to stick to the language of gradualism. Last week, Governor Bailey indicated that the path of least resistance is for quarterly cuts," the Rabobank analysts said.

The UK economy remained in the doldrums, registering a surprise decline in October, data showed.

According to the Office for National Statistics, UK gross domestic product fell 0.1% in October from a month prior. In September, GDP had fallen at the same rate.

Growth of 0.1% was expected for October, however, according to consensus cited by FXStreet.

The pound was quoted at USD1.2653 midday Friday, falling from USD1.2698 at the London equities close on Thursday. The euro stood at USD1.0494, up slightly from USD1.0491. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY153.57, rising from JPY152.22.

In London, Rentokil Initial was up 3.7%. The Crawley-based pest control services provider said Trian Fund Management bought 7.5 million shares at 413.31 pence each for a total of GBP31.0 million. The activist investor won a seat on the Rentokil board earlier this year.

On the AIM market in London, Impax Asset Management slumped 25% after receiving notice that it has lost some business from St James's Place.

SJP has terminated Impax Asset Management's mandate to manage the Sustainable & Responsible Equity Fund. The termination is to take effect in February, subject to the fund seeking final approval from unitholders at an extraordinary general meeting next month.

It represented the only business Impax Asset Management had with SJP and it totalled GBP5.2 billion of assets under management as of the end of November.

"The impact on Impax's revenue is expected to be circa GBP12.7 million on an annualized basis. The termination of the Mandate has been driven by SJP seeking to further diversify the fund across investment styles," Impax added.

Meanwhile, shares in Orcadian Energy jumped 15%.

The oil and gas development firm on noted that Serica will buy Parkmead Group's UK offshore oil licences, which was announced Thursday.

Serica will become operator of licence P2634, in which Orcadian holds a 50% interest.

Orcadian CEO Steve Brown said: "We welcome Serica's purchase of this very significant opportunity, which has the potential to be one of the largest remaining oil developments in the North Sea."

Portmeirion fell 15%.

The designer of homeware products warned on annual revenue as it grapples with supply delays ahead of the key Christmas period.

The company cited "supply chain disruption from Asia and recent shipping disruption into the US due to port strikes". In addition, it noted destocking in South Korea and "challenging and unpredictable" trading conditions in key markets.

Portmeirion now expects 2024 revenue of GBP90 million, "below market expectations". It would be 12% lower than GBP102.7 million it had reported in revenue for 2023.

Over to the US, investors eagerly await the last interest rate decision by the Federal Reserve due next week Wednesday, with a 25 basis points-cut widely anticipated.

"The Federal Reserve is expected to cut rates by a further 25bp on 18 December as it continues to move policy from restrictive territory to somewhere closer to neutral. However, with inflation remaining sticky, and President-elect Trump looking to strengthen the US growth performance, the Fed is set to signal a more cautious policy easing profile for 2025," analysts at ING commented.

Stocks in New York were called higher. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was called up 0.3%, the S&P 500 index up 0.3%, and the Nasdaq Composite was called 0.7% higher.

Brent oil was quoted at USD74.29 a barrel at midday in London on Friday, up from USD72.61 late Thursday.

Gold was quoted at USD2,665.64 an ounce, lower against USD2,681.37.

Still to come on Friday, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics will report export & import prices at 1330 GMT.

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 12:39

How the UPS are performing during last month

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 11:57

How the UPS are performing today

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 11:45

UK government trims stake in NatWest to just below 10%

NatWest Group PLC - Edinburgh, Scotland-based bank - The UK government reduces its stake in NatWest to 9.99% on Thursday from 10.99%, NatWest said in a stock exchange filing on Friday. The UK government had owned 84% of NatWest following a taxpayer bailout of what was then Royal Bank of Scotland Group during the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009. As recently as 2018, the government held a 62% stake in NatWest, but it has been selling this down progressively since.

Current stock price: 406.70 pence, down 0.6% in London on Friday, for a GBP32.70 billion market capitalisation.

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 10:54

HE1 0.945p -0.01p - Helium One announces delay to drilling at Galactica

(Sharecast News) - Helium One Global, a helium exploration company with a 50% stake in the Galactica-Pegasus helium development project in Las Animas County, Colorado, announced a delay to the start of drilling at the Galactica site due to adverse weather conditions.

The AIM-traded firm said the project is operated by Blue Star Helium, which is overseeing development activities.

