Upstream Share Discussion Threads

[master rsi] 22/3/2024 11:46

SFOR 44p (3.78p / 9.40%%) S4 Capital climbs on WSJ report it rejected USD700 million bid
(Alliance News) - Shares in S4 Capital PLC advanced on Friday after The Wall Street reported the company had turned down a bid approach.

Shares in S4 Capital rose 8.6% to 43.69 pence each in London. They had earlier hit an intra-day high of 55.29p, a 37% increase.

The WSJ said S4 Capital, the London-based digital advertising, marketing and technology services, rejected a bid valuing the company at around USD700 million last year from Stagwell, another agency.

That would translate to around GBP555 million at current exchange rates, more than double S4 Capital's current market value of around GBP266 million.

hxxps://www.wsj.com/business/media/he-was-the-ad-industrys-hunter-now-hes-the-prey-65a12b99?mod=business_lead_pos2

S4 Capital is run by Martin Sorrell, the former boss of WPP PLC.

In 2023, the company issued several profit warnings hit by a downturn in spending by clients, particularly in the technology sector.

"After four years of very strong growth, 2023 was a difficult year impacted by volatile macro conditions and, consequently, cautious spending from clients, particularly those in the technology sector and from smaller project-based assignments," Executive Chair Martin Sorrell said when reporting fourth quarter results in January.

Sorrell said he is not expecting to see a "macro-economic improvement" this year.

"Client caution on marketing spend will likely persist, although not at last year's level given interest rates are likely to fall over time," he added.

[master rsi] 22/3/2024 11:27

Cap-XX raises GBP2.0 million via new shares placing and subscription

(Alliance News) - Cap-XX Ltd on Friday said it has raised GBP2.0 million via a placing and subscription of new shares, while a retail offer remains open until 1500 GMT.
The Sydney-based company, which makes supercapacitors for portable electronic devices, said 2.00 billion new shares were placed at a price of 0.1 pence per share.

Shares in Cap-XX were down 25% to 0.13p each in London on Friday morning.
Chair Patrick Elliott, Chief Executive Officer Lars Stegmann and Non-Executive Director Steen Feldskov also subscribed for a total of 35.0 million new shares for a total GBP35,000.

There is also a retail offer of shares, which is expected to remain open until 1500 GMT. Cap-XX said a further announcement will be made in "due course".

Cap-XX said 103.9 million placing shares will be admitted to trading on AIM in London, expected to take place on Thursday. A further 1.90 billion placing shares, plus the 35.0 million subscription shares, are expected to be admitted on April 25.

Following the first admission, Cap-XX will have a total of 824.0 million shares in issue.

[master rsi] 22/3/2024 10:32

GOLD and BITCOIN

They keep dropping again
Gold $2,166
and BTC at $64,900

[master rsi] 22/3/2024 09:43

JD Wetherspoon half-year profit plummets amid higher property losses

(Alliance News) - JD Wetherspoon PLC on Friday said it expects a "reasonable outcome" for its financial year despite its interim profit halving, but reported a surge in sales.

Shares in JD Wetherspoon were down 5.6% at 752.13 pence each in London on Friday morning.

The Watford, Hertfordshire-based pub chain said in the six months to January 28, pretax profit fell by more than half to GBP26.1 million from GBP57.0 million. This was amid property losses of GBP15.1 million, compared to GBP11.2 million the previous year.

In addition, Wetherspoon's operating costs grew 5.1% to GBP923.3 million in the first half of its financial year, from GBP878.5 million a year prior.

However, revenue rose 8.2% to GBP991.0 million from GBP916.0 million the year before.

Wetherspoon declared no interim dividend, unchanged from a year ago.

Looking ahead, the pub-owner said its sales have continued to improve, and noted that in the seven weeks to March 17, its like-for-like sales have increased by 5.8%.

[master rsi] 22/3/2024 09:05

MARKET REPORT
LONDON MARKET OPEN: Phoenix Group leads FTSE 100 higher

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London opened higher on Friday, after a busy week of interest rate decisions across the globe.

Amongst individual stocks, Phoenix Group got a boost on the back of its 2023 results.

