- FTSE 100 index on positive ground
- Kingfisher in demand after results
- Travel stocks stay under pressure
9:50am: IG analyst says FTSE 100 looks likely to go lower
CFD trading group IG, in a note, described the FTSE 100 as continuing in a “multi-month downtrend”.
“The rebound seen in early September took us back into the 61.8-76.4% Fibonacci retracement zone, yet we have seen that rise capitulate in style,” IG analyst and chartist Joshua Mahony said.
“With price having dropped back towards the 5,764 support level, there is a good chance the moderate gains seen since yesterday’s lows will be fleeting.
“As such, another leg lower looks likely from here, with price heading back towards the lower boundary of the descending standard deviation channel.”
8.45am: Dead-cat bounce
The FTSE 100 opened in positive territory on Tuesday morning, recovering a tad after Monday’s carnage, however, sentiment could turn on a sixpence, analysts warned.
London's blue-chip stocks opened 38 points higher at 5,841.68 after the bloodiest day in three months on Monday – one in which the blue-chip index tanked more than 200 points on lockdown concerns.
Prime minister Boris Johnson is widely expected to announce another coronavirus crackdown today, including a 10pm curfew on pubs and restaurants, in a bid to stem the rising tide of COVID-19 infections. Advice will also be given to work from home where possible, reports suggest.
There was little respite for the travel stocks, with British Airways owner IAG (LON:IAG) off 4.2% alongside easyJet (LON:EZJ), down by the same quantum, and cruise firm Carnival (LON:CCL), off 3.3%.
However, a notable riser was B&Q owner Kingfisher (LON:KGF), up 6.4% after a strong recovery in profits prompted by a boom in DIY.
“The pandemic seems to have prompted the turnaround that was eluding management at the start of the year as it struggled with weak sales in France, particularly its Castorama business,” said Susannah Streeter, analyst at the investment group Hargreaves Lansdown.
“But wielding a paintbrush seems to have become a national pastime during the pandemic, not just here in the UK but in the group’s other markets too, particularly Poland and Romania although sales slipped in Russia and Iberia.”
Proactive news headlines:
Open Orphan PLC (LON:ORPH) has announced that its Venn Life Sciences subsidiary has secured an important new contract to support a major European pharmaceutical company. The specialist CRO pharmaceutical services company, which is the world leader in the testing of vaccines and antivirals using human challenge clinical trials, said the Paris team of Venn will be assisting a prospective, multicentre, longitudinal, non-interventional oncology study which is expected to enrol over 750 subjects whereby Venn will handle all data management, statistics and medical writing for the study. The group said the contract reinforces Venn's position as one of the leading providers of data-management, statistics and medical writing services to many of Europe's leading pharmaceutical and biotech companies, a service the Company has a strong track record or providing.
Bango PLC (LON:BGO) said it has partnered with EPIC ON, the premium OTT platform by IN10 Media Network, to expand access to EPIC ON's vast array of subscription-based entertainment content into new regions. The AIM-listed data-driven commerce platform noted that EPIC ON is a multiform content platform enabling users to Watch, Play, Listen, Read and engage with innovative ways on a single app. Users can access its content on a monthly paid subscription basis. Under the agreement, EPIC ON will work with Bango to expand its global presence, growing its paying user base and opening up access to its wealth of content and services by offering customers alternative payment methods.
Litigation Capital Management Limited (LON:LIT), the disputes funding specialist, said its assets under management rose sharply over the past year while there was a significant increase in firms seeking a legal solution. Coronavirus is likely to accelerate this trend, it added, with the likelihood of a substantial rise in insolvency-related litigation in all the jurisdictions where it operates. In the year to end June 2020, Litigation Capital Management said it received 522 applications for funding, which was a 25% increase on the previous year, though only 3.5% of these received an investment. The Australia-based company funds both portfolios and single cases and said there had been eight resolutions in the two corporate portfolios over the past year.
