Capita secures 'key contract extension', Intertek acquires Costa Rican testing services firm
By Iain Gilbert
Date: Monday 03 Nov 2025
(Sharecast News) - LONDON PRE-OPEN
The FTSE 100 was expected to open 9.8 points higher ahead of the bell on Monday after wrapping up the previous session 0.44% firmer at 9,717.25.
STOCKS TO WATCH
Student accommodation provider Unite Group said on Monday that acquisition target Empiric Student Property had achieved occupancy of 89% and like-for-like rental growth of 4.5% year-to-date, with the group experiencing an increase in demand from UK domestic students, partially offsetting a reduction in the number of bookings from Chinese students. Unite said its appraisal of the acquisition had assumed lower occupancy and rental growth than the prior academic year, which was reflected in its offer terms, but noted that Empiric's occupancy for the 2025/26 academic year was "slightly below these expectations", whilst rental growth was in line with expectations.
Capita revealed on Monday that its contact centre business has secured a key contract extension with Samsung Electronics UK. Under the new contract, for which no financial details were given, Capita will continue to provide voice, email, and social media community management support to Samsung customers who purchase electronic products, ranging from TVs to mobile phones.
Industrial safety equipment maker Intertek Group said on Monday that it had acquired Suplilab, a provider of food safety and medical devices testing services, based in San José, Costa Rica for an undisclosed sum.
NEWSPAPER ROUND-UP
The prospect of looming tax rises and a fall in business investment will restrict the UK's economic growth rate next year to less than 1%, according to a health check of the economy by a leading consultancy. With less than four weeks before Rachel Reeves delivers her budget on 26 November, the EY Item Club has downgraded Britain's growth for next year, indicating that the economy will continue to expand at a sluggish pace, limiting tax receipts and the chancellor's financial room for manoeuvre. - Guardian
The collective wealth of the top ten US billionaires has soared by $698bn in the past year, according to a new report from Oxfam America published on Monday on the growing wealth divide. The report warns that Trump administration policies risk driving US inequality to new heights, but points out that both Republican and Democratic administrations have exacerbated the US's growing wealth gap. - Guardian
The UK's national debt is growing at the fastest rate of any rich country as a prolonged borrowing binge threatens to push the country into a "doom loop". Debt has close to tripled from 2005 to 2025, analysis by Oxford Economics shows, outpacing increases in any other advanced economy. A failure by successive governments to live within their means has left the UK with a £2.9trn mountain of debt, which is almost as large as the entire economy and costs over £100bn a year in interest payments. - Telegraph
More than £1trn of government spending is expected to push economic growth higher than previously expected this year but the impetus will fizzle out in 2026, according to a leading independent think tank. The UK economy is on course to expand by 1.5% in 2025, partly thanks to a rise in public spending, the EY Item Club said as it raised its forecast for the year. - The Times
More than half of all adults in Britain are using ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence platforms to make financial decisions, according to a study that reveals how quickly AI has come to influence consumer behaviour. Financial advice is the most commonly cited reason for using AI, with 56% of people citing it, ahead of 29% for help on emails or work documents, 20% for recipes, 17% for medical advice and 14% for career tips. - The Times
US CLOSE
Wall Street indices rebounded slightly on Friday after a barrage of blue chip earnings came in ahead of analysts' expectations - though markets were largely rangebound as stocks continue to trade near record highs amid concerns that the interest rates will not be cut again this year.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.09% at 47,562.87, while the S&P 500 picked up 0.26% to 6,840.20, and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.61% stronger at 23,724.96.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
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