AstraZeneca gets EU approval for Trixeo Aerosphere, John Laing sells Australian wind portfolio
By Josh White
Date: Monday 19 Oct 2020
(Sharecast News) - London open
The FTSE 100 is expected to open seven points lower on Monday, having closed up 1.49% at 5,919.58 on Friday.
Stocks to watch
AstraZeneca said its Trixeo Aerosphere had been given marketing authorisation in the European Union (EU) for maintenance treatment in adult patients with moderate to severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
John Laing Group has agreed to sell its portfolio of Australian wind farm assets to First Sentier Investors for a total consideration of AUD 285m (£157m), it announced on Monday. The FTSE 250 company said the sale value represented a small uplift to its book value for the portfolio as at 30 June, and was equivalent to a money multiple on its investment of 1.5x. Completion of the sale remained subject to customary consents, regulatory approvals and notification periods, which were expected to be satisfied by early 2021.
Newspaper round-up
The Chinese economy grew 4.9% between July and September, according to government data, as China became the first major economy to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic. The year-on-year expansion, while slightly lower than analyst expectations, represents a dramatic reversal from the first quarter of this year when the economy shrunk by 6.8%, China's first contraction since 1992 when officials began keeping quarterly GDP data. - Guardian
Virgin Media has warned of the damage that could be inflicted on the telecoms industry if BT strikes "deeply discounted" broadband deals with rivals. The company fears competing network builders could suffer if Openreach, BT's broadband builder, is allowed to offer long-term wholesale contracts on the cheap. The cable operator has pressed regulators to "monitor the behaviour" of Openreach as it renegotiates with customers while upgrading the nation to ultra-fast broadband. - Telegraph
Britain faces the threat of long-term high unemployment and permanent scarring of its economy if it fails to urgently act to help millions of workers retrain for the future, a leading business group warned today. The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) claimed that coronavirus was accelerating changes to the world of work, fuelling the threat of long-term joblessness for British workers unless they are given new skills. - Telegraph
The finance chiefs of Britain's largest companies are pushing back the date for a return to business as usual. Over the last three months, chief financial officers of FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 companies have slashed their expectations for a full recovery in business demand before next summer, a closely watched survey by Deloitte published today shows. - The Times
The chancellor needs to present a budget this autumn to help businesses and workers to see through the fog of the Covid-19 pandemic and Brexit, a former Treasury adviser has said. Chris Sanger, head of tax policy at EY, said that a budget is not merely "pomp and ceremony" but provides much-needed clarity and direction. In 2016, the government moved to delivering one budget each autumn to "promote certainty and stability". - The Times
US close
Stocks finished in a mixed state on Wall Street on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average ending the session up 0.39% at 28,606.31.
The S&P 500 eked out gains of 0.01% to 3,483.81, while the Nasdaq Composite was 0.36% weaker at 11,671.56.
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