Hilton Foods full-year earnings on track, Unite Group reports solid demand
By Josh White
Date: Tuesday 08 Apr 2025
(Sharecast News) - London open
The FTSE 100 is expected to open 147 points higher on Tuesday, having closed down 4.38% on Monday at 7,702.08.
Stocks to watch
Hilton Foods said it was on track to deliver 2025 earnings in line with guidance after a sharp jump in profits last year, driven by its core retail meat business which outperformed total market growth in every region. The company posted a 25% rise in pre-tax earnings to £61m and hiked its dividend 7.8% to 34.5p.
Unite Group reported strong demand for the 2025-2026 academic year in an update on Tuesday, with 75% of beds already sold, and rental growth of 4% to 5% and occupancy of 97% to 98% expected. The FTSE 100 student accommodation provider said it was advancing a new joint venture with Manchester Metropolitan University and progressing multiple development projects, despite some planning delays. Quarterly property valuations rose modestly, with the Unite UK Student Accommodation Fund (USAF) and London Student Accommodation Joint Venture (LSAV) increasing by 0.7% and 0.8% respectively, driven by rental growth and stable to slightly higher yields.
The chief financial officer of Howden Joinery Group is to step down, the blue chip kitchen supplier said on Tuesday, to be replaced by Coats Group's Jackie Callaway. Paul Hayes, 58, will retire as finance chief and from the board at the end of May, following five years in the role. He will be replaced by Callaway, who currently holds the same position at textiles specialist Coats.
Newspaper round-up
The world used clean power sources to meet more than 40% of its electricity demand last year for the first time since the 1940s, figures show. A report by the energy think tank Ember said the milestone was powered by a boom in solar power capacity, which has doubled in the last three years. The report found that solar farms had been the world's fastest-growing source of energy for the last 20 consecutive years. - Guardian
The UK has lost an attempt to keep details of a legal battle with Apple away from the public. The investigatory powers tribunal, which investigates whether the domestic intelligence services have acted unlawfully, on Monday rejected a bid by the Home Office to withhold from the public the "bare details" of the case. - Guardian
Britain has suffered an "almost unprecedented" plunge in productivity over the past five years in a fresh setback for the Chancellor's growth ambitions. The Resolution Foundation said GDP per head slumped by 0.5pc between 2019 and 2024, marking the worst drop since the 1970s outside of the financial crisis. It means UK workers are even less productive than official data suggests, with the Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimating that an increase of 1.8pc over the same period. - Telegraph
Brussels has threatened to bar American companies from bidding for taxpayer-funded contracts as Europe seeks to retaliate against Donald Trump's tariffs. Stéphane Séjourné, executive vice president of the European Commission, said the EU has "the cards" to hit back at Mr Trump's new levies of 20pc on goods and 25pc on cars. "We could decide to withdraw all American companies from European public procurement," Mr Séjourné, who is also commissioner for industrial strategy, told Radio France. - Telegraph
Two of America's best-known financiers have called on President Trump to soften his position on tariffs or risk recession, higher inflation and even "an economic nuclear winter". Jamie Dimon, chief executive of the biggest US bank, JP Morgan Chase, issued a warning in his annual letter to shareholders, saying that the tariffs imposed by the US would push up inflation and slow growth. - The Times
US close
Stocks finished mostly lower on Monday after another volatile day across global financial markets, as investors continued to scale back risk appetite and react to the latest gloomy economic predictions amid an escalating trade war.
The Dow finished 0.9% lower at 37,965.60 and the S&P 500 fell 0.2% to 5,062.25, with both indices hitting their lowest marks since late-April 2024.
The Nasdaq Composite, however, edged 0.1% higher to 15,603.26, as the selling pressure eased after an 11% sell-off since Donald Trump's sweeping trade tariffs were unveiled last Wednesday.
Stocks staged a brief rally in morning trade on the back of a false social media report that said the Trump administration was considering a 90-day pause in tariffs for all countries except China.
The rumours, which were quickly quashed by the White House, saw the S&P 500 swing from a near-5% loss early on to a 3.4% gain within ten minutes. Just half an hour later, the index was back in the red again.
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