Level 2

Weekly review

By Josh White

Date: Friday 27 Nov 2020

(Sharecast News) - The FTSE 100 ended the week up 16.13 points at 6,367.58.
Equity view

British outsourcing group Capita on Friday said it was in exclusive talks with private equity firm Montagu over the potential sale of its Education Software Solutions unit.

Pub chain Wetherspoon said half of its pubs would remain closed under the UK government's tiered system when the national lockdown ends on December 2.

Magazine and newspaper publisher Reach said on Friday that its full-year performance has exceeded market expectations amid strong digital growth.

Cairn Energy announced on Friday that non-executive director Nicoletta Giadrossi would be appointed chair of the company, with effect from 1 January.

Severn Trent nudged up its interim dividend as the water company reported reduced profit due to lower revenue and higher bad debts from the Covid-19 crisis.

Britvic reported a small rise in full-year pre-tax profit on Thursday as lower costs helped to offset a revenue decline, as its out-of-home segment was dented by the Covid-19 crisis.

Amigo Holdings said on Thursday that it swung to a pre-tax loss in the first half as revenues slid and the subprime lender expressed doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern.

Real estate investment trust LXI has acquired 11 food stores and two discount stores for a total of £61.0m.

B&Q owner Kingfisher said it had bought online European home improvement services platform NeedHelp for €10m (£9m).

Melrose Industries said it was trading at the top of board expectations helped by a recovery in automotive markets but the company was cautious about the outlook.

United Utilities' first-half profit fell 16% as price controls took effect and Covid-19 reduced water use by business customers.

Defence company Babcock International posted a decline in full-year profit and revenue on Wednesday as costs rose due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Phoenix Group Holdings confirmed press speculation regarding the possible sale of its European businesses.

CRH reported a "robust" performance in the first three quarters of its financial year on Tuesday, in what it called a "challenging" trading environment, as like-for-like EBITDA rose 2% to $3.4bn (£2.55bn).

Food producer Cranswick posted a jump in interim profit and revenue on Tuesday thanks to "exceptionally robust" demand across all of its categories as in-home consumption grew during the pandemic.

Quality assurance provider Intertek said on Tuesday that revenues had slumped in the four months ended 31 October but stated that it was still on track to turn in a "resilient" full-year trading performance.

German business park specialist Sirius Real Estate lifted its dividend as reported a fall in half-year profits.

Aviva has agreed to sell its 80% stake in its Italian life insurance joint venture to its partner UBI Banca for €400m (£356m) in cash as the insurer continues to reduce its international operations.

London-listed Russian gold miner Petropavlovsk said it had appointed KPMG to investigate related-party transactions undertaken by the company over the last three years.

Real estate investment trust Tritax Big Box has priced £250.0m of unsecured green bonds maturing on 27 November 2033 under its £1.5bn Euro medium-term not programme following a series of fixed income investor meetings.

Economic news

Internet industry body IMRG said that the online sales for this year's Black Friday are expected to reach an all-time high.

Goldman Sachs has been given the mandate to sell Spanish lender Banco Sabadell's UK unit, TSB.

UK car production fell 18% in October as Covid-19 and fresh lockdowns reduced demand in important markets, industry figures showed.

London escaped the most stringent of post-lockdown Covid-19 restrictions but Manchester, Birmingham and Newcastle are among areas faced with strict measures in the runup to Christmas.

The UK economy is forecast to contract by a historic 11.3% this year as government borrowing nears £400bn, the chancellor Rishi Sunak warned on Wednesday.

The UK government plans to double the amount of green energy it will subsidise in 2021 as it agrees to include onshore power projects.

UK retail sales fell in November amid the second lockdown but sales are expected to stabilise once restrictions are eased, according to the latest survey from the Confederation of British Industry.

Britain and Europe's automobile industry could yet be dealt another severe blow if Brussels and London cannot reach a Brexit deal and weaken the sector's ability to keep pace with the revolution towards green technology, the country's lobby group for the sector said.

Footfall across UK retail destinations fell 55.4% year-on-year in the week ended 21 November, with regional city centres continuing to be hardest hit.

Private sector output contracted sharply in November as the second national lockdown shuttered the leisure and hospitality sectors, research showed on Monday.

International events

A top European Central Bank official said state aid rules should be eased and bank deposits protected to help lenders through the Covid-19 pandemic.

German consumer sentiment is forecast to tumble in December after lockdown measures introduced to tackle a resurgence in Covid-19 cases dented confidence.

Germany is to push for ski resorts across Europe to stay closed until January, it was reported on Thursday.

First time unemployment claims in the US registered a moderate and unexpected rise last week.

The president of the European commission said she could not predict whether the EU would strike a post-Brexit trade deal with the UK with little more than a month until the deadline.

The General Services Administration has ascertained that the Democratic party's Joe Biden was the "apparent winner" of the US presidential elections, in effect signalling the start of the transition period between the Trump administration and his own.

Germany's economy rebounded strongly in the third quarter, official data showed on Tuesday, after lockdown restrictions were eased and consumer spending surged.

Airlines could lose a total $157bn this year and next, the International Air Transport Association warned on Tuesday.

Eurozone business activity fell sharply in November, putting the bloc on track for a double-dip recession as governments imposed restrictions to stem a second wave of Covid-19 infections.

International passengers will only be able to travel on Qantas flights if they have been vaccinated against Covid-19, the airline's chief executive has suggested.

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