The FTSE 100 index opened up 39.32 points, 0.5%, at 7,921.87. The FTSE 250 was up 1.50 points at 19,742.81, and the AIM All-Share was up 1.83 points, 0.3%, at 742.47.

The Cboe UK 100 was up 0.5% at 792.34, the Cboe UK 250 was flat at 17,156.19, and the Cboe Small Companies was down 0.1% at 14,633.54.

In European equities on Friday, the CAC 40 was down 0.3%, whilst the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was down marginally.

The week has been dominated by interest rate decisions.

To start the week off, the Bank of Japan on Tuesday ended its negative interest rate policy.

On Wednesday, the US Federal Reserve left interest rates unmoved, as expected, while its latest set of projections still suggest three cuts will come this year. The central bank's federal funds rate range was unchanged at 5.25%-5.50%.

After the Fed decision, on Thursday, the Swiss National Bank surprised with a 25 basis point cut to its policy rate.

The Bank of England left bank rate at 5.25% in the afternoon, but the vote split gave equities the confidence to push higher.

There was a marked shift in the voting pattern with eight members of the MPC voting to leave interest rates unchanged, with hawks Jonathan Haskel and Catherine Mann no longer recommending rates be increased.

On Friday, eyes shifted to UK retail sales data.

According to the Office for National Statistics, UK retail sales were flat on-month in February, following a 3.6% boost in January. January's figure was upwardly revised from 3.4%.

February's retail sales figure was predicted to show a fall of 0.3%, according to FXStreet, so the actual figure beat market consensus.

Year-on-year, UK retail sales fell by 0.4% in February, following a 0.5% increase in January. FXStreet were expecting retail sales to fall by 0.7% annually.

Kris Hamer at the British Retail Consortium, said:  “February sales were hit by the wettest February on record, which dampened demand and depressed footfall. This was felt most in the more high-ticket categories such as furniture and electricals. Meanwhile, cosmetics and toiletries continued to sell well as popular brands go from strength to strength. Retailers are hopeful that with warmer weather and potential interest rate cuts around the corner, consumer confidence will soon spring back.”

On the back of the data, retailers took a hit. JD Sports lost 3.8%, Frasers fell 1.3%, and Next shed 0.2%.

Elsewhere in the FTSE 100, Phoenix Group jumped 7.5% to the top of the index.

The life insurance provider unveiled "ambitious" new targets as it reported annual results which met, and in some areas, surpassed City expectations.

In 2023, Phoenix reported total cash generation of GBP2.02 billion, up 35% from GBP1.50 billion the year prior.

This was above the company's upgraded target of GBP1.8 billion, which was also the market consensus.

Phoenix announced an ambition to grow operating cash generation by around 25% to GBP1.4 billion in 2026 from GBP1.1 billion in 2023, after which it is expected to grow at a mid-single digit rate over the long term.

In the FTSE 250, Darktrace fell 11%.

KKR Dark Aggregator has sold a GBP82.5 stake in the cybersecurity company, after announcing plans to fully exit its investment in Darktrace on Thursday.

The US investment firm, which first invested in Darktrace in 2016, has sold 19.4 million shares at 425p each.

Aston Martin rose 1.2%, after naming its new chief executive.

Aston Martin name Adrian Hallmark as its new CEO. He will join no later than October 1, succeeding Amedeo Felisa.

Hallmark joins from Bentley, where he as been chair & CEO since 2018.

Aston Martin Executive Chair Lawrence Stroll said: "In Adrian Hallmark, we are attracting one of the highest calibre leaders not just in our segment, but in the entire global automotive industry. Complementing our world-class leadership, Adrian will bring to Aston Martin unrivalled experience in both the ultra-luxury and British manufacturing sectors to progress our strategy and continue recent momentum."

Amongst small-caps, James Fisher rose 8.8%.

James Fisher said it has agreed to sell RMSpumptools for GBP90 million to ChampionX UK.

The company said the sale is in line with its strategy to simplify and focus its portfolio through the sale of non-core assets.

CEO Jean Vernet commented: "The sale of RMS marks a significant step in simplifying our portfolio to further strengthen our financial position and create a platform for sustained recovery. We believe the transaction represents good value for our shareholders, reflecting RMS's strong performance in recent years."

