Weekly review
By Michele Maatouk
Date: Friday 21 Aug 2026
(Sharecast News) - The FTSE 100 ended up 0.6% at 10,816.56 on Friday.
Equity view
Precision engineering group Hunting reported lower first‑half revenues and earnings and trimmed its full‑year underlying earnings guidance, with softer trading in several product groups outweighing stronger performances in Perforating Systems and Subsea. Revenues fell 6% to $497m in H126, while EBITDA dropped 12% to $62.1m, reflecting the absence of Kuwait Oil Company orders completed in H125 and slower activity in advanced manufacturing, offsetting solid organic growth in Perforating Systems and Subsea.
Hays shares fell on Thursday after the recruiter said it swung to a full-year pre-tax loss due to restructuring charges, although there was an improvement in underlying profit. In the year to the end of June, the company swung to a statutory pre-tax loss of £54.5m from a profit of £1.5m a year earlier. Net fees declined 8% to £905.5m and the dividend per share was cut to 0.44p from 1.24p.
Retailer JD Sports Fashion reported a drop in second quarter sales on Thursday and cut its full‑year profit guidance, pointing to a still‑promotional market and softer consumer demand across key regions. JD Sports said Q2 organic revenues fell 1.3%, widening from the 0.1% decline seen in Q1, while like‑for‑like sales were down 3.1% against a 2.5% fall in the prior quarter.
Oxford Nanopore Technologies announced a new 2030 revenue target of more than $700m on Wednesday, as it reported a narrowing of its interim losses as revenue ticked higher, driven by strong adoption in EMEAI and across Applied end markets. In the six months to 30 June, losses narrowed to £48m from £71.8m, with revenue up 10.5% on the same period a year earlier to £116.7m. Adjusted EBITDA losses reduced to £22.1m from £48.3m.
Medical technology firm Smith & Nephew said on Wednesday that John Rogers will step down from his role as chief financial officer on 30 September, to take up an external position in the US. The search for his successor has already been initiated and in the meantime, Senior Vice President Finance and Group Controller Pierre Palassian will serve as interim CFO.
Trainline shares plunged by more than 15% on Wednesday after the UK's competition watchdog opened a formal investigation into the online ticketing group over concerns that it was displaying misleading prices to customers upfront. The Competition and Markets Authority said it had identified transactions on Trainline's app and website where mandatory fees - including booking charges of up to £2.79 and a £1.50 fee for coach journeys - were added later in the purchasing process, raising potential issues around so‑called "drip pricing".
IT services provider Kainos said on Tuesday that it had made a strong start to the new financial year and lifted guidance for FY27, with the board now expecting revenues and adjusted pre‑tax profit to come in comfortably ahead of current market forecasts. Kainos's update comes after it delivered double‑digit revenue growth, a very strong sales performance and record backlog levels in the year ended 31 March, with management stating momentum had continued through the opening months of FY27.
Australian mining giant BHP posted a sharp jump in annual earnings with copper became its main profit earner, overtaking iron ore for the first time. Copper operating earnings rose 48% to $18.19bn compared with iron ore's $14.5bn. Group core earnings rose 37% to $33bn.
Drugmaker AstraZeneca posted two contrasting lung‑cancer updates on Monday, discontinuing one Phase III study while reporting strong survival gains from another. AstraZeneca said it will halt the eVOLVE‑Lung02 Phase III trial of volrustomig plus chemotherapy in first‑line metastatic non‑small cell lung cancer (mNSCLC) with PD‑L1 expression below 50%.
Telecom Plus - which trades as Utility Warehouse - said on Monday that it was confident of meeting its guidance for FY27 and of delivering on its long-term goal of £175m of adjusted pre-tax profit by FY31 following an "encouraging" start to the year. In an update ahead of its annual general meeting, the company said its new five-year plan, announced in June, has made an encouraging start. Between April and July, annualised multiservice customer growth was running "slightly ahead" of its 10% target for the full year, and more than 2.5x the multiservice customer growth rate of 3.9% achieved in FY26.
Economic news
The UK economy gained traction in August, underpinned by growth in the services sector, according to a survey released on Friday. The S&P Global flash UK PMI composite output index rose to 52.5 from 52.2 in July, coming in above the 50 mark that separates contraction from expansion for the second month in a row. The services PMI business activity index ticked up to a six-month high of 52.8 in August from 52.1 the month before.
