FTSE Seen Opening Lower After Fed Signaled Earlier Rate Rise

London Stocks Seen Opening Lower After Fed Signaled Earlier Rate Rise

0651 GMT - The FTSE 100 is expected to open 48 points lower, according to IG, having closed Wednesday at 7184.95, after the U.S. Federal Reserve unexpectedly signaled that it was likely to raise interest rates by late 2023, earlier than previously forecast. Policy makers also discussed eventual tapering of asset purchases under the Fed's quantitative-easing program. "Pulling away liquidity should lead to some price pullback in major [stock] indices, even though we don't expect a rapid fall as the Fed won't pull away the rug from under investors' feet rapidly," Swissquote analyst Ipek Ozkardeskaya says. Among individual stocks, Whitbread will be in focus after it reported total sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2022 fell 70% due to pandemic-related restrictions. ([e-mail])

 
Companies News: 

Dr. Martens FY 2021 Profit Slipped on Higher Costs, Revenue Climbed

Dr. Martens PLC reported Thursday a fall in pretax profit for fiscal 2021 on higher costs as it released its first set of earnings since floating in London.

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Trainline Ticket Sales Bounce Back as Restrictions Are Lifted

Trainline PLC said Thursday that its net ticket sales rose more than fourfold in the first quarter of the fiscal year.

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Mitie Shareholder How Group Sells Stake for GBP69.6 Mln

How Group has sold its entire stake of around 7% in Mitie Group PLC for around 69.6 million pounds ($97.3 million), investment bank Jefferies International Ltd. said Thursday.

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Halfords FY 2021 Profit Jumped on Higher Revenue; Positive Momentum Carries Into FY 2022

Halfords Group PLC on Thursday reported a more-than-trebled pretax profit for fiscal 2021 on higher revenue.

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Whitbread 1Q 2022 Sales Fell Because of Pandemic Curbs

Whitbread PLC said Thursday that total sales for the first quarter of fiscal 2022 fell 70% because of the government's pandemic-related restrictions.

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N. Brown 1Q Revenue Rose Marginally

N. Brown Group PLC said Thursday that revenue increased slightly in the first quarter of fiscal 2022.

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Safestore 1H Profit Jumped, Sees FY 2021 Earnings at Top End of Range

Safestore Holdings PLC on Thursday reported an improved profit for the first half of fiscal 2021, driven mainly by investment gains, and forecasts full-year earnings at the top end of the guidance range.

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Open Orphan Reports Widened 2020 Loss; Poolbeg to Seek London IPO

Open Orphan PLC on Thursday reported a widened loss for 2020 and said that Poolbeg Pharma Ltd. intends to float on the AIM market.

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NCC Group Sees FY 2021 Revenue Up, Earnings at Upper End of Consensus

NCC Group PLC said Thursday that it expects fiscal 2021 revenue to rise slightly on-year and adjusted earnings before interest and taxes to reach the upper end of market consensus expectations.

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Wise FY 2021 Pretax Profit Surged; Sees Strong Demand in Early FY 2022

U.K. fintech company Wise PLC said Thursday that pretax profit for fiscal 2021 more than doubled, and that it has seen strong demand at the start of the current year.

 
Market Talk: 

Developed Markets' Monetary Policy to Remain 'Exceptionally' Accommodative

0619 GMT - Monetary policy will remain "exceptionally" accommodative in most developed markets, Scope Ratings says. The firm expects policy rates in the U.S., eurozone and Japan to remain on hold at least through 2022. The U.K. will likely increase its base rate to 0.25% by end-2022 and the People's Bank of China is expected to raise its loan prime rate by 10 basis points in 2021 and in 2022, Scope says. A central risk to Scope's economic baseline could be a tightening of global financial conditions, in the form of higher long-term treasury yields, a significant correction in bubbly global equity markets or depreciation of exchange rates, the firm says. ([e-mail])

Higher Global Debt, Deficit Have Rating Implications, Scope Ratings Says

0615 GMT - Scope Ratings expects the global economy to grow by 6% in 2021, moderately faster than expected six months ago, with the growth accompanied by higher government debt and deficits, with diverging ratings implications, it says. "Structurally weakened government balance sheets are credit negative, but ultra-loose monetary policy--particularly from the Federal Reserve, European Central Bank, Bank of England and Bank of Japan--is compensating by ensuring continued low interest rates," says Giacomo Barisone, head of sovereign and public sector ratings at Scope. He adds that the four central banks have enhanced their roles as lenders of last resort. For 2022, Scope Ratings expects the pace of global growth to slow down to around 4.4%. ([e-mail])

Alphawave Sees Data Usage, Cloud-Computing Surge Driving Revenue

0543 GMT - Alphawave's strong growth and outlook is driven by the need for constantly rising wired connectivity speeds in all areas of data centers, Liberum says, initiating coverage on the stock with a buy recommendation and a target price of 420 pence. The surge in growth in data usage and cloud computing is driving demand for higher data-center capacity, with revenue for the high-speed connectivity company expected to reach $230.5 million in 2023, from $32.8 million in 2020, the U.K. brokerage says. "We expect Alphawave's high growth rates and Ebitda margins to continue well beyond our forecasted period to 2023, with the business expected to continue to see strong cash generation," Liberum says. ([e-mail])

BHP Seeks to Lock in Port Plans for Jansen Ahead of Board Decision

0002 GMT - A decision on a port option for BHP's Jansen potash project remains a key task to be completed before executives take the proposed investment to the board in the coming few months, says Rag Udd, BHP's President Minerals Americas. BHP, while advanced on its rail plans, is still considering two port options--one commercial, one greenfield, he says. Speaking to investors, Udd also reiterates BHP is "open to partnering, but [that] this project doesn't need a partner." His remark follows media reports that BHP is in talks with Nutrien about a partnership on Jansen. Udd says an investment in Jansen is "a really big decision" given capital costs, and will rely on much more than just BHP's favorable view on the outlook for potash. ([e-mail]; @RhiannonHoyle)

Political Spending Gets Liberty Global's Shareholder Nod of Approval

1837 ET - Liberty Global shareholders approved spending up to $1 million in political expenditures, including donations to political organizations and parties. Such resolutions are customary for public companies in the U.K. Though Liberty Global didn't use the authority in 2020, and company officials said they have no plans for any such spending this year, they said they wanted to leave the door open, just in case. "Given recent events in Europe, and the U.K. in particular, concerning issues such as the independence vote in Scotland, the U.K. citizens' vote in favor of an exit from the E.U. (Brexit), subsequent decisions in the U.K. and the impact of Brexit on our U.K., Irish and continental European operations, the company believes that although we have limited history of making political contributions or lobbying, it may make good business sense to have the flexibility to respond to political issues in the countries in which we do business," Liberty Global wrote in documents to shareholders. ([e-mail]; @mjarmental)

BHP Sees Potash Demand Catch-Up Amid Global Decarbonization

18:36 ET--BHP's bull case for potash prices, whereby farm behavior is overhauled by declining soil fertility, today appears far more reasonable than a scenario where the potash market is swamped by a surge in supplies, says the miner's chief economist Huw McKay. He tells an investor briefing that a market wave, the fourth since 1960, has arguably just begun and should lead demand to catch up with recent excessive supply increases by the late 2020s or early 2030s. The fertilizer should benefit greatly from a decarbonizing world, he says. "Under our 1.5-degree scenario, potash stands to be a winner," says Dr. McKay. ([e-mail]; @RhiannonHoyle)

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

06-17-21 0312ET