Bunzl revenue rises in first quarter, BHP set to end year strongly

London open

The FTSE 100 is expected to open 24 points higher on Wednesday, having closed down 2% on Tuesday at 6,859.87.

Stocks to watch

Distribution specialist Bunzl reported a rise in first quarter revenue driven by demand for Covid-related products, but warned of a slight slowdown in the second half as it maintained full year guidance. The company said group revenue in the first quarter was up 5.4% at actual exchange rates, with acquisitions contributing revenue growth of 4.3%. Bunzl expected “robust” revenue growth in 2021 after excluding larger Covid-19 related orders which contributed approximately £550m last year.

Hikma Pharmaceuticals has resumed the launch of its generic version of GlaxoSmithKline's ‘Advair Diskus’ in the United States, it announced on Wednesday, following Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of an amendment to its Abbreviated New Drug Application in January. The FTSE 100 pharmaceuticals maker said the amendment reflected enhanced packaging controls to meet new industry standards adopted since its initial submission. It said it would immediately resume launch activities of its generic product.

BHP said it was ready to finish the year strongly as the miner reported record production at its Western Australia iron ore business in the first nine months. The company left annual production guidance for iron ore and petroleum unchanged but reduced guidance for metallurgical coal and energy coal, due mainly to wet weather. Iron ore production rose 4% to 188 metric tonnes in the nine months to the end of March and BHP said it expected annual production to be between 245 metric tonnes and 255 metric tonnes. Petroleum production fell 8% to 75.8 megatonnes.

Newspaper round-up

The FTSE 100 endured its worst day for two months yesterday as concerns about rising Covid-19 infections hit travel companies and the threat of new nicotine rules in the United States led to sharp falls for tobacco stocks. London’s main index was part of a global stock market sell-off, ending the day down 140.21 points, or 2 per cent, to 6,859.87. The fall pushed it back below the 7,000 point mark that it had broken through last week for the first time since February last year. - The Times

Just Eat is to offer 1,500 takeaway couriers in Liverpool minimum pay, sick pay and holiday pay by the end of the year as it shifts away from using independent contractors. The food delivery group, which recently began building its own courier network in the UK alongside putting customers in touch with takeaways that carry out their own delivery, said it would expand a worker model for couriers that it was already operating in London and Birmingham, where 2,000 riders had signed up. - Guardian

Netflix shares tanked as the streaming giant revealed it had signed up 12m fewer subscribers in the first three months of the year than in 2020, signalling the pandemic-induced box set binging boom may be coming to an end. The streaming giant booked revenues of $7.2bn (£5.2bn) but signed up just 4m new people, the lowest first quarter figure for four years, and shy of its 6m forecast made three months ago. - Telegraph

The competition watchdog has warned that the takeover of Asda by the billionaire Issa brothers and TDR, the buyout firm, could lead to higher prices at the pumps for motorists. The Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) said that the sale of the supermarket had raised “local competition concerns”, with car owners in some parts of Britain at risk of paying more to fill their tanks. Asda operates 323 petrol stations, while EG Group, which is owned by Mohsin and Zuber Issa and TDR, operates 395 forecourts. - The Times

The European Super League was collapsing on Tuesday night after all six English clubs dramatically signalled their intention to withdraw from the competition after being taken aback by the furious backlash from fans and the government. It left the £4.5bn league dead in the water less than 48 hours after it was launched, with Chelsea the first to go followed by Manchester City and then, shortly before 11pm, by Arsenal, Manchester United, Liverpool and Tottenham. - Guardian

US close

Wall Street stocks closed lower on Tuesday as market participants ignored solid quarterly earnings reports from some of the nation's largest companies.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.75% at 33,821.30, while the S&P 500 was 0.68% weaker at 4,134.94 and the Nasdaq Composite started out the session 0.92% softer at 13,786.27.

The Dow closed 256.33 points lower on Tuesday, extending losses recorded in the previous session amid a sell-off in tech stocks.

Corporate earnings were firmly in focus again on Tuesday, with Procter & Gamble beating earnings expectations amid an uptick in beauty products sales, while Johnson & Johnson posted $100.0m in quarterly sales of its Covid-19 vaccine, helping both earnings and revenue beat Wall Street expectations.

Travellers Companies was also in the spotlight after posting quarterly earnings that topped expectations on the Street as the group also raised its quarterly cash dividend and approved an additional $5.0bn of share buybacks.