It said severe weather had left the ground saturated, rendering it unsuitable for the construction of well sites and access roads.

Blue Star, along with its construction partners, was closely monitoring conditions and anticipated mobilising as soon as the ground stabilised.

Without additional snow or precipitation, construction could potentially begin before the end of 2024.

To avoid standby costs over the holiday period, Helium One said Blue Star had chosen to reschedule the start of drilling to mid-January.

Despite the delay, Helium One confirmed that the overall project development timeline was unchanged, with the start of production still targeted for the first half of 2025.

Engineering efforts related to carbon dioxide removal, purification and sale prior to helium processing via the IACX helium recovery unit were progressing, alongside the selection of a preferred power generation solution for the project.

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 10:04

SMALL-CAP WINNERS & LOSERS: Ecofin US Renewables proposes asset sale

SMALL-CAP - WINNERS

Robert Walters PLC, up 7.1% at 347.00 pence, 12-month range 320.00p-472.00p. Shares in the recruitment company reverse some recent weakness to sit higher on Friday. The stock is now flat month-to-date.

SMALL-CAP - LOSERS

Ecofin US Renewables Infrastructure Trust PLC, down 5.6% at USD0.39, 12-month range USD0.32-0.60. The firm proposes the sale of its investments in US distributed solar assets to a subsidiary of True Green Capital Fund IV LP. Sale is for USD38.4 million in cash, plus the assumption of USD15.6 million of project-level debt. "The disposal is the first sale to be signed as part of the managed wind-down," it adds.
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De La Rue PLC, down 1.8% at 110.00p, 12-month range 72.00p-121.00p. Shares decline following a 2.3% rise on Thursday.

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 09:40

Portmeirion issues profit warning amid 'challenging and unpredictable market conditions'

(Sharecast News) - Pottery business Portmeirion warned on Friday that both revenue and pre-tax profits for the year ending 31 December were now expected to be below market expectations.

Portmeirion said full-year revenues would be roughly £90.0m, representing an approximately 7% drop in H2 sales, and pre-tax profits were seen at £1.0m.

Portmeirion stated this was principally due to supply delays in the key Christmas period, continued destocking in South Korea and "challenging and unpredictable market conditions".

Looking forward, whilst Portmeirion expects the near-term market outlook to remain uncertain, sales were expected to rebound in 2025.

"We see good potential in the medium and long term for growth driven by the progress we have made in expanding our online and physical store distribution channels," said the group.

As of 0905 GMT, Portmeirion shares had sunk 16.10% to 172.0p.

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 09:23

MARKET REPORT
LONDON MARKET OPEN: FTSE 100 makes minor gain; pound slumps

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened largely higher, while sterling struggled after a poor reading of the UK economy.

The FTSE 100 index traded up 10.61 points, 0.1%, at 8,322.37. The FTSE 250 was up 55.00 points, 0.3%, at 21,004.04, and the AIM All-Share was down 0.74 of a point, 0.1%, at 736.82.

The Cboe UK 100 was 0.1% higher at 835.63, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.2% at 18,497.62, and the Cboe Small Companies fell 0.1% to 16,256.02.

The CAC 40 was up 0.2% in Paris. The DAX 40 in Frankfurt was 0.4% higher.

The pound was quoted at USD1.2622 early Friday, slumping from USD1.2698 at the London equities close on Thursday. The euro stood at USD1.0467, down from USD1.0491. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY153.14, rising from JPY152.22.

The UK economy remained in the doldrums, registering a surprise decline in October, numbers on Friday showed.

According to the Office for National Statistics, UK gross domestic product fell 0.1% in October from a month prior. In September, GDP had fallen at the same rate.

Growth of 0.1% was expected for October, however, according to consensus cited by FXStreet.

The ONS said the weak reading for October was "largely because of a decline in production output".

"Monthly services output showed no growth in October 2024 after also showing no growth in September 2024, but grew by 0.1% in the three months to October 2024," the ONS said.

"Production output fell by 0.6% in October 2024, because of falls in manufacturing, and mining and quarrying output, following a fall of 0.5% in September 2024; production output fell by 0.3% in the three months to October 2024."

The ONS said monthly production output in October was at the lowest since May 2020.

