JD Sports says annual profit will pass £1bn, Coats holds guidance

London close

The FTSE 100 is expected to open 28 points lower on Wednesday, having closed down 0.34% on Tuesday at 7,751.08.

Stocks to watch

JD Sports Fashion said it expected annual profit to pass £1bn after a record result in the year to January 28. The seller of trainers and sportswear posted profit before tax and exceptional items of £991.4m, up from £947m a year earlier and beating guidance. It now expects profit before tax and adjusted items for the 53 week period to February 3 2024 to be in line with the current average consensus expectations of £1.03bn.

Industrial thread and global footwear component maker Coats held annual guidance, with results expected to be weighted to the second half. In a trading update for the first four months of the year, Coats said revenues fell 7%, and 20% on an organic basis, against a “very strong” prior year comparator, adding that operating profit margins were “resilient”, supported by strategic projects and tight cost control.

Newspaper round-up

Britons have packed away enough possessions to fill Buckingham Palace more than 60 times over as the housing crisis, enduring consumerism and a sentimental reluctance to let go of inanimate objects means self-storage is now on the brink of becoming a £1bn-a-year business. Self-storage units are proving cheaper than renting or buying a bigger home and are springing up alongside new housing developments across the UK, with at least 280 more stores planned between now and 2026 – a more than 10% increase. – Guardian

UK authorities should regulate cryptocurrency trading as a form of gambling rather than a financial service, parliament’s Treasury committee has said after a fresh inquiry into the industry. The government must avoid wasting more taxpayer funds promoting tech innovations such as digital tokens, without demonstrating the clear benefits to the public, MPs said in a report published on Wednesday. – Guardian

Tech companies are in danger of unleashing a rogue artificial intelligence that will cause “significant harm to the world” without urgent intervention by governments, the creator of ChatGPT has admitted. Appearing before US politicians, OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman lauded the new generation of digital chatbots for their potential to “improve nearly every aspect of our lives”. – Telegraph

Britain’s biggest outsourcer has been lambasted for allowing the “unsafe storage of personal data” after it was hit by another data breach. It is understood Capita had placed a “bucket” or database with open source software and information in the cloud, including user guides and notes which are routinely published alongside software releases, but it also contained some personal data belonging to Colchester city council that should not have been there. – The Times

Executive pay in Britain must compete globally to attract talent for the financial sector, the City minister has said. At an event hosted by UK Finance, the industry trade body, in London yesterday, Andrew Griffith said: “Remuneration here needs to be competitive. We need to attract the brightest and best to these shores — the last thing we want to do is drive them away.” – The Times

US close

Wall Street ended in the red on Tuesday, as stocks fell across the board in response to ongoing uncertainties surrounding the federal debt ceiling.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed down 1.01% at 33,012.14, while the S&P 500 fell 0.64% to 4,109.90, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite slipped 0.18% to end the day at 12,343.05.

Investors were closely monitoring the discussions between the White House and Congress as the deadline loomed.

Sentiment was also impacted by disappointing earnings results from the likes of Home Depot.

On the currency front, the dollar was last up 0.05% on sterling to trade at 80.12p, while it weakened slightly by 0.01% against the euro to 90.05 euro cents.