Bunzl lifts guidance, Rio Tinto's La Granja moves closer to production
London open
The FTSE 100 is expected to open 29 points higher on Tuesday, having closed up 0.07% before the long weekend on Friday, at 7,338.58.
Stocks to watch
Distribution specialist Bunzl on Tuesday upgraded guidance for annual adjusted operating profits as it reported a rise in half-year earnings. The company reported interim pre-tax profit of £317m, up 6.9%, with revenue up 4.5% to £5.9bn.
British-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto said its La Granja copper project in Peru is one step closer to production after the completion of a joint venture transaction with First Quantum Minerals. The joint venture, first announced back in March, has seen First Quantum acquire a 55% stake in the project for $105m. First Quantum will now operate the project and initially focus on finishing a feasibility study. La Granja, based in Cajamarca, Northern Peru, is said to be a long-life operation with an indicated and inferred mineral resource of 4.32bn tonnes at 0.51 copper.
Liontrust Asset Management confirmed on Tuesday that its offer for all publicly-held shares of GAM Holding was unsuccessful, with only 33.45% of GAM shares tendered by the end of the extended main offer period on 23 August. As a result, there would be no additional acceptance period, and the offer would not be settled. Liontrust also said it retained the right to demand immediate repayment of the £8.9m plus interest it provided to GAM through the tranche 1 facility, 30 days after its announcement.
Newspaper round-up
A union representing thousands of workers at Wilko is seeking an urgent meeting with the business secretary after being told by potential rescuers of “difficulties” in engaging with the administrators who will decide upon the stricken retail chain’s future. On Monday, the GMB national secretary, Andy Prendergast, wrote to Kemi Badenoch asking her to ensure that PricewaterhouseCoopers considered all bids for the budget retailer where 12,500 jobs were hanging in the balance. – Guardian
Homeowners in London have knocked £23,500 off property asking prices as soaring interest rates hit the capital harder than anywhere else in the country. Since asking prices in London peaked in May, sellers have reduced their advertised prices by 3.4pc, the largest drop of any region, according to data from Rightmove. – Guardian
Michael Gove’s “London-centric” building policies are anti-driver and will fail to deliver the homes the country needs, the boss of a top British developer has claimed. Matthew Pratt, chief executive of FTSE 250 house builder Redrow, criticised the Levelling Up Secretary’s proposed rules for “beautiful” designs as single-minded and impractical, arguing that restrictions on off-street parking will end up backfiring. – Telegraph
Trust in British supermarkets has fallen to the lowest level for a decade as households grapple with high prices, despite the rate of food prices inflation easing this month. The latest monthly consumer insight tracker from Which?, the consumer group, found that confidence in the grocery industry had dropped in August to the lowest level since February 2013, a time when horse DNA had been discovered in frozen beef burgers and lasagne sold in some Irish and British supermarkets. – The Times
One of Britain’s leading life sciences companies is to be taken over by an American group in a $5.7 billion deal after its founder called for a change in strategy. Cambridge-based Abcam is a global supplier to the pharmaceuticals research industry. Quoted on Nasdaq, the technology-heavy New York stock exchange, it has agreed to a $24-per-share offer from Danaher under which it would continue as a standalone entity within the parent group. – The Times
US close
Stocks closed in the green on Wall Street on Monday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.62% at 34,559.98.
The S&P 500 added 0.63% to 4,433.31, and the Nasdaq Composite was ahead 0.84% at 13,705.13.