The pound was quoted at USD1.2589 early on Friday in London, lower compared to USD1.2665 at the equities close on Thursday. The euro stood at USD1.0812, down against USD1.0859. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY151.48, lower compared to JPY151.69.

In Asia on Friday, the Nikkei 225 index in Tokyo closed up 0.2%. In China, the Shanghai Composite closed down 1.0%, while the Hang Seng index in Hong Kong was down 2.2% in late dealings. The S&P/ASX 200 in Sydney closed down 0.2%.

In the US on Thursday, Wall Street ended higher, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.7%, the S&P 500 up 0.3% and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.2%.

Brent oil was quoted at USD85.41 a barrel early in London on Friday, down from USD85.50 late Thursday.

Gold was quoted at USD2,167.29 an ounce, down against USD2,178.10.

Still to come on Friday's economic calendar, there is a retail sales reading from Canada at 1230 GMT.

[master rsi] 22/3/2024 08:50

Gemfields expects to swing to annual loss on write-down, lower output

(Alliance News) - Gemfields Group Ltd warned on Friday it expects to swing to an annual loss after a platinum group metals write-down and the withdrawal of emerald auction.

The London-headquartered gemstones producer expects a loss per share of 0.8 US cents in 2023, swung from earnings per share of 4.8 cents in 2022.

Headline loss per share, which includes Sedibelo Resources Ltd's fair value loss, is likely to be 0.9 cents compared with the prior year's headline EPS of 4.8 cents.

Gemfields said a review of its 6.5% shareholding in Sedibelo, the South African platinum group metals mining company, has resulted in a fair value write-down of between USD4.0 million and USD28.0 million.

Gemfields said revenue at its 75%-owned Kagem emerald mine in Zambia plunged 40% to USD89.9 million in 2023 from USD148.6 million in 2022, and top-line at 75%-held Montepuez Ruby Mining Ltda in Mozambique fell 9.2% to USD151.4 million from USD166.7 million. These are its two key operating assets.

Its luxury brand Faberge, meanwhile, recorded revenue of USD15.7 million, down 11% from USD17.6 million due to a softer luxury market.

Gemfields said it expects post-tax net loss of USD2.8 million, swung from profit of USD74.3 million.
Gemfields expects its annual financial results on Monday.

In London, Gemfields shares were down 5.2% at 12.56 pence on Friday morning. However, they rose 0.7% in Johannesburg to ZAR3.12.

[master rsi] 22/3/2024 08:31

EEE 7.30 v 7.50p +0.05p

They are piling in now 897 K v 462K 7.469p to buy

[master rsi] 22/3/2024 08:09

FTSE

On the up wth 16 points

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 23:54

EEE 7.35p but UT of 7.40p

It could bounce from this point, provided the nutters stay away from deramping, lies, and innuendo like the last couple of days.

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 23:19

Esken in administration as restructuring no longer "viable"

Esken Ltd - London-based provider of infrastructure, aviation and energy services - Clare Kennedy, Daniel Imison and Catherine Williamson of AlixPartners UK LLP appointed as joint administrators.

Earlier Thursday, Esken said that after consulting advisers it has concluded that implementing the restructuring plan "has ceased to be commercially viable". Esken, which is registered in Guernsey, said that "additional issues arise under Guernsey law...where the plan results in compromising the rights of members," as was the case for the Cyrus restructuring plan. Consequently, Esken concluded that the lengthy court process needed to complete the restructuring came with "unacceptable risk".

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 22:43

FTSE 250 movers: Dowlais on the slide; Hochschild shines
Shares in automotive engineering group Dowlais dropped on Thursday despite the announcement of a £50m share buyback, as the company pointed to stable revenues in 2024.

The company, which was formed from the spin-off of GKN's automotive and powder metallurgy divisions last year, said industry forecasts are pointing to a "slight decline" in global light vehicle production in 2024.

"Based on these external forecasts and our current order book, we anticipate group revenues will be similar to the prior year, at constant currency, with a modest reduction in the first half offset by an improvement in the second half due to the expected timing of several new programme launches," said chief executive Liam Butterworth.