Pantheon Macroeconomics analyst Rob Wood commented: "Global tariff threats, uncertainty from the Budget, a weak month for consumer spending and volatile sectors dragged GDP into another month-to-month fall in October. We think much of the drop in GDP can, however, be put down to erratic sectors that should bounceback in November. But after October's fall in output we cut our forecast for Q4 GDP growth to 0.1% quarter-to-quarter, below our previous call and the [Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee's] forecast of 0.3%. We doubt the MPC will react much to these figures. For a start, weak growth was likely partly erratic and partly driven by uncertainty that should fade. Moreover, the MPC has to take account of stubbornly elevated price pressures as payroll tax hikes in the budget boost business costs. We expect the MPC to keep rates on hold next week and cut by 25bp in February."

It has been a week of "keeping up with the central banks", Swissquote analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya commented.

"This week has been rich in terms of interest rate cuts from major central banks. The Reserve Bank of Australia didn't cut its rates but gave an unexpectedly dovish statement, citing that the RBA officials are turning more confident that inflation is on path toward their policy goal. The Bank of Canada delivered a second 50bp cut in a row, following three 25bp cuts before that. Then, the Swiss National Bank delivered a 50bp cut – it was not the base case scenario but it was not a surprise, either," the analyst said.

"The European Central Bank also cut, but the European officials decided to go ahead with a cautious 25bp cut before Xmas, and Lagarde didn't say much about what the ECB would do in the next meetings. She stuck to the 'data dependence' rhetoric. But, still, the ECB lowered its growth and inflation forecasts – reviving hope of back-to-back cuts next year – but not too much either as Lagarde highlighted that inflation has come down but remains strong and that risks to inflation remains high. She talked about geopolitical risks that could boost energy prices and climate risks that could boost food prices. She didn't mention Trump, she rather said that the eurozone countries should consider Mario Draghi's innovation booster plan to give the European economies a boost."

In New York overnight, the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 lost 0.5%, while the Nasdaq Composite shed 0.7%.

In Tokyo on Friday, the Nikkei 225 was down 1.0%, while the S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney lost 0.4%. In China, the Shanghai Composite shed 2.0% and the Hang Seng Index plunged 2.1%.

China on Thursday vowed to boost domestic consumption next year, state media said, as leaders grappling with sluggish demand concluded a key economic policy meeting. The announcement failed to boost Asian stocks on Friday, however.

Miners, exposed to the Chinese economy, struggled in London. Anglo American fell 1.0%, while Rio Tinto shed 0.8%. Asia-focused insurer Prudential fell 0.7%.

At the top of the index, however, brewer Diageo extended gains, adding 1.5% to its 2.8% rise on Thursday. A double-upgrade from UBS lifted the Guinness maker on Thursday.

Elsewhere in London, Impax Asset Management slumped 22% after receiving notice that it has lost some business from St James's Place.

SJP has terminated Impax Asset Management's mandate to manage the Sustainable & Responsible Equity Fund. The termination is to take effect in February, subject to the fund seeking final approval from unitholders at an extraordinary general meeting next month.

It represented the only business Impax Asset Management had with SJP and it totalled GBP5.2 billion of assets under management as of the end of November.

"The impact on Impax's revenue is expected to be circa GBP12.7 million on an annualized basis. The termination of the Mandate has been driven by SJP seeking to further diversify the fund across investment styles," Impax added.

Brent oil was quoted at USD73.48 a barrel early Friday, rising from USD72.61 late Thursday. Gold was flat at USD2,681.87 an ounce against USD2,681.37.

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 09:09

HEMO 410p -20p

Today, the shares have gone into 1 for 400 capitation. To eventually be able to be traded in the US, they need a higher price for that listing.
Closing price yesterday 1.075p ( 1 v 1.15p )

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 08:58

South32 expects decision on Worsley Alumina expansion early next year
(Alliance News) - South32 Ltd said on Friday it expects the Australian federal government to decide on the proposed expansion of its alumina refining operation Worsley in Western Australia early next year.

The Perth-based mining group lodged an appeal after the Western Australian Environmental Protection Authority in July recommended the Worsley mine development project be approved, subject to conditions.

But South32 argued that several proposed conditions would create significant operating challenges, and went beyond reasonable measures for managing environmental risks.

For the financial year that ended June 30, South32 took an impairment charge of around USD554 million on Worsley Alumina due to increased uncertainty created by the regulator's recommended conditions.

