Greggs sales recover stronger than expected, JD Sports buys 80pc of Deporvillage
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The FTSE 100 is expected to open 15 points lower on Monday, having closed up 0.36% at 7,136.07 on Friday.
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High Street bakery chain Greggs has reported a stronger than expected recovery in sales from the Covid pandemic since May 10, with like-for-like growth of 1%-3% against the same period in 2019 before the crisis began. “This level of sustained sales recovery is stronger than we had anticipated and, if it were to continue, would have a materially positive impact on the expected financial result for the year,” Greggs said on Monday. The company, known for its popular vegan sausage rolls, said it had expected to see increased competition as cafes and restaurants were allowed to compete more effectively with its range of takeaway foods as lockdown restrictions were eased.
International sports retailer JD Sports Fashion bought 80% of Spanish cycling, running and outdoor equipment seller Deporvillage for up to €140.4m. The deal, conducted through JD Sports’ 50.02% holding company Iberian Sports Retail Group, is being funded through existing cash resources and bank facilities, with €40.4m of the purchase price deferred depending on the performance of the business to the end of the year. Based in Manresa in Catalonia, Deporvillage has established websites in Italy, France, Portugal, Germany and the UK since being launched in 2010 by Xavier Pladellorens and Ángel Corcuera, who will retain 20% of the firm and stay in their roles as chief executive and chief purchasing officer.
AstraZeneca said on Monday that ‘Forxiga’, or dapagliflozin, has been recommended for approval in the European Union (EU) for the treatment of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in adults with and without type-2 diabetes (T2D). The FTSE 100 drugmaker said the recommendation was based on results from the ‘DAPA-CKD’ phase 3 trial, that showed Forxiga on top of standard-of-care treatment with an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or an angiotensin receptor blocker reduced the risk of the composite of worsening of renal function, end-stage kidney disease and cardiovascular or renal death, compared to placebo. It also significantly reduced the risk of death from any cause, compared to placebo.
Newspaper round-up
The strength of the UK jobs market and rates of pay has been overstated, according to new research, just as the government prepares to cut back its wage support scheme for furloughed workers this week. There is a risk of “dangerous complacency”, the Resolution Foundation warned, as people are still working fewer hours than they were before the pandemic and headline pay growth is overstated. - Guardian
With days to go until the phased ending of the stamp duty holiday, thousands of homebuyers will be desperately hoping they can complete their purchase before Wednesday night, because if they don’t they face having to find as much as £15,000. A significant proportion of home purchases – some agreed as far back as the spring – are thought to be hanging by a thread as conveyancing solicitors struggle to complete purchases before the 30 June deadline. - Guardian
The City watchdog has banned one of the world’s largest Bitcoin exchanges from operating in Britain amid mounting fears over the rise of cryptocurrency crime. The Financial Conduct Authority ordered Binance Markets Limited to remove all advertising and financial promotions by Wednesday and told the firm it must not carry out any regulated activities in Britain without prior consent. - Telegraph
Ministers are under fire for allowing scores of unaccredited “backyard” Covid testing labs to operate, which could be providing unreliable results. Tony Cooke, chief executive of Cambridge Clinical Laboratories, has warned of dozens of “pop-up labs” that have come into existence to cater to growing numbers of people hoping to access private testing to go on holiday and do other activities. - Telegraph
Suggest to the boss of Britain’s biggest nightclub operator that the drinking in his venues inevitably leads to snogging and he’ll give you an earful. “How outdated!” he snorts. “Nightclubs haven’t done slow dances for 25 years. Get real!” Peter Marks’s outburst is hardly surprising given that his company’s 47 sites have not been able to operate as fully fledged nightclubs since March 2020 because they are regarded by the government as hotbeds of physical contact and, by implication, propagators of coronavirus. - The Times
US close
Wall Street stocks closed in a mixed state on Friday, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average up 0.69% at 34,433.84.
The S&P 500 was ahead 0.33% at 4,280.70, while the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.07% to 14,360.39.