Archived article
Please note that tax, investment, pension and ISA rules can change and the information and any views contained in this article may now be inaccurate.
“The FTSE100 started the week in negative territory following a weaker close in the US on Friday and a mixed session on Asian markets. Investors will have noted that while the IMF has left its global growth projections unchanged with global output projected to grow by 3.5% in 2017 and 3.6% in 2018, it has downgraded forecasts for both the UK and the US, ” says AJ Bell Investment Director Russ Mould.
“Budget airline Ryanair’s shares fell in early trading despite first quarter profits increasing by 55% to €397m. The improvement, though, was largely due to the Easter holidays falling in the period this time. Average fares rose by 1% to just over €40 but the group expects first half fares to fall by 5% and a drop in checked bag revenue. Ryanair’s shares were down by over 4.8%.
“Reckitt Benckiser continues to count the cost of June’s cyber-attack which, it believes, was focused on companies that do business with Ukraine. The virus was able to avoid many of the measures that the group had in place to prevent its spread and the attack was partly responsible for a 2% drop in like-for-like sales in the second quarter. Most of the group’s manufacturing sites were producing close to normal capacity by mid-July but there are a number of activities which will take until the end of August to complete and Reckitt continues to face some operational disruption. Reckitt’s shares were down by more than 1.3% in early trading.
“Lettings and estate agency franchise Hunters Property had an encouraging first half despite challenging conditions in the housing market and against tough comparisons due to a surge in deals ahead of the Stamp Duty changes which came into effect in April 2016. Hunters has maintained income levels and is well positioned to deal with current market conditions and the proposed tenant fee ban which is expected in 2018. The group is on course to meet full-year forecasts and the continuation of its progressive dividend policy.”
These articles are for information purposes only and are not a personal recommendation or advice.