South32 said on Friday the Western Australian minister for environment, Reece Whitby, this week agreed with recommendations to amend conditions of the Worsley project.

The appeals committee report to the minister for environment on Wednesday recommended that certain conditions should be altered "based on the arguments put forward on appeal".

On Thursday, Whitby said he agreed with the appeals committee's recommendations that certain conditions should be amended.

The minister said these changes are "extensive".

The state approval of the Worsley Alumina project is expected later this month. South32 expects the federal government to decide on this project early 2025.

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 08:33

FTSE

Opening 19 points higher

[master rsi] 13/12/2024 00:00

US close: Stocks slip as traders digest data ahead of Fed meeting

(Sharecast News) - US stocks broadly declined on Thursday with the Nasdaq pulling back from a record high, as investors digested inflation and labour-market data ahead of the Federal Reserve's final policy meeting of the year next week.

Jobless claims jumped last week, while wholesale inflation figures for November came in a little stronger than expected, but that didn't alter market bets for another rate cut next week. Wednesday's consumer price index report for last month was in line with estimates, underscoring the belief that the central bank will likely lower the Fed Funds Rate by 25 basis points.

The Dow declined for the sixth day running, falling 0.5% to 43,914.12, having now dropped 2.4% since setting a record closing high of 45,014.04 on 4 December.

The S&P 500, which reached an all-time high of 6,090.27 last week, declined 0.5% to 6,051.25. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq slipped 0.7% to 19,902.84, pulling back from Wednesday's record peak of 20,034.90.

The US producer price index rose by 0.4% in November, compared with an upwardly revised 0.3% gain in October and ahead of the 0.2% increase expected by analysts. However, core inflation - which excludes food, energy and trade services - eased to 0.1% from 0.3%.

[master rsi] 12/12/2024 23:39

Director dealings:
(Sharecast News) - Ashtead revealed on Thursday that chief executive officer Brendan Horgan had acquired 4,000 ordinary shares in the FTSE 100-listed industrial equipment rental firm.

Horgan, who took over as CEO in May 2019, purchased the shares on Wednesday at an average price of 5,320.0p, for a total value of £212,800.

Top Director Buys

Ashtead Group (AHT)

Director name: Horgan,Brendan

Amount purchased: 4,000 @ 5,320.00p

Value: £212,800.00

Chesnara (CSN)

Director name: Hagh,Carol

Amount purchased: 10,000 @ 258.38p

Value: £25,838.00

Ncc Group (NCC)

Director name: Maddison ,Mike

Amount purchased: 18,187 @ 136.40p

Value: £24,807.07

B90 Holdings Npv (B90)

Director name: McIver,Andrew Ross

Amount purchased: 250,000 @ 5.00p

Value: £12,500.00



Top Director Sells

Tracsis (TRCS)

Director name: Barnes,Christopher Matthew

Amount sold: 3,806 @ 533.00p

Value: £20,285.98

Tracsis (TRCS)

Director name: Kelly,Andrew

Amount sold: 2,422 @ 533.00p

Value: £12,909.26

[master rsi] 12/12/2024 23:23

Tullow Oil in preliminary talks over potential takeover by Kosmos

(Sharecast News) - Tullow Oil confirmed on Thursday that it is in preliminary talks with Kosmos Energy about a possible all-share offer for the oil and gas exploration company.

In a brief statement responding to recent press speculation, Tullow said there can be no certainty that any offer will be made, nor as to the terms on which any such offer might be made.

"A further announcement will be made as and when appropriate," it added.

Tullow shares closed up 6.2% at 26.14p.

Under UK takeover rules, Kosmos has until 1700 GMT on 9 January 2025 to either announce a firm intention to make an offer or walk away.

[master rsi] 12/12/2024 23:01

Homes "priority" as UK reforms to allow more building on green belt
(Alliance News) - The UK prime minister said providing homes for people must be the "top priority" over nature and the environment as government reforms are set to allow more building on the green belt.

A shake-up of planning rules means councils have been given mandatory targets to deliver a total of 370,000 homes a year in England.

Keir Starmer said local plans to reach targets were the starting point, but that the government would "absolutely" push development through if the plans do not work.

Starmer said he wanted to "get the balance right with nature and the environment" but that "a human being wanting to have a house" has to be top priority.

