London’s FTSE 100 finished Thursday’s trading session 0.35% lower at 7,124.98 points as Wall Street endured a slow start and bomb attacks at Kabul airport in Afghanistan rattled investors.
Earlier in the day, the blue chip benchmark was grounded by ongoing Covid concerns and fears of a tapering of support for the global economy ahead of the Jackson Hole summit of central bankers.
By 4.30pm UK time, the S&P 500 was down 0.3% at 4,481.83.
CORPORATE NEWS
Construction group CRH (CRH) closed 3.7% higher at £39.11 after saying the outlook for its market was improving. The company reported that second half earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation would be ahead of its record prior year. Sales in the first half were 15% ahead year-on-year and margins improved across all its divisions.
‘CRH has delivered an impressive first-half result with operating profit and margins up across all three divisions,’ said analysts at Irish broker Davy. ‘That owes much to management’s repositioning of the business to focus on higher-growth markets, publicly funded construction and integrated building solutions.’
ASTRAZENECA ADVANCES
Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca (AZN) edged 0.5% higher to £85.92 on the news Forxiga, an oral inhibitor, has been approved in Japan for the treatment of chronic kidney disease in adults with and without type-2 diabetes.
The company also reported that a late-stage trial of its drug to treat Wilson disease met its primary endpoint, demonstrating about three times greater copper mobilisation from tissues than standard-of-care treatments.
Alcoholic drinks leader Diageo (DGE) fell 1.1% to £34.81 as it traded without the right to the next dividend payment.
British Land (BLND) gave a strategic update, saying it had delivered £350 million of capital activity, including the purchase of a technology park in Cambridge and a car park in London, as well as selling a leisure centre also in London. The shares nudged up 0.1% to 529.2p.
In the resources sector, silver and gold miner Polymetal (POLY) reported half year results which included a 12% increase in revenue to $1.27 billion, helped by higher metal prices.
However, the company said that given the continuing macroeconomic pressures, materials and wage inflation, as well as various scope changes to projects, its full year capex guidance would move from $560 million to a range of $675 million to $725 million. Its shares fell 3.25% to £14.74.
Elsewhere, recruiter Hays (HAS) advanced 4.9% to 164.7p after it managed to squeeze out a small profit in what was a very disruptive year for trying to place people into jobs. The recruitment consultant grew pre-tax profit by 2% to £88.1 million and said it would resume dividends.
Chief executive Alistair Cox said the new financial year had started well, with more consultants hired to capitalise on greater market activity. He added: ‘We now see a clear route back to, and then exceeding, pre-pandemic levels of profit, faster than we envisaged even six months ago.’
MACFARLANE MARKED HIGHER
Protective packaging solutions specialist Macfarlane (MACF) was marked up 13.8% to 136p on strong first half results and raised full year guidance.
And Parity (PTY:AIM) plunged 21% to 7p after the data and technology-focused professional services play warned it expects sales for 2021 will be in the region of £47.6 million, down from £57.8 million in 2020, resulting in a widened loss before tax of £750,000.
Parity explained first half trading was impacted by underinvestment in its core recruitment solutions business over the last two years as well as ‘the failure to develop a sustainable and scalable consulting business’.
