Glencore posts massive $10.3bn rise in interim core profits, Next experiences 'sharp reversal' of Covid lockdown trends

London pre-open

The FTSE 100 was being called to open just 5.2 points firmer ahead of the bell on Thursday after closing 0.49% higher in the previous session at 7,445.68.

Stocks to watch

Commodity trading and mining giant Glencore posted a massive $10.3bn rise in interim core profits on the back of record prices for coal and gas.

Glencore said on Thursday that group adjusted core earnings rose 119% to $18.9bn, but cautioned that it expects more normal marketing conditions to prevail in the second half of the year.

Clothing retailer Next said on Thursday that sales in the first half had been "dominated" by "a sharp reversal" of the previous year's lockdown trends.

Next stated second-quarter full price sales were up 5% year-on-year, driven by a 0.2% increase in online sales and a 12% jump in retail sales amid "unusually warm and dry weather" in June and July. The FTSE 100-listed group also increased its full-year profit guidance by £10.0m to £860.0m.

Newspaper round-up

Almost 6.0m UK households are struggling to pay their mobile, landline and broadband bills, with the cost of living squeeze forcing many to cut back on essentials such as food and clothes, cancel or change a service, or miss payments to stay connected. A report from the consumer group Which? estimates that 5.7m households have experienced at least one "affordability issue" in April, as cash-strapped homes struggle to cope with soaring bills and other costs. – Guardian

The technology company Dyson has been fined more than £1.0m after one of its employees was injured when a giant milling machine fell on top of him. Dyson was ordered to pay £1.2m at Swindon magistrates court for failing to properly train its staff in handling the kit. The firm pleaded guilty to breaching health and safety laws. – Guardian

A senior City lawyer who told a client to "burn" chat logs to prevent evidence reaching Ocado could face prison for contempt of court. Raymond McKeeve, a former partner at Jones Day, was found by a High Court judge to have intentionally destroyed documents to stop data being searched at a company created by Jonathan Faiman, Ocado's co-founder. A search order had been issued after Ocado accused Mr Faiman's company of stealing corporate intelligence. – Telegraph

The Serious Fraud Office has convicted a fraudster of encouraging thousands of people to invest in properties in the Caribbean that were never built. David Ames has been found guilty on two counts of fraud by abuse of position for his role in the seven-year scheme as head of Harlequin Group. Mr Ames convinced 8,000 investors to pay a 30% deposit on an unbuilt villa or hotel room and took half of the money as fees for the company and salesmen. – Telegraph

Elon Musk is seeking details from Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan Chase about how the two banks advised Twitter when the Tesla boss was pursuing his $44.0bn takeover of the social media company. Twitter is attempting to force Musk to complete the buyout, which the billionaire said in July he was backing out of over claims that the business had breached the terms of an agreement. – The Times

US close

Wall Street stocks closed higher on Wednesday as better-than-expected macro data and comments from a top Fed official boosted sentiment.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.29% at 32,812.50, while the S&P 500 was 1.56% firmer at 4,155.17 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 2.59% stronger at 12,668.16.

Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com