FTSE 100 
FTSE 100 Falls Ahead of Fed, BOE Rate Decisions
1111 GMT - The FTSE 100 falls 0.4% to 7682.59 points as investors exercise caution ahead of U.S. Federal Reserve and Bank of England rate decisions on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. "It's a big week ahead for central bank interest rate decisions, which can understandably make investors a bit jittery," says AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould in a note. Building materials company CRH and industrial products company RS Group are among the top losers, both down around 2.6%, while insurance provider Prudential falls 3%. Property stocks are also mostly lower. Online grocer Ocado bucks the trend, rising 5.9%. (miriam.mukuru@wsj.com)
COMPANIES NEWS:
S4 Capital Lowers Full-Year Expectations Despite Narrowed 1H Operating Loss
S4 Capital reported a significantly narrowed operating loss primarily due to lower combination related expenses, but lowered its full-year expectations after slow summer trading.
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Mondi Agrees to Sell Mondi Syktyvkar to Sezar Invest for RUB80 Bln
Mondi said it has entered an agreement to sell Mondi Syktyvkar, the company's last Russian facility, to Sezar Invest for a total consideration of 80 billion Russian rubles ($826.4 million).
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Frasers Group in Talks to Sell Missguided to Shein, Sky News Reports
--Frasers Group boss Mike Ashley is in talks to sell online clothing label Missguided to Singapore-headquarted online fashion retailer Shein, Sky News reports.
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UBS mulls return to AT1 sales in wake of Credit Suisse deal -- Financial News
Bondholders were furious after absorbing billions in losses, but UBS will reportedly offer better terms for AT1s going forward
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Orcadian Energy Agrees to Initial Farm-Out Deal of North Sea Oil Field Development
Orcadian Energy said it has agreed to a non-binding heads of terms with an unnamed North Sea operator regarding a potential farm-out of its pilot development project in the Central North Sea.
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Pendragon to Sell UK Motor and Leasing Business for $310 Mln to Lithia
Pendragon said it will sell its entire U.K. motor business and leasing business to Lithia Motors for 250 million pounds ($309.6 million), change its name to Pinewood Technologies PLC and embark on a strategic partnership with Lithia.
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Thor Energy Halts Trading on ASX Ahead of Capital Raising; AIM Trading Continues
Thor Energy said Monday that trading of its shares on the Australian Securities Exchange has been suspended while the company plans a capital raising to accelerate its exploration activities.
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ECR Minerals Plans GBP580,000 Fund Raising via Discounted Share Subscription
ECR Minerals plans to raise 580,000 pounds ($718,214) via a share subscription, which will be used to advance the company's existing assets, for potential new opportunities and working-capital purposes.
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Christie Group Swung to Loss on Transaction Delays, Higher Costs
Christie Group swung to a pretax loss for the first half of 2023 on transaction delays by its agency and advisory business and higher costs, it said on Monday.
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Artisanal Spirits Backs Full-Year Views for Earnings Rise Despite 1H Loss Widening
Artisanal Spirits Co. said its pretax loss widened despite a slight increase in revenue, but that it remains confident in meeting full-year market expectations for higher earnings.
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Dialight Lowers Guidance After Swing to Pretax Loss; CFO to Step Down
Dialight said its 2023 outlook is now below previous expectations after the company posted a swing to pretax loss for the first half, and said its chief financial officer is stepping down.
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Vast Resources Shares Drop on Lack of Progress in Diamond Parcel Lawsuit
Shares in Vast Resources fell 24% after the company said that it hasn't been able to progress the settlement relating to the release of diamonds held in custody at the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe as it had expected, due to recent elections in the country.
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GCP Asset Backed Income Fund Ends Merger Talks With GCP Infrastructure
GCP Asset Backed Income Fund no longer plans to merge with GCP Infrastructure Investments after failing to get shareholder support.
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Elixirr International Buys Responsum for Up to $6.4 Mln; 1H Profit Rose
Elixirr International said it has bought Responsum Inc. for a maximum consideration of $6.4 million in a cash and stock deal, and said its profit and revenue rose.
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Hemogenyx Stock Rises on Premium Share Subscription
Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals shares jumped on Monday after the company got an $830,000 investment from Prevail Partners through a share subscription at a considerable premium.
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Bango Backs Full-Year Views Despite Widened 1H Loss on Integration Cost
Bango said its pretax loss widened on Docomo Digital integration costs, though revenue significantly rose and it still expects to meet market forecasts for the year.