For 2023, Dowlais reported a 4.6% increase in adjusted revenues to £5.49bn, driven by volume growth in automotive and inflation recoveries across the group.

Adjusted operating profits were up 6.6% at £355m helped by a 20 basis-point improvement in operating margins to 6.5%.

However, statutory pre-tax losses widened significantly to £522m, from a loss of £63m previously, after a £449m non-cash goodwill impairment charge resulting from a review of medium-term trading prospects of Powder Metallurgy.

The company ended the year with £93m of adjusted free cash flow, which is said was ahead of its expectations, helping to reduce net debt to £847m from £880m the year before.

The final dividend was proposed at 2.8p per share, resulting in a total payout of 4.2p for the year. The board also announced its intention to start a share buyback programme of up to £50m over a 12-month period from April.

The stock, which has lost over a quarter of its value since listing in London in April 2023, was down a further 3.31% at 86.96p by 0956 GMT.

Crest Nicholson fell again after warning it would have to rectify poor workmanship at some of its sites.

Computacenter shares were still out of favour despite the company reporting a record year for revenue, gross profit and adjusted earnings per share on Wednesday.

Hochschild Mining led the risers.

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 22:21

MARKET REPORT
LONDON MARKET CLOSE: FTSE 100 up as investors see Fed, BoE cuts ahead

(Alliance News) - London's FTSE 100 jumped on Thursday, as markets rallied on the back of dovish interest rate decision statements from both the US Federal Reserve and Bank of England.

The Fed statement, which suggested a trio of rate cuts will materialise this year, supported US tech shares. Housebuilders in London surged after some BoE policymakers dropped their hawkish bias.

The FTSE 100 index ended up 145.17 points, 1.9%, at 7,882.55. The FTSE 250 closed up 256.91 points, 1.3%, at 19,741.31, and the AIM All-Share rose 5.05 points, 0.7%, at 740.64.

The Cboe UK 100 ended up 1.8% at 788.77, the Cboe UK 250 rose 1.3% to 17,156.47, though the Cboe Small Companies fell 0.9% at 14,640.33.

In European equities on Thursday, the CAC 40 in Paris rose 0.2%, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt surged 09%.

Stocks in New York were pushed even higher on Thursday, after Wednesday's rally. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.8%, the S&P 500 index climbed 0.6%, and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.8%.

"Global markets are welcoming what they see as a dovish statement from the US Federal Reserve, and one that promises rate cuts soon enough, while the Swiss National Bank's unexpected rate cut can only boost investors' conviction that we are at the peak of the interest rate cycle and moving into a welcome phase of reductions in the headline cost of money," AJ Bell analyst Russ Mould commented.

The Fed left interest rates unmoved, as expected, while its latest set of projections still suggest three cuts will come this year. The central bank's federal funds rate range was unchanged at 5.25%-5.50%.

After the Fed decision, the SNB surprised with a 25 basis point cut to its policy rate.

The BoE left bank rate at 5.25% in the afternoon, but the vote split gave equities the confidence to push higher.

There was a marked shift in the voting pattern with eight members of the MPC voting to leave interest rates unchanged, with hawks Jonathan Haskel and Catherine Mann no longer recommending rates be increased.

Analysts at Rabobank commented: "The two-way vote split was a surprise.

"The central bank also mentioned that 'monetary policy could remain restrictive even if bank rate were to be reduced'. Even as the guidance is unchanged, this implies it no longer contradicts the possibility of early rate reductions. The market is now priced for a first cut in June. In our view, June would be too soon. Underlying inflationary pressures are not consistent with 2% inflation. However, the dovish tilt is clear. As such, we bring forward our call for the first cut to August."

The decision lifted shares in the interest rate sensitive housebuilding sector. Berkeley Group closed among the best FTSE 100 performers, up 3.7%.

The dollar, which had tumbled after Wednesday's Fed decision, found its feet as Thursday progressed.

Sterling was quoted at USD1.2665 late Thursday in London, lower than USD1.2717 at the London equities close on Wednesday. The euro stood at USD1.0859, largely unmoved against USD1.0856. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY151.69, up compared to JPY151.61.