UK government borrowing rose in July as spending growth outpaced receipts despite strong self-assessed income tax revenue, according to figures released on Friday by the Office for National Statistics. Government borrowing was £1.8bn in July, up £0.7bn on the same month a year earlier and £2.3bn above the Office for Budget Responsibility's forecast.
UK retail sales fell as expected in July, having been boosted a month earlier by hot weather and promotions, according to figures released on Friday by the Office for National Statistics. Retail sales declined by 0.5% in July following a revised 0.7% rise in June. The ONS had previously estimated that sales rose 1% in June. The ONS said clothing retailers reported earlier promotions bringing sales forward from July into June, as well as hot weather reducing footfall in July.
UK manufacturing order books improved sharply in August, helped by a recovery in overseas demand, according to the latest survey from the Confederation of British Industry. The CBI said total order books were reported as below normal to the smallest extent since November 2024, with the net balance - those reporting an increase minus those reporting a decrease - rising to -25% from -45% in July.
UK inflation rose as expected in July, pushed up in part by higher gas prices, according to data released on Wednesday by the Office for National Statistics. Consumer price inflation increased to 2.9% from 2.6% in June, in line with economists' expectations. Housing and household services, and furniture made the largest upward contributions to the monthly change, while transport made the largest, partially offsetting, downward contribution.
The UK unemployment rate was unchanged in June, while earnings growth in the private sector slowed and vacancies were at their lowest in more than five years, according to figures released on Tuesday by the Office of National Statistics. The unemployment rate unexpectedly remained at 4.9% in the three months to June, versus expectations for a dip to 4.8%. Meanwhile, vacancies fell by 6,000 to 707,000 - the lowest level since 2021.
UK grocery price inflation eased to its lowest level in nearly two years in August, while hot weather drove strong demand for summer staples including ice cream, dips and soft drinks, according to Worldpanel by Numerator. Grocery inflation slowed to 2.1% in the four weeks to 9 August, from 2.6% previously, marking a fifth consecutive month of easing and the lowest rate since October 2024. Take-home grocery sales growth also moderated to 2.5%.
Property portal Rightmove downgraded its forecast on Monday for growth in house prices this year as it reported a drop in August prices. Prices fell 1% on the year following a 0.4% decline in July. This marked the largest annual price fall since December 2023. On the month, prices were down 2% in August following a 1% fall a year earlier. This was the largest August price fall since 2018. The average price of a home stood at £364,999, versus £372,359 last month.
International events
Sweden's central bank left interest rates unchanged on Thursday but warned that a hike later this year remained possible after inflation and economic growth came in stronger than expected over the summer. The Riksbank's Executive Board kept its policy rate at 1.75%, saying the overall economic outlook remained "largely unchanged" despite recent upside surprises.
Shares in Walmart fell sharply on Thursday despite the American retail giant raising its outlook for the current financial year, as the company reported its weakest underlying sales growth in more than six years for its second quarter. Walmart said US comparable sales rose by just 2.6% year-on-year over the three-month period, held back by new pricing regulations in the pharmacy industry. Excluding those, comparable sales would have risen 3.4%, but that's still below the 3.8% expected by analysts.
Monthly production across the eurozone construction industry declined by the most in more than three years in June, according to Eurostat figures on Thursday, with heavy falls in France and Slovakia providing a drag. Construction output was 1.3% over the month, following relatively small changes over the preceding two months (+0.2% in May, -0.1% in April).
Wholesale prices across Germany rose at their strongest annual rate in over three years in July, as commodity prices soared year-on-year, according to figures from the federal statistical office on Thursday. The producer price index increased by 1.1% last month, following a 0.3% decline in June, Destatis reported. That equated to a 3.0% increase over last year, a big jump up from the 1.8% annual inflation rate recorded the month before.
Merck and Moderna surged on Wednesday after the pharmaceutical companies said a personalised mRNA melanoma vaccine they are jointly developing showed positive results in a first-ever late-stage trial. The companies hailed positive topline results from the Phase 3 trial of intismeran, a novel investigational mRNA-based individualised neoantigen therapy (INT) in combination with Keytruda (pembrolizumab), Merck's anti-PD-1 therapy, in patients with completely resected stage IIB-IV melanoma.