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Critical Metals Signs $3 Mln Debt Facility to Speed Up Mining Operations
Critical Metals said it has signed a $3 million debt facility from an unnamed international financial institution to accelerate mining operations, increase production and continue negotiations with possible copper ore buyers.
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Afentra Shares Rise on Restoration of Listing
Shares in Afentra rose Monday after the oil-and-gas company was restored to trading in London, having been temporarily suspended in July pending the publication of an admission document related to offshore acquisitions in Angola.
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TPXImpact Holdings Sells Questers to Nortal for GBP7.5 Mln
TPXImpact Holdings said it has sold Questers Resourcing and Questers Bulgaria to Nortal AS for a cash consideration of 7.5 million pounds ($9.3 million).
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Iomart Group CEO Reece Donovan Steps Down, Succeeded by Lucy Dimes
Iomart Group said Monday that its Chief Executive Officer Reece Donovan is stepping down with immediate effect after three years in the role, and that he will be replaced by Executive Chair Lucy Dimes.
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City of London Investment Group Pretax Profit Falls as Fees Drop, Costs Rise
City of London Investment Group posted a drop in pretax profit for fiscal 2023 on lower fees and higher costs.
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Metals Exploration Chairman David Cather Resigns
Metals Exploration's Independent Chairman David Cather has resigned with immediate effect and at the insistence of the company's second largest shareholder Runruno Holdings, it said Monday.
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Diversified Energy Finance Chief Eric Williams Resigns, COO Brad Gray Tapped
Diversified Energy Company said its Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President Eric Williams has resigned with immediate effect to pursue other professional opportunities.
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S4 Capital Shares Slump After Lowering Full-Year Expectations
S4 Capital shares dropped after it lowered its full-year expectations on a slow summer performance and client caution, while it also reported a significantly narrowed operating loss primarily due to lower acquisition-related expenses.
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Facilities By ADF's Pretax Profit Rose on Strong Demand, Acquisition
Facilities By ADF said its pretax profit more than doubled in the first half of the year on the back of rising revenue from strong demand and its Location One acquisition.
MARKET TALK:
Central Bank Dominance in G10 Currency Outlook Seen Weakening
1109 GMT - The dominance of central banks in the G10 currency outlook isn't as great now as it was six months ago, Kit Juckes, chief global FX strategist at Societe Generale, says in a note. "The growth matters more and, in that sense, perhaps the long end of the yield curve matters more than policy rates, too," he says. The euro didn't benefit from the European Central Bank's interest-rate increase last week and sterling may not gain much from the Bank of England's upcoming meeting either, he says. Among the Swiss franc, Swedish krona and Norwegian krone, the Swedish currency may be the one which benefits the least from upcoming policy decisions, he says. (emese.bartha@wsj.com)
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S4 Capital's Lower Guidance Reflects Overweight Position on Technology Clients, Citi Says
0954 GMT - S4 Capital's guidance downgrade is likely due to the digital advertising agency's significantly overweight position on technology clients, Citi analysts say in a research note. The company's latest update brings another downgrade, with first-half revenue in line with guidance provided in July, but profit below expectations and a further drop in full-year revenue targets. Yet, "even with guidance suggesting a 15%-25% cut to full-year consensus forecasts, there's a sense that it is still reliant on a robust fourth quarter," the analysts say. The silver lining is net debt guidance is unchanged, according to the bank. "For now, though, we expect a very cautious reception to the release," the analysts say. Citi retains its buy/high risk rating on the stock and a price target of 325 pence. Shares are down 28% at 68.45 pence. (joseph.hoppe@wsj.com)
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Gemfields' Emerald Auction Result Beat Expectations
0930 GMT - Gemfields' strong result from its recent commercial-quality emerald auction bodes well for the mixed-quality ruby auction in December, Liberum analysts write in a research note. The miner and marketer of colored gemstones' yearly commercial-quality emerald auction in August-September yielded $25.5 million in auction revenues, clearly above Liberum's expectations of $19.8 million. "This takes some of the sting out of not having a high-quality emerald auction in the second half," the analysts say. Gemfields has cancelled its auction planned in November due to low production at its Kagem mine. Liberum rates the stock buy, with a 26-pence price target. Shares are down 0.6% at 13.51 pence. (christian.moess@wsj.com)
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Frasers Group's Sale of Missguided Could Be a Transformational Milestone
(MORE TO FOLLOW) Dow Jones Newswires
09-18-23 0731ET
