Revenues fall at AstraZeneca, Glencore copper production slides
London open
The FTSE 100 is expected to open 13 points lower on Thursday, after closing up 0.24% at 7,452.32 on Wednesday.
Stocks to watch
AstraZeneca performed in line with expectations in the first half of 2017, it reported on Thursday, with total revenue falling 11%, or 9% at constant currencies, to $10.46bn. The FTSE 100 drugmaker reported an 11% fall in product sales to $9.78bn - or 10% at constant currencies - while reported operating profit surged 37% to $1.84bn. At the same time, AstraZeneca aso confirmed a new partnership with Merck & Co to co-develop and co-commercialise AstraZeneca’s ‘Lynparza’ treatment for multiple cancer types.
Mining conglomerate Glencore said first half own-sourced copper production fell 9% to 642,900 tonnes. Own-sourced zinc production of 570,800 tonnes was up 13%, reflecting an increase of grades and production at the Antamina mine in Peru and “generally solid performances across the portfolio”.
St.James's Place reported at 27% jump in funds under management to reach £83.0bn (Numis: £82.8bn) for the six months ending on 30 June. That drove a 40% pick-up in its operating profits on a european embedded value basis to £397.3m. Underlying profits before tax on an IFRS basis were 44% higher to £139.0m. The asset manager lifted its interim payout by 25% to 15.41p (Numis: 16.5p), telling shareholders it remained confident in its ability to deliver sustained growth.
Newspaper round-up
Ten years on the housing market is still feeling the after-effects of the credit crunch, with existing homeowners struggling to trade up, a doubling of typical first-time buyer deposits, and a “huge gap” between London and the rest of Britain, according to a new report. Property company Savills has found that the global financial crisis – which it considers to have started on 9 August 2007, when the French bank BNP Paribas froze three investment funds – is “still shaping the UK housing market” and will continue to cast its shadow over the sector for years to come. - Guardian
A regulatory regime intended to crack down on the behaviour of bank bosses is to be extended to 47,000 firms including dentists, gyms and tool hire companies that offer credit to customers. The Financial Conduct Authority estimated that the new regime would cost firms £550m, with up to £190m of ongoing costs for the firms involved. – Guardian
A row has broken out between Britain’s car makers and the Government as senior industry figures last night complained they had been “blindsided” by the clean air announcement that pledged to remove petrol and diesel cars from the UK’s roads by 2040. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) announced details of the scheme on Wednesday, which aims to improve air quality by banning sales of new cars with conventional ¬engines from 2040 – but failed to consult the industry about the plan. – Telegraph
Facebook shares hit an all-time high in after-hours trading on Thursday, after it said it enjoyed a 45pc surge in revenue in its recently-ended quarter thanks to continued dominance in the mobile video advertising market. The company's stock closed up 0.2pc on Thursday, but rose 4.5pc in after-hours trading to $173. Its revenue hit $9.3bn (£7bn) in the three months ended June 30, of which 98pc came from advertising, while diluted earnings per share rose almost 70pc year on year to $1.32. – Telegraph
A “tide of change” across the retail industry has led to a drop in the number of full-time jobs compared with last year, according to the British Retail Consortium. The trade association for retailers said that the number of hours worked in the sector had fallen by 3.3 per cent between April and June compared with the same period a year ago, suggesting that the number of full-time employees was falling, with all three months showing a decline in hours worked. – The Times
The boss of Britain’s biggest commercial broadcaster has rejected calls for it to reveal details of its top earners’ pay. Speaking days after the BBC published a list of its highest-paid celebrities, Sir Peter Bazalgette, executive chairman of ITV, said that it took the issue of equality seriously but would not go down the same path. – The Times
US close
US stocks finished higher on Wednesday thanks to some well-received corporate news, as investors looked ahead the Federal Reserve statement on interest rates and its balance sheet unwinding.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average finished up 0.45% at 21,711.01, the S&P 500 ended 0.03% higher at 2,477.83 and the Nasdaq 100 was 0.34% firmer at 5,950.73.
Although the earnings calendar was busy, investors spent much of the day looking ahead to the FOMC rate announcement late in the session, in which the committee stood pat on rates as expected.
Traders were perhaps more keen to look for any clues as to when the Federal Reserve would begin to unwind its mammoth $4.5trn balance sheet, with the FOMC hinting it could begin next month.
“The Committee expects to begin implementing its balance sheet normalization program relatively soon, provided that the economy evolves broadly as anticipated,” the committee’s statement read.
The FOMC had previously indicated it planned to wind down its balance sheet sometime this year, with the addition of “relatively soon” though to indicate the unwinding was imminent.