The prime minister and his deputy Angela Rayner have pledged to build 1.5 million homes and take decisions on 150 major infrastructure projects this parliament.

The updated national planning policy framework commits to a "brownfield first" strategy, with disused sites that have already been developed in the past prioritised for new building.

The default answer when a developer seeks to build on brownfield sites will be "yes" but the government says these sites will not be enough for the number of homes needed.

Councils will therefore also be ordered to review their greenbelt boundaries to meet targets by identifying lower quality "grey belt" land that could be built on.

The framework defines the grey belt for the first time as green belt land that "does not strongly contribute to green belt purposes".

Those purposes include limiting urban sprawl, stopping neighbouring towns merging into each other and preserving the special character of historic towns.

Safeguarding the countryside from encroachment and assisting in urban regeneration are no longer included as green belt purposes.

"For years, we have had not enough houses being built. That means that individuals and families don't have the security that they want," Sir Keir said during a visit to a construction site in Cambridge.

"We are determined to break through that, to do what's necessary.

"Of course we want to get the balance right with nature and the environment, but if it comes to a human being wanting to have a house for them and their family, that has to be the top priority.

More specific guidance on how local authorities can assess their green belt land is due to come in January.

Housing minister Matthew Pennycook gave examples of grey belt sites as "disused petrol stations, abandoned car parks, but also just low-value scrub land", in comments to Times Radio.

Councils are expected to look at releasing higher-quality green belt land for development if they exhaust their supply of brownfield and grey belt.

They can also bring forward higher performing green belt land for development before brownfield and grey belt if they are on "more sustainable" sites, such as around train stations because they promote sustainable transport.

Local authorities will be tasked with drafting plans to meet the targets they have been given and can face consequences if they fail to.

If environmental or infrastructure constraints mean they cannot meet the target, they would need to provide evidence which will then be examined by an independent public inquiry led by a planning inspector acting for the Housing Secretary.

Councils that fail to show plans that can meet targets looking back over the last few years or going forward could also face having a "presumption in favour of development" applied.

Just under one-third of local authorities have adopted a local plan – a document setting out where future homes and infrastructure could be built – within the last five years.

Central Government will also be able to intervene and take over planning if local authorities do not move ahead with making plans.

"The starting point is local plans, and that's really important for councils to develop the plan according to the target, taking into account local need and working with developers," Starmer said.

"But are we going to push it through if those plans don't work? Yes we absolutely are.

"Are we going to push away the planning rules and make them clearer, as we have done today, get away the blockers that are stopping the houses being built? Yes, we are absolutely intent."

Any development on green belt land must comply with new "golden rules", which require developers to provide infrastructure for local communities, such as nurseries, GP surgeries and transport, as well as a higher level of social and affordable housing.

The government announced GBP100 million of additional cash for councils, along with 300 additional planning officers, to speed up decision-making processes.

The extra money can be used to hire more staff or consultants and to carry out technical studies and site assessments.

The NPPF reforms are just one element of the government's plans to rewrite the planning rules to make it easier to build homes and major infrastructure projects.

The forthcoming planning & infrastructure bill is intended to rip up red tape and make it faster for projects to be approved.

[master rsi] 12/12/2024 22:00

DOW

Once more another drop of 234 points

[master rsi] 12/12/2024 17:26

Gold prices fall after PPI data; retreat from over 2-wk high /Peter Nurse
Investing.com -- Gold prices fell from a more-than two-week high Thursday after stronger than US producer prices boosted the dollar, and weighed on risk sentiment.

At 10:20 ET (15:20 GMT), Spot gold fell 1.3% to $2,682.28 an ounce, while gold futures expiring in February fell 1.9% to $2,707.76 an ounce.

PPI data weighs
Gold weakened Thursday after US producer prices rose more than expected in November, jumping 0.4% last month after an upwardly revised 0.3% increase in October, ahead of the 0.2% gain expected.

In the 12 months through November, the PPI shot up 3.0% after increasing 2.6% in October.

The in-line consumer price index inflation data, released on Wednesday, saw traders ramp up bets that the Fed will deliver a third consecutive interest rate cut next week to support a labor market. While next week's cut is still likely, the PPI release suggests that further cuts next year might been harder to come by, and the dollar gained as a consequence.

Resilience in the dollar has limited gold’s upside, as traders favored the greenback amid increased doubts over the long-term outlook for inflation and interest rates.

