The Market Close – Johnson Matthey charges up after sale of automotive battery arm to Cummins.

Today’s Closing Update

U.S. Shares traded sharply higher, rebounding from a strong two-day sell-off as corporate earnings keep beating expectations.

European shares were mixed as some of the major indices staged a partial recovery from a slump in the previous session as investors surveyed a mixed bag of results from some of the region’s biggest industrial names.

US non-farm private sector employment rose by 234,000 jobs in January compared to December, according to ADP. The increase was higher than a figure of around 186,000 expected by the market

German unemployment hit a fresh record low in January, according to figures released by Destatis on Wednesday. The unemployment rate fell to 5.4% from 5.5% in December, beating expectations for it to remain unchanged and marking the lowest level since reunification. Meanwhile, jobless claims declined by 25,000 following a revised 30,000 fall in December and versus expectations for a small drop of 17,000.

Johnson Matthey confirmed that Cummins had acquired its UK automotive battery systems business, for an undisclosed sum. The business specialises in high-voltage automotive grade battery systems for electric and hybrid vehicles. As part of the acquisition, Cummins and Johnson Matthey also agreed to collaborate on the development of high-energy battery materials for commercial heavy duty-applications.

Marks and Spencer is planning to close 14 stores and cut hundreds of jobs. Six shops will close by April, including Birkenhead, Bournemouth and Durham. Staff have been offered jobs in nearby stores. The closure of another eight shops has been proposed, which will affect 468 staff. It follows a disappointing Christmas period for M&S, when sales of both food and clothing fell.

Babcock, Ultra Electronics and QinetiQ were rattled by an official report that the budget to arm Britain’s military could be facing a funding shortfall of anywhere between £4.9bn and £20.8bn. The Ministry of Defence’s equipment plan for 2017-2027 was accused of being unrealistic by UK public spending watchdog, the National Audit Office, on Wednesday, which said the MoD had provided no evidence as to how exactly it planned to pool together the roughly £7.9bn in total savings to put towards its procurement budget. “The Department’s Equipment Plan is not affordable,” said Amyas Morse, head of the NAO in a harshly worded assessment of the ministry’s decade-long procurement plans.

Vedanta Resources’ Indian subsidiary Vedanta Ltd insisted it was was on course for a strong finish to the year after a “robust” third quarter. Vedanta said third-quarter earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization were ahead 17% compared to the previous three months, at INR 6,780 crore (£753m). Revenues came in at INR 24,361 crore, up 19% year-on-year and 17% on the second quarter.

Premier Oil said the company and partners had been awarded an exploration licence off the coast of Indonesia. The Andaman II licence is located in the under-explored but proven North Sumatra basin offshore Aceh. Premier said it had identified numerous prospects and leads and planned to acquire 3D seismic in an initial three-year term.

Oil Prices fell for a third day ahead of the possible first rise in U.S. inventories in 11 weeks, but crude remained on track for its biggest gain in January in five years.

Gold rebounded as the dollar resumed its downtrend, but analysts said bullion was vulnerable to weakness ahead of the Lunar New Year and if bulls start shedding their long positions.