Brent oil was quoted at USD85.50 a late in London on Thursday, down from USD85.93 late Wednesday. Gold was quoted at USD2,178.10 an ounce, higher against USD2,157.96. It had spiked to USD2,222.69 after the Fed decision on Wednesday.

XTB analyst Kathleen Brooks commented: "This suggests that while investors pile into stocks and risky assets on the expectation that central banks will hike in mid-year, they are also wary of inflation pressures in the pipeline. Oil prices are backing off slightly today, however the price of Brent crude oil is at its highest level since October 2023. Added to this, the prices of key agricultural commodities like coffee and corn are stronger, suggesting that there could be upward pressure on food prices later this year."

Next shares rose 6.7%. The retailer said statutory pretax profit in the 52 weeks to January 27 rose 17% to GBP1.02 billion from GBP869.3 million the year prior. Next said this included a GBP109 million exceptional gain from the Reiss acquisition, bought last September.

Next said total group sales climbed 5.9% to GBP5.84 billion from GBP5.52 billion with Next full price sales up 4.0%.

Dowlais lost 9.9%.

The automotive engineering spin-off of Melrose Industries, which listed in London back in April, said pretax loss widened in 2023 to GBP522 million from GBP63 million the year before. This resulted from a goodwill impairment of GBP449 million in 2023 compared to no such cost in 2022.

Revenue, however, rose by 5.7% to GBP4.86 billion from GBP4.60 billion a year prior, due to volume growth in its Automotive division, as well as inflation recoveries across the firm.

Looking ahead, Dowlais said it expects its 2024 revenue to be similar to that of 2023, noting expected industry-wide declines in global light vehicle production. It also said it expects its operating profit to be "modestly second half weighted".

XLMedia shares more than doubled, jumping to 13.50 pence from 6.25p. It said that it signed an agreement to sell its Europe and Canada sports betting and gaming assets to Gambling.com Group Ltd.

The London-based global digital media company said the sales are for a total of up to USD42.5 million.

"The group intends to use the proceeds of the transaction to cover asset transition costs, pay the final deferred US acquisition payment and settle outstanding tax provisions and provide working capital to support the North America business while returning cash to shareholders," XLMedia said.

Friday's local corporate calendar has half-year results from pub operator JD Wetherspoon and full-year results from savings and retirement business Phoenix Group Holdings.

The economic diary has a UK retail sales reading at 0700 GMT, after a Japanese consumer price inflation report overnight.

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 22:05

DOW

Finished 269 points higher .....

Stocks rise as Reddit makes stellar debut

US equities finished in positive territory on Thursday, riding on the back of encouraging statements from the Federal Reserve.

Wall Street indices surged to new heights as investor confidence remained robust.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 0.68% to 39,781.37,
while the S&P 500 advanced 0.32% to close at 5,241.53,
and the Nasdaq Composite added 0.2% to settle at 16,401.84.

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 17:25

How the UPS are performing during last month

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 16:47

How the UPS are performing today

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 16:27

BAE Systems selected by Australian govt to build nuclear powered submarines
(Sharecast News) - BAE Systems said on Thursday that it and ASC Pty Ltd have been selected by the Australian government to build the country's new fleet of nuclear powered submarines.

The contract is part of the AUKUS trilateral security pact between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.

BAE said the SSN-AUKUS will be the largest, most powerful and advanced attack submarines the Royal Navy has ever operated and will start to replace the Astute class - which it is building at its site in Barrow-in-Furness in the North West of England - from the late 2030s.

Australia expects to deliver its first SSN-AUKUS submarine in the early 2040s.

BAE chief executive Charles Woodburn said: "We're extremely proud of our role in the delivery of this vitally important, tri-nation submarine programme. Our selection as a partner in Australia, alongside ASC, recognises our role as the UK's long-term submarine design and build partner and as a key player in Australia's maritime enterprise and wider defence landscape.

"Drawing on decades of experience in the UK and Australia, we look forward to working with ASC to develop an enduring, sovereign nuclear-powered submarine building capability for Australia. We're already making good progress on the design and development of the next generation submarine in the UK where we have more than 1,000 people working on the SSN-AUKUS programme and major infrastructure investment underway.

"This latest step will ensure an integral connection between the UK design and the build strategy development in Australia as we work together to deliver next generation military capability as well as considerable social and economic value to all three nations."

