Frasers maintains FY guidance, Vodafone's African subsidiary raises stake Kenyan telco
By Iain Gilbert
Date: Thursday 04 Dec 2025
(Sharecast News) - LONDON PRE-OPEN
The FTSE 100 was expected to open 30.9 points higher ahead of the bell on Thursday after wrapping up the previous session 0.10% softer at 9,692.07.
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UK retailer Frasers Group held annual guidance despite a fall in half-year profit amid weak consumer confidence and excess inventory which continued to weigh on the sector, leading to heavy discounting. Frasers said on Thursday that adjusted pre-tax profits fell 2.8% to £290.9m on the back of higher impairments and increased interest costs, although this was offset by a £34m gain from the disposal of the Coventry Arena and an increase in premiums from strategic investments. Revenue rose 5% to £2.58bn, driven by international revenue growth of 42.8%.
Telecommunications giant Vodafone said on Thursday that its African subsidiary, Vodacom, has agreed to acquire an effective 20% stake in Safaricom, Kenya's leading telecoms operator. Vodacom will acquire 15% from the Government of Kenya for €1.36bn in cash, and 5% from Vodafone for €450m in cash.
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The Post Office has avoided a fine over a data breach that resulted in the mistaken online publication of the names and addresses of more than 500 post office operators it had been pursuing during the Horizon IT scandal. The Information Commissioner's Office has reprimanded the Post Office over the breach, in which the company's press office accidentally published an unredacted version of a legal settlement document with the operators on its website. - Guardian
Ben & Jerry's pro-Gaza activism risks derailing the £7bn spin-off of Unilever's ice cream division, the consumer goods giant has warned. On Wednesday, Unilever said that statements from Ben & Jerry's board on the conflict in the Middle East risked "reputational damage" to its new Magnum ice cream business. The FTSE 100 giant is separating Ben & Jerry's, Magnum, Cornetto and dozens of other brands into a new group called The Magnum Ice Cream Company, which is set to be listed on the London, Amsterdam and New York stock markets. - Telegraph
Construction will start on Europe's first major lithium mine after German taxpayers pumped €354m (£311m) into Vulcan Energy Resources' €2.2bn project in the Upper Rhine Valley. The German government's backing - which dwarfs the amount British lithium start-ups have received from UK coffers - comes as Europe scrambles to cut its dependence on Chinese rare earths. - Telegraph
Anthropic is reported to have called in lawyers to prepare for a blockbuster flotation as soon as next year, as the $300bn artificial intelligence start-up steps up the battle with rival OpenAI in the race to go public. Wilson Sonsini, the New York-based firm, has been appointed to advise on the potential IPO, which would give the company behind AI chatbot Claude a more efficient way to raise capital and provide leverage for bigger acquisitions. - The Times
A FTSE 100-listed mining giant has revealed it has axed 1,000 jobs as it seeks to overhaul its business to save costs and become the largest copper producer in the world. Glencore has announced the reduction of its workforce to investors at its capital markets as it sets an ambition to almost double its copper production over the next ten years. - The Times
US CLOSE
Major indices closed higher on Wednesday, as investors weighed the prospect of a year‑end rally and digested key jobs data ahead of the Federal Reserve's upcoming policy decision.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.86% at 47,882.90, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.30% to 6,849.72, and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.17% firmer at 23,454.52.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
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