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SSE to dispose of energy-from-waste holding, Sabre performance picks up in third quarter

By Josh White

Date: Tuesday 13 Oct 2020

(Sharecast News) - London open

The FTSE 100 is expected to open 11 points higher on Tuesday, having closed down 0.25% at 6,001.38 on Monday.
Stocks to watch

SSE said it had agreed to sell its 50% share in its Multifuel energy-from-waste ventures to Australian fund manager First Sentier Investors for £995m in cash as part of its £2bn disposal programme. The transaction is expected to complete by late 2020 subject to antitrust approval by the European Commission, SSE said on Monday. Cash from the disposals will support the company's plans to invest £7.5bn in low-carbon energy infrastructure over the next five years and reduce SSE's net debt, it added.

Sabre Insurance Group reported "consistent" performance in its first nine months on Tuesday, with temporary Covid-19 lockdown-driven price reductions now "fully backed out" as traffic and claim levels returned to normal. The FTSE 250 company said gross written premiums picked up in the third quarter, resulting in the first nine months of the year ending 9% lower year-on-year at £139.2m, having been 14% down year-on-year at the end of the first half. It said year-on-year gross written premiums were likely to be around 10% lower year-on-year, depending on market conditions.

Newspaper round-up

Campaign groups and small business representatives have called on consumers to shun this week's Amazon Prime extravaganza and support small retailers instead. On Tuesday and Wednesday the tech giant will host its annual Prime Day event, with thousands of tempting bargains - many at up to half price. However, campaigners are calling on consumers to consider the plight of local businesses that were already struggling to compete with Amazon ahead of lockdown. - Guardian

Economies struggling with the costs of Covid-19 could face a double blow from escalating trade wars unless international talks to rewrite cross-border tax rules are successful, the OECD has warned. The Paris-based organisation, which has been steering the talks, said governments would come under further financial pressure from retaliatory tariffs should governments fail to agree a global tax framework by an extended deadline of mid 2021. - Guardian

Taxes may have to rise more than £40bn a year to stop Government borrowing spiralling out of control, the Institute for Fiscal Studies has warned. The think-tank said the deficit this year was set to reach levels not seen outside the two world wars due to Covid-19. In its annual Green Budget, the IFS said over the medium term, taxes would almost certainly have to rise, noting that the Government had increased spending on day-to-day public services by £70bn in response to the pandemic. - Telegraph

The big day may still be more than 10 weeks away but Britons have already started their Christmas shopping with gusto, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). Its latest survey for the five weeks to Oct 3 recorded a 5.6pc jump in total sales compared to last year - the best since December 2009. - Telegraph

An investment vehicle belonging to a care homes tycoon paid £27 million in annual dividends, despite a crisis in the industry. The latest accounts for Court Cavendish, which is controlled by Chai Patel through a 90 per cent stake, shows that dividends have increased to £43 million over its past three financial years. - The Times

US close

US stocks closed higher on Monday as stimulus talks remained in focus for yet another session.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.88% at 28,837.52, while the S&P 500 was 1.64% firmer at 3,534.22 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 2.56% stronger at 11,876.26.

The Dow Jones closed 250.62 points higher on Monday, extending gains recorded on Friday as talks on Capitol Hill consumed the majority of market participants' attention.

As far as Monday was concerned, those same stimulus talks in Congress remained in focus for yet another week.

With roughly three weeks until the US election, Democratic candidate Joe Biden's widening lead in the polls may very well indicate that a substantial fiscal package could be on the horizon if his party can take Congress.

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