Bytes Technology flags higher earnings, Vistry reports better-than-expected profits

London open

The FTSE 100 is expected to open 33 points lower on Wednesday, having closed up 1.79% on Tuesday at 7,536.22.

Stocks to watch

Software, security and cloud services specialist Bytes Technology Group said annual gross profit and adjusted operating earnings would be up 20%. Cash conversion for the year to February 28 returned to higher levels in the second half to end the full year at around 85%, with a cash balance of around £73m, the company said on Wednesday, reflecting strong demand for software and IT Services from both corporate and public sector clients, despite macroeconomic headwinds.

UK house builder Vistry reported better-than-expected full-year profits and said market conditions were improving. The company posted a 21% rise in adjusted pre-tax profit to £418.4m for the year to December 31 against an average estimate of £411.1m.

WPP on Wednesday said it had bought influencer marketing agency Goat for an undisclosed sum. Founded in 2015, Goat specialises in data-led end-to-end influencer marketing campaigns and has worked with Dell, Beiersdorf, Meta, Tesco, Uber, EA, Natura and Augustinus Bader, WPP said on Wednesday.

Newspaper round-up

The former chief executive of the housebuilder Persimmon who landed one of the biggest bonuses in British corporate history has set up a new venture with his wife. Jeff Fairburn, who was ousted from Persimmon after protests at his bumper £82m bonus in 2018, has set up an investment company with his wife, Jayne, the Guardian can reveal. – Guardian

Jeremy Hunt’s pensions tax break for the highest 1% of savers in Britain stands to benefit almost as many bankers as doctors, an economist has said, as the government insisted the budget giveaway was designed to cut NHS waiting lists. On a day of renewed pressure over the £1bn giveaway, Rishi Sunak argued that scrapping the tax-free lifetime allowance on pensions would encourage more doctors to stay in employment rather than taking retirement. – Guardian

Jeremy Hunt has committed to banking reforms intended to make the City of London more competitive, despite fears that looser regulation will introduce yet more risk to a fragile financial system. A Treasury source confirmed that plans to slash red tape – dubbed “Big Bang 2.0” to draw parallels with Margaret Thatcher's overhaul of the Square Mile – will be brought forward unchanged in the wake of the rescues of Credit Suisse and the UK arm of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB). – Telegraph

Second-hand electric car prices are tumbling amid a glut of stock as drivers trade their cars in. The average price of a pre-owned electric vehicle has fallen by 13pc over the last year to £33,060, AutoTrader found. – Telegraph

Bosses at the Dubai company behind P&O Ferries have shared more than £15 million after the sacking of hundreds of UK-based crew last year. DP World paid directors and key managers $18.9 million (£15.5 million), including bonuses, up from $17.8 million in 2021, its annual report shows. – The Times

The Swiss government has ordered Credit Suisse to freeze the payment of deferred bonuses to its bankers, in a fresh blow to staff following the troubled lender’s forced sale to rival UBS. The Federal Council said the temporary suspension applied to “already granted but deferred variable remuneration for the financial years up to 2022”. – The Times

US close

Wall Street stocks ended the session firmly in the green on Tuesday amid hopes that recent chaos in the banking sector may have finally been stifled.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.98% at 32,560.60, while the S&P 500 advanced 1.30% to 4,002.87 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.58% firmer at 11,860.11.

The Dow closed 316.02 points higher on Tuesday, building on gains recorded in the previous session.

Regional banks traded higher throughout the session after Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen stated that the government was ready to provide further deposit guarantees to stem liquidity problems if the state of the current banking crisis worsens.

"The steps we took were not focused on aiding specific banks or classes of banks. Our intervention was necessary to protect the broader US banking system," said Yellen. "And similar actions could be warranted if smaller institutions suffer deposit runs that pose the risk of contagion."