Ergomed PLC (LON:ERGO) saw its adjusted underlying earnings (EBITDA) surge by 40% year-on-year in the first half of 2020 and the company said it expects to see the momentum continue in the second half of the year, driven by demand for its pharmacovigilance (PV) and contract research organisation (CRO) services. The group reported adjusted EBITDA of £9.1mln, up from £6.5mln in the same period of 2019, and profit before tax grew to £6.0mln from £4.1mln the previous year. Total first-half revenue rose by 14.8% to £40.4mln from £35.2mln in the corresponding period of 2019, with service fee revenue up 25.9% - or 18.0% on a like-for-like basis, excluding Prime Vigilance USA, which was acquired in January 2020 - to £36.9mln.
Rock Resources Australasia Ltd, a joint venture between Red Rock Resources PLC (LON:RRR) and Power Metal Resources (LON:POW), has released the results of an NI 43-101 technical report on the BMV gold project. BMV comprises eight exploration licences out of the twelve for which the joint venture has applied, all of which are subject to pending licence applications. The report highlights several areas where the exploration potential is “excellent.”
Parity Group PLC (LON:PTY) has said activity is picking up again after coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic disruption affected the first half of the year. Revenue in the six months to end June 2020, fell by a third to £29.9mln while underlying profits were £61,000 against £203,000. Since June, things have improved, Parity said, helped by new contracts including two slots in the Scottish government’s online purchasing system and a consultancy slot on a cyber services training contract in Northern Ireland in partnership with CyberGym.
Coinsilium Group Limited (AQSE:COIN) has updated shareholders on efforts to revive the token economics of the Indorse (IND) digital currency asset, through the use of a new decentralised finance (DeFi) based model, with the company now looking forward to key catalysts next month. The Aquis-exchange listed investor holds a 10% interest in Indorse and owns 5.79mln IND tokens, representing around 15.37% of its circulation. Eddy Travia, Coinsilium chief executive, said the firm is working closely with the Indorse team in the development of a comprehensive strategy to update the token model to what is being referred to as ‘IND 2.0’. A new ‘Light Paper’ is due to be published in mid-October, to layout in more detail the proposed developments and updates which will feature in Indorse 2.0.
ADES International Holding PLC (LON:ADES) has confirmed revenue growth of 13.4% to US$249.3mln for the first six months of 2020. The group said this demonstrated its resilience to the exceptional challenges posed by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and oil price volatility. Half-year underlying earnings (EBITDA) improved by 3.6% to US$93.3mln, though a normalised version of the figure – to exclude one-offs charges – shows an 11% gain to US$99.9mln. The group's margin was trimmed to 37.4% from 40.9% in the same period a year earlier. The company reported a net profit of US$15.5mln, versus US$3.2mln.
Alien Metals Ltd (LON:UFO) has begun follow-up detailed geological mapping and sampling at the Hamersley iron ore projects in Australia. The programme is designed to validate recently announced exploration targets across both projects and will consist of four-to-five kilometres of grid-based sampling across priority prospects, and detailed mapping over exposed iron ore formations.
Power Metal Resources PLC (LON:POW) has released assays results from due diligence sampling at the Silver Peak project in British Columbia, Canada. The project includes the Eureka-Victoria silver mine, the first Crown-granted mineral property in British Columbia. Ten channel sample and one grab sample assay results were received from ALS Canada laboratories and two showed bonanza silver grades. Significant copper and lead grades were also returned. Among the highlights were 0.50 metres grading 10,718 grams per tonne silver, 2.14 % copper and 2.99 lead, and 0.50 metres grading 14,937 grams silver, 3.05% copper and 11.95% lead.
