BOE Rate-Rise Delay Could Leave Pound Vulnerable to Risk Aversion
1155 GMT - Sterling would be left vulnerable to fresh selling pressure from uncertainty over the Omicron coronavirus variant and heightened volatility if the Bank of England holds interest rates steady at its next meeting, TD Securities says. "We expect the BOE to leave the Bank Rate on hold at 0.10%, given the intensified Covid-19 restrictions announced this week," TD Securities analysts say. As a result EUR/GBP should remain near its recent highs for longer, while GBP/USD could fall toward 1.30 if risk appetite weakens, they say. EUR/GBP is flat at 0.8541 and GBP/USD falls 0.2% to 1.3195.
Companies News:
Actual Experience Shares Down After FY 2021 Pretax Loss
Actual Experience PLC shares fell in early Friday trading after the company said it will incur a pretax loss in 2021 as part of its continuing investments in technology, sales and marketing, without disclosing a figure.
---
AB Foods Sees Improved Performance Ahead as Primark Sales Strengthen -- 2nd Update
Associated British Foods PLC said Friday that fashion retailer Primark's performance since the fiscal 2021 year ended on Sept. 18 has been ahead of expectations thanks to stronger like-for-like sales when compared with the latest quarter.
---
Pathfinder Minerals Rises on Prospects of Significant Damage Award Over Mozambique Dispute
Shares in Pathfinder Minerals PLC rose Friday after it said that its consultants have estimated a maximum $1.50 billion ex-post damages award to the company related to its dispute over a mining concession in Mozambique.
---
Recycling Technologies Targets Early 1Q 2022 IPO
Recycling Technologies Group Ltd. said Friday that it now plans to complete its initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange early in the first quarter of next year, following interest from a broad range of investors.
---
Panther Metals Completes IPO of Australian Subsidiary
Panther Metals PLC said that its subsidiary Panther Metals Ltd. listed on the Australian Securities Exchange on Friday.
---
Starcrest Education Cancels Acquisition of National Training Co. on Market Conditions
Starcrest Education Ltd. said Friday that it has cancelled the non-legally binding heads of terms for the acquisition of National Training Co. on the need for additional funds.
---
Lukoil to Buy 9.99% Stake in Shah Deniz Gas Project After Downgrading Deal With Petronas
Lukoil PJSC said Friday that it will acquire a 9.99% shareholding in the Shah Deniz natural-gas project offshore Azerbaijan from Petronas instead of the 15.5% stake previously announced.
---
Star Phoenix Resolutions to Appoint New Directors Rejected by Shareholders
Star Phoenix Group Ltd. said Friday that all resolutions to appoint nominated directors at its general meeting failed and its board composition remains unchanged.
---
Anglo American Cuts Outlook for Platinum Group Metals, Iron Ore, Coal, Nickel
Anglo American PLC on Friday downgraded its production outlook for platinum group metals, iron ore, metallurgical coal and nickel.
---
Shell Shareholders Approve Ending of Dual-Share Class
Royal Dutch Shell PLC said Friday that its shareholders have approved the amendment of the group's articles of associations to simplify its share structure.
---
Shell Shareholders Approve Ending of Dual-Share Class, Moving HQ to London -- Update
Royal Dutch Shell PLC said Friday that its shareholders have approved the amendment of the group's articles of association to simplify its share structure and move the headquarters to the U.K.
Market Talk:
Anglo American's New Guidance Seems in Line With Expectations
0858 GMT - Anglo American's guidance provided Friday morning appears to be largely in line with expectations, something that will soothe some concerns in the market around major forward divergences from current expectations, RBC Capital Markets says, noting that granular guidance has yet to be given in the presentation later in the morning. The Quellaveco copper project in Peru delivering more tons earlier is a positive, and 4% unit cost inflation for 2022 should be close to consensus, RBC says. "Anglo American remains a well-diversified miner with growth and strong underlying operations. We continue to believe both this growth, and further rerating over time, backstops a compelling investment case," the bank says, reaffirming an outperform rating on the stock. Shares rise 0.2%.
---
AB Foods Shrugs off Omicron Variant in 1Q Update
0908 GMT - Associated British Foods' performance update for the first quarter of fiscal 2022 has shown that the effects of the new Covid-19 Omicron variant have been contained for now, Jefferies says. The British conglomerate's reiteration of a sizeable group EBIT rebuild in 2021-22 should help underpin the valuation upside in the path to a return to normal, the U.S. bank says. Jefferies has a buy recommendation on the stock and a target price of 2,700 pence a share. Shares are up 0.6% at 1,946.00 pence.
---
Sterling Falls After Weaker-Than-Forecast UK GDP
0932 GMT - Sterling falls after data showed the U.K. economy grew by a weaker-than-anticipated 0.1% month-on-month in October. Economists polled by the WSJ expected 0.3% growth. The data will give the Bank of England "further cause for hesitation" in raising interest rates at the December 16 meeting, UBS Global Wealth Management economist Dean Turner says. The pound has been weak in recent days as investors reassess the chances of a rate rise this month but this is unjustified, he says. "Although the Bank is likely to delay raising rates, hikes are still coming," he says. "We expect this to drive the pound higher in the coming months, especially against the euro." EUR/GBP rises 0.1% to 0.8550 and GBP/USD falls 0.2% to 1.3200.
---
Hilton Food's Foppen Acquisition Looks a Smart Move
1030 GMT - Hilton Food Group's acquisition of Dutch salmon business Foppen looks strategically and financially attractive, RBC Capital Markets says. The food-packing business will partially fund the acquisition through a GBP75 million share placing, which will put pressure on the shares in the near term, but this will be offset in the long run by the attractiveness of the deal, RBC says. "[The deal] complements its existing seafood business and therefore provides revenue synergies. Despite the placing, it will be [earnings] accretive in the first twelve months and Hilton notes return on invested capital is greater than the cost of capital," the Canadian bank says. Retains outperform rating and 1,500 pence price target. Shares are down 0.8% at 1,186.0 pence.
---
Anglo American's Detailed 2022-24 Guidance Could Prompt Consensus Downgrades
1159 GMT - Anglo American has released detailed three-year forward guidance, and with the numbers generally weaker than expected, this could suggest consensus downgrades, RBC Capital Markets says. The key highlight for 2022 is softer production guidance for nearly all divisions and modestly higher costs, RBC says. Copper production is expected to be better in 2023 and 2024, indicating an improved Chile production profile versus the bank's forecasts. As for capital expenditure, the outlook is 18% higher than expectations for 2023 and "materially higher" for 2024. "At the margin, the details in the three-year forward guidance point towards a more clear eroding of expectations, albeit nothing that alters the fundamentally attractive underlying investment case," RBC says. Shares in the FTSE 100 mining house fall 1.0% to 2,944 pence.
---
YouGov Looks Like a Strong Performer But Upside Is Limited
1201 GMT - YouGov has enjoyed a strong recent performance and shares have risen, though this has reduced upside potential to around 10%, Peel Hunt says. The U.K. research and data-analytics group's acquisition of LINK Marketing Services should increase earnings and revenue and the brokerage raises its price target for YouGov's stock to 1,630 pence from 1,480 pence, though a lot of growth has been priced in. "Although we continue to believe there will be near-term outperformance through delivering larger contracts, together with further margin expansion the shares have had a strong rebound of late-up over 30% since the dip in October," Peel Hunt says, downgrading its rating on the stock to add from buy. Shares are flat on 1,545 pence.
Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires; Write to Sarka Halas at sarka.halas@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
12-10-21 0855ET