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 16:10

GOLD

Today is doing like BITCOIN spiking up and down

From being 25 points up is now 13 points lower $2.173,40

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 15:26

DOW

UP with 299 points

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 13:24

MARKET REPORT
LONDON MARKET MIDDAY: Stocks boosted as BoE keeps rates unchanged

(Alliance News) - Stock prices in London were higher at midday Thursday, after the Bank of England left interest rates unchanged, in a vote which remained split.

Sterling was quoted at USD1.2630 shortly after midday on Thursday, lower than USD1.2717 at the London equities close on Wednesday. Before the decision, the pound was trading at USD1.2753.

The FTSE 100 index was up 113.17 points, 1.5%, at 7,850.55. The FTSE 250 was up 186.65 points, 1.0%, at 19,671.05, and the AIM All-Share was up 4.66 points, 0.6%, at 740.25.

The Cboe UK 100 was up 1.3% at 785.16, the Cboe UK 250 was up 0.8% at 17,075.86, and the Cboe Small Companies was down 0.5% at 14,709.26.

In European equities on Thursday, the CAC 40 in Paris was down marginally, while the DAX 40 in Frankfurt was up 0.5%.

The Bank of England left interest rates unchanged at a 15-year high on Thursday but there was 'dovish' twist to the voting make-up, as two members of the Monetary Policy Committee dropped their call for rates to rise.

At its March meeting, the BoE kept the benchmark bank rate at 5.25%. It is the fifth successive hold, following one in September, which ended a streak of 14 consecutive hikes since December 2021, and three more in November, December and February. The BoE had rapidly increased bank rate from a Covid-19-induced low of 0.10%.

But there was a marked shift in the voting pattern with eight members of the MPC voting to leave interest rates unchanged with hawks Jonathan Haskel and Catherine Mann no longer recommending rates be increased.

Andrew Bailey, Sarah Breeden, Ben Broadbent, Megan Greene, Jonathan Haskel, Catherine Mann, Huw Pill and Dave Ramsden voted to leave interest rates unchanged. Swati Dhingra dissented, sticking to her view that rates should be cut by 25 basis points to 5%.

At the February meeting, six members of the MPC voted to keep interest rates unchanged.

Jonathan Haskel and Catherine Mann pressed the case for rates to be increased by 25 basis points, while Swati Dhingra suggested a 25bps cut, meaning a two-six-one division.

The BoE's interest rate decision follows the US Federal Reserve's on Wednesday.

The Fed left interest rates unmoved, as expected, while its latest set of projections still suggest three cuts will be in the offing this year. The central bank's federal funds rate range was unmoved at 5.25%-5.50%.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell refrained from giving a steer on when interest rates would be cut after projections showed three reductions are still on the cards in 2024.

"It didn't matter that yesterday's decision was to leave rates untouched, the market is focused on what might happen next and any fears that the Fed might become even more stubborn over changing monetary policy appear to have been blown out of the water," said AJ Bell's Russ Mould.

On the back of the decision, gold rallied to a fresh record above USD2,200 on Thursday. Gold was quoted at USD2,207.56 an ounce, higher against USD2,157.96.

Stocks in New York were called higher, after Wednesday's rally. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was called up 0.2%, the S&P 500 index up 0.3%, and the Nasdaq Composite up 0.7%.

The euro stood at USD1.0915, against USD1.0856. Against the yen, the dollar was trading at JPY150.98, compared to JPY151.61.

In the FTSE 100, Next surged 5.2%.

Statutory pretax profit in the 52 weeks to January 27 rose 17% to GBP1.02 billion from GBP869.3 million the year prior. The retailer said this included a GBP109 million exceptional gain from the Reiss acquisition, bought last September.

Excluding this, and brand amortisation, pretax profit climbed 5% to GBP918 million from GBP875 million last year, GBP3 million ahead of previous guidance.

Next said total group sales climbed 5.9% to GBP5.84 billion from GBP5.52 billion with Next full price sales up 4.0%.

3i jumped 5.0%.

The private equity and venture capital investor said its largest investee Action is off to a "strong start" this year, and said its other portfolio companies are showing "overall resilience".