Alliance Pharma PLC (LON:APH) has held its dividend and said it is seeing signs of better trading after disruption from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic affected its first half. "We are now starting to see further signs of recovery and expect trading to continue to recover as we move through the remainder of the year,” said Peter Butterfield, chief executive of the healthcare products group in its interim results statement. Revenues in the six months to end June 2020, dropped 7% to £61.7mln with prescription medicines particularly affected as routine treatments were delayed by COVID-19. The company’s flagship consumer healthcare brands were helped by a strong performance from scar prevention treatment Kelo-cote, where revenues were up 8%.
Rosslyn Data Technologies PLC (LON:RDT) has confirmed revenue growth in the first half of 2020 and highlighted higher levels of client engagement since the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The company said that although sales opportunities were temporarily delayed during lockdown, in recent weeks it had begun to see increased activity from prospective clients. Revenue and the pipeline remain strong, it added. The group pointed to a focus among larger companies on supply chain resilience, supply chain risk, cost reduction – all of which can be enhanced by the use of ‘Big Data’.
OptiBiotix Health PLC (LON:OPTI) said it has entered into a non-exclusive license agreement for its SlimBiome Medical proprietary weight management product with HiLife Vitamins & Herbs Co Inc. in the US. The life sciences business, which is developing compounds to tackle obesity, high cholesterol, diabetes and skincare, noted that HiLife is a privately owned business which was founded in 1971 to supply its local community with healthy supplements. With the evolution of e-commerce, HiLife rapidly extended its customer base becoming one of the first online health supplement retailers in the USA, and nearly fifty years on, HiLife lists over 5000+ products online having built an established and loyal customer base across the USA, it added. Optibiotix said the signing of the agreement with HiLife is subject to the placing of a trial order and a six month period after which both parties will discuss the terms of the agreement to explore online exclusivity for the USA.
Oriole Resources PLC (LON:ORR) has delivered a profit of £170,000 during the six months to end June 2020. The company was able to reduce administrative expenses to £420,000, particularly by reducing its outlay on consultancy fees in Turkey, where it has legacy operations. The company had £500,000 cash as at the end of August. During the period, the company secured the Senala licence in Senegal for up to a further 10 years and continued to enjoy the participation of IAMGOLD Corporation as its partner.
Shanta Gold Ltd (LON:SHG) is to expand processing capacity at the New Luika gold mine in Tanzania, with the integration of a new pilot plant started, and commissioning scheduled for January 2021. The group said milled throughput nameplate capacity will increase by 14%. The cost has been pegged at US$1.2mln, and will easily be funded by existing cashflow from production, it added. Following commissioning, the annual nameplate processing capacity at New Luika is expected to increase to a baseline of 708,000 tonnes per year, up from current nameplate capacity of 620,000 tonnes, with the projected annual processing rate increased to a baseline of 783,000 tonnes, up from 695,000 tonnes.
FastForward Innovations Ltd (LON:FWD), the AIM quoted company focusing on making investments in fast growing and industry leading businesses, has announced the appointment of a new broker, Shard Capital Partners, with immediate effect. Optiva Securities will cease to act as the company's broker, it added.
6.50am: Losing streak expected to come to an end
The FTSE 100 is expected to end four days of losses ahead of an announcement from prime minister Boris Johnson about new measures to try and curb the spread of a second wave of coronavirus (COVID-19) in the UK.
London’s blue-chip index is tipped by spread-betting firm CMC Markets to rise 30 points on Tuesday, having lost almost 203 points the day before.
Overnight, Wall Street’s main stock indices continued the bloodletting in what had been a brutal day for markets in Europe, with the Dow Jones Industrials Average tumbling close to 510 points or 1.8%, the S&P 500 down 1.2% and the Nasdaq Composite dipping 0.1%.
Stocks with the greatest exposure to prolonged coronavirus restrictions and tougher quarantine rules on foreign travel were among the hardest hit across Europe, while in the US there was also concern about whether a deal could be reached in Congress about a new round of coronavirus aid.
Back in the UK overnight, Downing Street lifted the COVID-19 alert system to its second-highest level after a grim briefing from Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer for England, and Sir Patrick Vallance, the chief scientific adviser, about a potentially tough autumn and winter period for the country.
