Aug 2 Britain’s FTSE 100 index is seen opening down about 0.5 percent on Tuesday, according to financial bookmakers, with futures down 0.4 percent ahead of the cash market open.
* The UK blue chip index closed 30.5 points lower on Monday at 6693.95 points, with energy stocks slipping on weaker crude oil prices and banks losing ground following the results of the European Union’s stress test.
* SABMILLER: Anheuser-Busch InBev and SABMiller, the world’s two largest brewers, set out a timetable on Monday for the final stages of their $100 billion-plus merger, with completion of the deal expected in a little more than two months.
* MEGGITT: British car and aeroplane parts maker Meggitt stuck to its annual guidance for low single-digit rise in organic revenue this year, with strong order intake due to boost growth in the second half of the year.
* PENDRAGON: Britain’s largest car dealership chain Pendragon said it did not expect to see any major change in the cost of new vehicles after Britons voted to leave the European Union, pushing down the value of sterling.
* FRESNILLO: Silver and gold miner Fresnillo Plc said its first-half core profit rose 49 percent, helped by a jump in prices and higher production.
* ROTORK: Valve-control systems maker Rotork Plc said it expected cost-cutting initiatives to support its full-year performance, as its clients tighten spending to combat weak oil prices.
* AG BARR: AG Barr Plc, the maker of Irn-Bru and Rubicon fizzy drinks, said it expected input costs to increase from 2017 due to the impact of a weaker pound.
* DIRECT LINE: Britain’s largest motor insurer Direct Line Insurance Group reported a 3.6 percent fall in first-half operating profit from ongoing operations, hurt by lower investment gains and the new Flood Re levy.
* INTERCONTINENTAL HOTELS: Intercontinental Hotels Group Plc expressed confidence in its outlook for the rest of the year, after growth across its regions led to a higher rise in global room revenue for the second quarter.
* OLD MUTUAL: European private equity fund Cinven is about to start exclusive talks to buy the Italian wealth arm of financial services firm Old Mutual for about 300 million euros ($335 million), a source with knowledge of the deal told Reuters.
* BP: BP Plc curtailed production over the weekend on the 60,000 barrel per day (bpd) reforming unit at the 413,500 bpd Whiting, Indiana refinery for repairs, sources familiar with plant operations said on Monday.
* UK INDUSTRY: Prime Minister Theresa May will on Tuesday outline her bid to reshape the British economy for a post-Brexit world, reviving the once unfashionable concept of industrial policy 30 years after Margaret Thatcher killed it off.
* UK INSURANCE: Consumers who believe they have been missold loan insurance have until the end of June 2019 to make a claim, Britain’s markets watchdog proposed on Tuesday.
[Source:- Reuters]