However, despite these losses, the rally in gold prices “isn’t over just yet,” according to ING.

The precious metal has enjoyed a record-breaking rally in 2024, surging 25% year-to-date driven by a combination of Federal Reserve rate cuts, increased central bank purchases, and robust safe-haven demand amid geopolitical and economic uncertainties.

Analysts at ING expect these factors to sustain upward momentum in 2025, pushing gold prices to new highs.


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Other precious metals were also lower, with platinum futures down 0.6% to $944.80 an ounce, while silver futures dropped 3.4% to $31.855 an ounce.

Copper hands back gains after China stimulus cheer
Benchmark copper futures on the London Metal Exchange fell 0.8% to $9,105 a ton, while February copper futures fell 0.6% to $4.2382 a pound.

Copper has given back some of Wednesday's gains after both contracts hit a one-month high on Wednesday amid increased optimism over more stimulus measures in top importer China.

Beijing struck its most dovish tone yet on loosening monetary policy to support economic growth, the country’s Politburo signaled after a meeting on Monday.

China’s Central Economic Work Conference- a high-level government meeting- is set to conclude later on Thursday, setting the economic agenda for 2025 and also offering more cues on plans for stimulus.

[master rsi] 12/12/2024 16:30

How the UPS are performing during last month

[master rsi] 12/12/2024 16:15

How the UPS are performing today

[master rsi] 12/12/2024 15:58

SBTX 17p -0.35p

It was much worse earlier but since it has recovered well, the profit-taking was a good opportunity

[master rsi] 12/12/2024 15:39

Orcadian strikes farm-out deal for Earlham and Orwell

(Sharecast News) - Orcadian Energy announced a farm-out agreement for a 50% stake in its Earlham and Orwell gas projects to the Marine Low Carbon Power Company (MLCP) on Thursday.

The AIM-traded firm said the deal marked a "significant step forward" in developing the resources to support MLCP's Mobile Offshore Generating Units (MOGUs), which provide carbon-free energy to customers and battery projects.

Under the agreement, MLCP would acquire a 50% interest in a sub-area of licence P2680, encompassing the Earlham discovery and Orwell field redevelopment.

Orcadian said it would retain a 50% carried interest in the projects, with MLCP funding Orcadian's share of expenditures through first gas.

The carry would be repaid through an enhanced revenue interest of 80% for MLCP until repayment was complete.

Orcadian said the purchase price for the 50% stake was set at $2.2m, with $1.4m payable on completion and two additional $0.4m tranches contingent on achieving specified production milestones.

The company's debts, including a $1.5m loan originally provided by Shell, would be fully offset as part of the transaction.

[master rsi] 12/12/2024 15:29

Starmer to attend EU leaders' meeting as European "reset" continues
(Alliance News) - Keir Starmer will become the first UK prime minister since Brexit to attend a meeting of EU leaders as he continues efforts to reset relations with the bloc.

The prime minister will travel to Belgium in February after an invitation from European Council president Antonio Costa on Thursday.

Downing Street said the prime minister was "pleased to accept the invitation and looked forward to discussing enhanced strategic cooperation with the EU, notably on defence".

The invitation follows months of diplomacy as the government pursues a policy of "resetting" relations with the EU after the acrimony of Brexit, seeking a better trading and security partnership.

Senior ministers have made several visits to meetings of their European counterparts, with Rachel Reeves becoming the first chancellor since Brexit to attend a meeting of EU finance ministers on Monday and David Lammy attending a meeting of foreign ministers earlier in the year.

But Labour has also been adamant that this reset will not involve joining the EU single market or customs union, or returning to freedom of movement, despite pressure to introduce a youth mobility scheme – something he has so far said he has "no plans" to do.

The invitation to the "informal" meeting of EU leaders came after a meeting between Starmer and Costa in Downing Street on Thursday, where the pair discussed the post-Brexit relationship along with other global issues including the situation in Syria and the war in Ukraine.

At the start of the meeting, Costa described the UK and the EU as "neighbours, friends, allies" and stressed the importance of improving relations "in these very challenging moments".

Downing Street said the two men also looked ahead to the EU-UK summit in early 2025, adding it would "provide an important opportunity to make further progress on key areas to deliver tangible benefits for the people of the UK and the EU".

[master rsi] 12/12/2024 14:44

DOW

Moving higher with 33 points at the start of trading today