The prime minister is today expected to impose new curfews on pubs and restaurants and encourage working from home again.
“Given the data-light week, a series of positive headlines could quickly reverse the bearish technical picture evident in equity markets,” said market analyst Jeffrey Halley at Oanda.
“However, the tone of the week thus far suggests that investors are looking for rallies to sell, not buy into, with the balance of probabilities implying deeper downward corrections to come.”
Around the markets:
- Pound down 0.1% to US$1.2804
- Gold down 0.2% to US$1,909.68
- Oil Brent crude down 0.2% to US$41.34
6.45 am: Early Markets - Asia/Australia
South Korea’s Kospi led losses among major Asian markets on Tuesday as it fell 2.35%.
The Hang Seng index in Hong Kong dropped 0.63% while China’s Shanghai Composite was down 0.54%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 was sliding for a fourth consecutive session, down 0.67% following hefty declines on Wall Street overnight.
Proactive Australia news:
Fe Limited (ASX:FEL) (FRA:B4T) will fast-track work programs at its two new advanced iron ore projects after reaching an agreement to accelerate final payment of the Evanston Iron Ore royalty sale proceeds.
Auroch Minerals Ltd (ASX:AOU) has begun reverse circulation drilling at the recently acquired Firefly and Sinclair North prospects within the Leinster Nickel Project in Western Australia.
Kazia Therapeutics Ltd (ASX:KZA) (NASDAQ:KZIA) is collaborating with Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI) in the US to investigate the use of Kazia’s investigational new drug paxalisib (formerly GDC-0084) in primary central nervous system lymphoma (PCNSL).
SUDA Pharmaceuticals Ltd (ASX:SUD) (FRA:E4N) has welcomed study results that support the company’s hypothesis that an anagrelide oral spray formulation may offer a safer alternative to the current commercial capsule to treat metastatic disease in patients with certain solid tumour cancers.
Tietto Minerals Ltd (ASX:TIE) directors have demonstrated their confidence in the company’s gold strategy by participating in a placement following shareholder approval on September 10.
Element 25 Ltd (ASX:E25) (FRA:QFP) sees 2020 as a transformational year despite the difficult circumstances, with progress made and more work planned for the Butcherbird Manganese Project in Western Australia.
Macarthur Minerals Ltd (ASX:MIO) (CVE:MMS) (OTCQB:MMSDF) has received several new enquiries regarding future joint venture and partnership opportunities following an announcement last week that it is retaining 100% of its tenements in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.
Eclipse Metals Ltd (ASX:EPM) has mobilised equipment to the Amamoor manganese deposits near Gympie in southeast Queensland for stage-2 diamond drilling.
Alto Metals Ltd (ASX:AME) has raised $5.5 million in a strongly supported placement to accelerate an aggressive exploration program testing potential repeat lodes at the flagship Sandstone Gold Project in Western Australia.
Lake Resources NL (ASX:LKE) has received further validation of its strategy to produce 'clean' lithium from Kachi Lithium Brine Project in Argentina by securing more funds to accelerate a definitive feasibility study (DFS) as well as for general exploration and working capital.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMioQFodHRwczovL3d3dy5wcm9hY3RpdmVpbnZlc3RvcnMuY28udWsvY29tcGFuaWVzL25ld3MvOTI5NjIwL2Z0c2UtMTAwLXN0YWdlcy10ZW50YXRpdmUtcmVjb3ZlcnktYWhlYWQtb2YtcG0tcy1hZGRyZXNzLWtpbmdmaXNoZXItYmVuZWZpdHMtZnJvbS1kaXktYm9vbS05Mjk2MjAuaHRtbNIBPmh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LnByb2FjdGl2ZWludmVzdG9ycy5jby51ay9jb21wYW5pZXMvYW1wL25ld3MvOTI5NjIw?oc=5
2020-09-22 07:47:00Z
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