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Mining sector helps FTSE make progress
StockMarketWire.com
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The FTSE 100 made steady gains on Wednesday, up 0.3% to 6,548.39 by midday supported by strength in the mining sector as investors looked towards a recovery from the pandemic.
Sentiment was also supported by the new record highs marked by US and Asian stocks overnight.
Housebuilder Persimmon dipped 0.3% to £27.74 after it identified unsafe cladding materials in high-rise buildings and flagged a £75 million charge to pay for replacement work.
Persimmon's review comes in the wake of the Grenfell Tower disaster in 2017, which saw a high-rise residential building catch fire, killing 72 people.
Permission had found 26 buildings that it had developed that may need work.
Fellow house builder Redrow reversed 2.1% to 559.5p, even as it reinstated its dividend on the back of an 11% rise in first-half profit.
Redrow said the profit growth was underpinned by a recovery in demand, though partly driven by the looming end of the UK government's Help-to-Buy subsidy.
Homewares retailer Dunelm 5.5% to £13.30 after it resumed dividends with a 12p per share payout, having reported a 34% jump in first-half profit as families get more house-proud during lockdowns.
Dunelm said strong online sales offset the impact from store closures in the second quarter owing to Covid-19 restrictions.
Packaging company Smurfit Kappa firmed 2.8% to £36.40 even after it booked a lower underlying operating profit, pinned on lower box prices during the pandemic, that was nevertheless better than expectations.
Smurfit Kappa also upped its final dividend by 8%, citing the strength of its prospects amid the ongoing e-commerce boom.
Advertising company WPP gained 0.7% to 823.4p following news that it had acquired Brazilian digital innovation and software engineering group DTI Digital, for an undisclosed sum.
Emerging markets asset manager Ashmore gained 0.9% to 484p as it reported a rise in assets under management and 14% profit growth, driven by investment performance.
Ashmore held its dividend steady at 4.8p per share.
Residential landlord Grainger slipped 0.9% to 268p on announcing that rental collection stood at 98% and like-for-like sales were up 2.4% in the four months through January.
Grainger's private rental occupancy stood at 90%, in line with levels at the end of 2020, following a delay in the anticipated recovery in occupancy in London amid new lockdowns.
Biotherapeutics company PureTech Health added 0.4% to 376p after it sold a million shares in founded entity Karuna Therapeutics for around $118 million.
Replacement window and door manufacturer Safestyle ticked up 0.1% to 41.5p, having guided for a deeper underlying annual loss, despite returning to profit in the second half.
Story provided by StockMarketWire.com
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