Retailer Lowe's traded lower in pre‑market action on Wednesday after the firm struck a more cautious tone on its outlook, pointing to ongoing "pressure" in DIY consumer spending. Lowe's said second‑quarter revenues came in at $26bn, just shy of the $26.1bn expected, while adjusted earnings per share of $4.27, which included an $0.11 tariff‑refund benefit, came in ahead forecasts.
Target posted another strong set of quarterly numbers on Wednesday, with tariff refunds giving earnings an additional lift and prompting the retailer to raise its full‑year guidance as its turnaround continued to take hold. For the second quarter, Target said revenues came in at $26.54bn, ahead of the $26.14bn expected, while net income jumped to $1.88bn or $4.11 per share, up from $935m or $2.05 a year earlier.
Inflation across the eurozone picked up as initially expected in July, according to final estimates from Eurostat released on Wednesday, with energy price growth accelerating after a brief slowdown the previous month. The annual change in the consumer price index across the single-currency region rose to 2.9% last month, up from 2.8% in June and in line with the flash reading released three weeks ago.
Shares in Carlsberg fell on Wednesday despite the Danish brewer lifting the lower end of its full-year earnings guidance, as first-half results came in shy of company-compiled consensus forecasts. Carlsberg's B shares were down 3.3% at DKK878.80 in late-morning Copenhagen trading. The company now expects organic operating profit growth of 4% to 6% in 2026, compared with its previous forecast of 2% to 6%, saying faster-than-expected synergies from its Britvic acquisition and tight cost control had more than offset weakness in China.
German investor sentiment improved more than expected in August, according to a survey released on Tuesday by the ZEW Center for European Economic Research in Mannheim. The ZEW economic expectations index ticked up to 34.2 from 26.3 in July, coming in above expectations for a reading of 30.0.
US pending home sales fell in July, dropping 2.3% from June and 2.2% year‑on‑year, according to the latest update from the National Association of Realtors. Contract signings slipped to their lowest level since January 2026, with month‑on‑month declines recorded across all four major US regions. On an annualised basis, the Midwest was the only region to show an increase, while the Northeast, South and West all posted year‑over‑year declines.
DIY retailer Home Depot posted second‑quarter numbers on Tuesday that topped Wall Street expectations, while also reiterating its full‑year guidance. Home Depot said adjusted earnings per share came in at $4.92, ahead of the $4.73 expected by analysts, with revenues rising to $47.86bn against a $47.27bn consensus. Net income rose to $4.77bn, or $4.79 per share, from $4.55bn a year earlier.
American Airlines announced a "sweeping transformation" on Tuesday, unveiling fleetwide upgrades across its narrowbody planes to improve entertainment options and its premium cabin experience. Chief customer officer Heather Garboden called it "one of the most significant investments in the onboard experience in our history", as the airline announced plans to retrofit its Airbus A319 and A320 fleets to add an additional row of First Class.
Klarna shares tanked on Tuesday after the payments group lowered its full-year volume outlook and announced departures of its chief financial and marketing officers. The stock was down around 19% at $15.82 shortly after the New York open, compared with Monday's closing price of $19.51.
US homebuilder confidence edged slightly higher in August, according to the latest NAHB/Wells Fargo housing market index, though broader signs of cooling persisted across the sector. The headline index rose one point to 35, with current sales conditions improving two points to 39, while sales expectations for the next six months held at 43, and the gauge tracking prospective‑buyer traffic was unchanged at 23.
Japanese economic growth slowed more than expected in the second quarter of 2026, according to figures released on Monday from the country's Cabinet Office, while expectations of higher interest rates lifted bond yields to a 30-year high. Real gross domestic product expanded by 0.3% over the April to June period, easing from the 0.5% growth registered in the first quarter. That was the third straight quarter-on-quarter increase in economic activity, but short of the 0.5% growth rate expected by analysts.
UK consumer confidence weakened in August as concerns over job security intensified and household incomes fell for the first time in more than three years, according to the latest S&P Global survey. The UK Consumer Sentiment Index slipped to 42.9 from 43.4 in July, with the average reading so far in 2026 pointing to the weakest consumer sentiment since 2023.
A barrage of economic indicators from China came in below market forecasts on Monday, with weak domestic demand leading to a loss of momentum at the start of the second half. Fixed asset investment and house prices both declined significantly in July, while growth in industrial production and retail sales fell short of economists' projections, which the government largely blamed on extreme weather conditions during the month.
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