(Alliance News) - Stocks in London are called to open lower on Monday, with the US Presidential race hitting a new height with an assassination attempt on Donald Trump.
Donald Trump was hit in the ear in an assassination attempt by a gunman at a campaign rally Saturday, in a chaotic and shocking incident set to supercharge political tensions ahead of the polarising US presidential election.
The 78-year-old former president was rushed off stage with blood streaked across his face after the shooting in Butler, Pennsylvania, while the shooter and a bystander were killed and two spectators critically injured.
"The image of strong and heroic Trump with blood on his face, fist up in the air and with an American flag waving behind him as security guards were taking him away from the scene marked the weekend – and came as a perfect contrast to old and weakened Biden since the TV debate. Cherry top, Trump said that he would attend the Republican National Convention next week," said Ipek Ozkardeskaya at Swissquote Bank
"All in all, even though the assassination incident on Trump was shocking – and spurred the worries of a deeply divided America where political violence is taking over – it boosted the chances that Trump will win the presidential election in November from 61% before the shooting to 67% after, according to PredictIt."
In early corporate news, Burberry issued a warning on its profit and suspended its dividend.
Here is what you need to know at the London market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: called down 0.3% at 8,224.30
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Hang Seng: down 1.5% at 18,017.84
Nikkei 225: Japan Marine Day. Financial markets closed.
S&P/ASX 200: up 0.7% at 8,017.60
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DJIA: closed up 247.15 points, 0.6%, at 40,000.90
S&P 500: closed up 0.6% at 5,615.35
Nasdaq Composite: closed up 0.6% at 18,398.44
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EUR: down at USD1.0888 (USD1.0907)
GBP: down at USD1.2967 (USD1.2989)
USD: up at JPY158.15 (JPY157.90)
GOLD: down at USD2,405.30 per ounce (USD2,410.50)
OIL (Brent): down at USD84.94 a barrel (USD85.66)
(changes since previous London equities close)
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ECONOMIC CALENDAR
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08:30 EDT Canada manufacturing sales
11:00 CEST eurozone industrial production
08:00 CEST Germany retail sales
11:00 IST Ireland trade balance
Japan Marine Day. Financial markets closed.
08:30 CEST Switzerland export and import prices
08:30 EDT US New York empire state manufacturing index
12:30 EDT US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell speaks
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Selling prices in the UK fell slightly in July as house sellers tried to lure buyers ahead of the summer holidays, figures on Monday showed. Rightmove's House Price Index showed the average asking price fell 0.4% GBP373,493 in July, a bigger drop than the 20-year July average of minus 0.2%. The online property website said the fall came as sellers try to capture the attention of buyers with a more tempting price heading into the thick of the summer holidays and the Olympics. "Home-movers are dealing with more diversions than normal at this time of year, having just come through the distractions of the General Election campaign and the Euro football tournament, but prices remain stable overall at 0.4% higher than a year ago," Rightmove said. The survey showed the general election had little impact on the housing market with people getting on with their moves. "The political certainty of having the next government in place is likely to aid home-mover confidence heading into the second half of the year," Rightmove added.
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The devolved nations of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have seen big growth in the number of manufacturing jobs in the last year, in contrast to most English regions, according to new research. A survey by Make UK and BDO showed that, in the year to March, the number of manufacturing jobs in Wales increased by 13,000, in Scotland by 10,000 and in Northern Ireland by 2,000. Every English region saw a fall in manufacturing jobs in the same period, with the East of England being the only region showing a slight rise, the study found. The report said there was a total fall of 34,000 manufacturing jobs over the year. It added that pressure on finding skilled people is still "severe" as 64,000 vacancies remain in the manufacturing sector.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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Barclays raises Glencore to 'overweight' (equal weight) - price target 550 (510) pence
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Morgan Stanley cuts BP to 'equal-weight' (overweight) - price target 540 (650) pence
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Bernstein cuts Ocado to 'underperform' (outperform) - price target 260 (1,000) pence
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Burberry said that in its first quarter, ended June 29, retail revenue fell to GBP458 million from GBP589 million a year earlier. All regions declined outside of Japan, the company noted. Looking ahead, Burberry said the slowdown in trading experienced in the first quarter continued into July. If this trend is to continue through the current quarter, the company said it will expect to report a fist half operating loss and full-year operating profit to be below current consensus. Therefore, Burberry said it has decided to suspend the payment of dividends in financial 2025. Chair Gerry Murphy said: "We are taking decisive action to rebalance our offer to be more familiar to Burberry's core customers whilst delivering relevant newness. We expect the actions we are taking, including cost savings, to start to deliver an improvement in our second half and to strengthen our competitive position and underpin long-term growth." In a separate announcement, Burberry named Joshua Schulman as its new chief executive, replacing Jonathan Akeroyd who is stepping down.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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ME Group International reported that revenue in the six months ended April 30 rose 4.6% to GBP150.4 million from GBP143.8 million a year earlier. Pretax profit jumped 10% to GBP30.0 million from GBP27.2 million. ME Group upped its interim dividend by 16% to 3.45p from 2.97p. Looking ahead, ME Group said it "will continue to capitalise on significant market opportunities for photobooth and laundry services." It added that the second half of the financial year has "started strongly" and it looks to deliver another year of profitability in line with current market expectations. CEO & Deputy Chair Serge Crasnianski said: "We are pleased to report positive trading momentum throughout H1 2024, which has continued into H2 2024, and reflects further strategic progress from the group's core automated photobooth and laundry operations which are both exceptionally profitable and highly cash generative. The group continues to focus on profitability, returns and cash generation, with these metrics being the key performance indicators for the group. The group is on track to deliver another record year across these financial metrics, including the number of machines deployed."
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OTHER COMPANIES
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Advanced Medical Solutions reported that revenue in the six months ended June 30 is expected to be about 10% higher than last year on a constant currency basis at about GBP68 million, up from GBP63.1 million. Adjusted pretax profit is expected to be in the range of GBP14.4 million to GBP14.8 million, rising from GBP13.8 million. Looking ahead, Advanced Medical Solutions said full year results look to be on track.
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By Sophie Rose, Alliance News senior reporter
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