London pre-open: Stocks seen higher on upbeat US cues
London stocks were expected to open in the black on Tuesday, taking their cue from a positive session in the US as traders return to their desks following the long bank holiday weekend.
AstraZeneca
10,846.00p
12:50 19/04/24
Aviva
455.00p
12:50 19/04/24
Banks
3,849.07
12:50 19/04/24
FTSE 100
7,835.78
12:50 19/04/24
FTSE 250
19,297.37
12:50 19/04/24
FTSE 350
4,309.70
12:50 19/04/24
FTSE All-Share
4,265.90
12:50 19/04/24
HSBC Holdings
638.20p
12:50 19/04/24
Life Insurance
5,701.77
12:49 19/04/24
Pharmaceuticals & Biotechnology
21,062.03
12:50 19/04/24
Regus
242.50p
16:49 16/12/16
Support Services
10,416.21
12:49 19/04/24
The FTSE 100 was seen opening 28 points higher than Friday's close at 6,270.
On the data front, UK manufacturing PMI for April is at 0930 BST.
HSBC's first-quarter profits fell 14% compared to last year but were better than was expected by analysts, with chief executive Stuart Gulliver expressing confidence that cost-reduction plans now under way will hit their target by the end of next year.
Amid a tough few months for the industry, the banking giant saw its profits before tax dwindle 14% to $6.12bn at the reported level, or 18% to $5.43bn on an adjusted basis. The consensus forecast was for a PBT of $4.2bn.
AstraZeneca said it has completed the divestment of the global rights to angina treatment Imdur, outside the US, to China Medical System Holdings Ltd and its associated company,Tibet Rhodiola Pharmaceutical Holding Co.
Under the agreement, AstraZeneca will receive $190 m for the rights to Imdur.
Imdur is a mature medicine for the prevention of angina in patients with heart disease and achieved global sales outside the US of $57m in 2015. Income from the agreement will be reported as Core Other Operating Income.
In a separate announcement, AstraZeneca said it has completed the acquisition of the core respiratory business of Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited.
The agreement, announced in December 2015, includes the expansion of rights to roflumilast (marketed asDaliresp in the US and Daxas in other countries), the only approved oral PDE4 inhibitor for the treatment of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Regus, a provider of flexible workspace solutions, said it expects to deliver full-year results in line with management's views as it reported “good trading” in the three months to the end of March.
The FTSE 250 company said group revenue rose to £532.5m from £452.3m in the first quarter of last year, a 14.5% increase at constant currency, thanks to the development of 554 locations added during 2015.
Aviva said it has completed the acquisition of an additional 23% share in Aviva India from its joint venture partner Dabur Invest Corp.
The acquisition follows recent regulatory changes which allowed Aviva to increase its shareholding to 49%, the maximum allowed under India's foreign direct investment limits (FDI). The transaction is expected to have a neutral impact on Aviva's IFRS net assets. In 2015, Aviva India contributed £36m to Aviva's IFRS net assets and £4m to Aviva's pre-tax profits.