In the FTSE 250, Dowlais lost 5.2%.

The automotive engineering spin-off of Melrose Industries, which listed in London back in April, said pretax loss widened in 2023 to GBP522 million from GBP63 million the year before. This resulted from a goodwill impairment of GBP449 million in 2023 compared to no such cost in 2022.

Revenue, however, rose by 5.7% to GBP4.86 billion from GBP4.60 billion a year prior, due to volume growth in its Automotive division, as well as inflation recoveries across the firm.

Looking ahead, Dowlais said it expects its 2024 revenue to be similar to that of 2023, noting expected industry-wide declines in global light vehicle production. It also said it expects its operating profit to be "modestly second half weighted".

On AIM, Cap-XX surged 56%.

The manufacturer of supercapacitors for portable electronic devices SAID that it has been signed a settlement agreement with Tesla.

"Whilst the terms of the settlement agreement are confidential, they do not involve payments to Tesla that the board of CAP-XX considers to be material to the company," Cap-XX says.

Back in September 2019, Cap-XX alleged that Maxwell Technologies had directly and indirectly infringed on CAP-XX's patents for several capacitor products. Maxwell, a California-based manufacturer of energy storage and power delivery products, was acquired by Tesla in 2019 for USD218 million.

However, last year, Tesla filed a counter complaint against Cap-XX in a US District Court, alleging infringement of two patents by Cap-XX.

Brent oil was quoted at USD85.77 a barrel at midday in London on Thursday, down from USD85.93 late Wednesday.

Still to come on Thursday's economic calendar, there is the weekly US initial jobless claims report. There is also a flash composite PMI reading from the US.

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 13:07

Interest rates being hold

The Bank of England holds interest rates at 5.25% for the fifth time in a row

"The theory behind increasing rates to tackle inflation is that by borrowing becomes more expensive, more people cut back on spending and that leads to demand for goods falling and price rises easing.

But it's a balancing act as high interest rates can harm the economy as businesses hold off on investing in production and jobs."

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 12:48

How the UPS are performing during last month

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 12:22

How the UPS are performing today

[master rsi] 21/3/2024 11:53

Getech Group PLC, 8.4% at 8.95p, 12-month range 4.10p-15.95p.

The geo-energy and green hydrogen company says it has made a "strong" start to 2024. Revenue for the first two months of the year are about 40% ahead of the same period in 2023. In 2024 to date, Getech has secured contract wins totalling GBP900,000, including three new annual software subscription customers as well as the renewal of eight annual licenses for the Globe geoscience platform and software products.

Chief Executive Richard Bennett comments: "Getech has had a good start to 2024, and I am pleased by the improved financial position of the company. Importantly, prospects for the business continue to build as we retain our long-term clients, as well as attract new brands to our growing subscription base."

[apotheki] 21/3/2024 11:33

For all GOLD buffs [like me] out there....from share price Angel....note the last comment!

Gold prices soar over $2,200/oz as Fed Chair Powell reiterates rate cuts this year

Gold prices pushed over $2,200/oz last night in the wake of the FOMC meeting and the updated dot plots.

Spot gold jumped c.2.6% last night after Powell spoke to the Press on the Fed’s ongoing approach to bringing down inflation and supporting growth.

Rates were held at 23-year highs, however traders increased their expectations of a June rate cut to 75% from 50% on Monday.

Powell reiterated his belief that inflation is headed towards 2%, despite two beats in inflation data over January and February.

Benchmark rate settled by officials at 4% by 2025 end and 3% going forward.

Interestingly, the move in gold outweighed that of Treasures, with the 10-year still holding above 4.2%.

Similarly, the dollar weakened by 0.2% but still sits well above December levels when yields fell to 3.75%.

Treasuries towards the front of the curve fell faster in the wake of Powell’s commitment to cuts this year.

Gold ETF inflows remain absent, potentially providing an additional catalyst to gold’s momentum as retail investors seek exposure.

Geopolitical risk continues to bubble, with two major wars ongoing in the Middle East and Ukraine, whilst traders also look to US elections later this year.

Gold : S&P 500 ratio is exactly where it was in 1971 when Bretton Woods ended. Bullish for gold?