Today's Closing Update

U.S. Stocks slipped as shares of utilities and energy firms slumped, while the US 500 hovered just below its all-time high.

 

European Stocks traded mixed as investors kept a close eye on corporate earnings and trade tension.

 

Tesla Inc said its board is evaluating Chief Executive Elon Musk’s idea of taking the company private after he brought the matter up for discussion last week. Musk took Tesla shareholders and the stock market by surprise yesterday by announcing on Twitter he was considering taking the loss-making electric car-maker private at $420 (£325.4) a share. In his first tweet, he said funding was secured but provided no details.

 

Prudential posted a 9% rise in first-half operating profit, underpinned by a strong performance in Asia, and said a planned de-merger of its M&G unit was progressing well. Operating profit for the six months through June rose to £2.41bn, though the rise was limited to 2% on an actual exchange-rate basis. The company declared an interim dividend of 15.67p per share, up 8% on-year.

 

Ryanair will cancel about one in six of its flights on Friday after pilots based in Germany voted to join 24-hour stoppages set to hit Europe’s biggest airline in Ireland, Sweden and Belgium at the height of the holiday season. Ryanair, which last year agreed to recognise unions for the first time in its 30 year history, faces rising protests from unions frustrated at the slow progress in negotiations over collective labour agreements.

 

Glencore said it would favour share buybacks over deal-making after it reported a 23% rise in first-half core earnings this morning, just below analyst forecasts. Days after Glencore was subpoenaed by the Department of Justice, the company said it would buy back shares worth $1bn, today they said further buybacks could be in the pipeline as the best way to reward shareholders.

HSBC has shifted ownership of its Polish and Irish subsidiaries from its London-based entity to its French unit and will do so for seven more European branches, as it prepares for Britain’s exit from the European Union. HSBC France will also acquire the activities of seven European branches in Belgium, the Czech Republic, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Spain, Europe’s biggest bank said today.

 

WPP said its digital agency Wunderman was acquiring US-based e-commerce specialist Gorilla Group, for an undisclosed sum. Gorilla’s revenues were $40m for the year ended December 31, 2017, WPP said. Its clients included American Hotel Register Company, Gates Industrial Corporation and protein bar manufacturer RXBAR. The agency employed about 370 people and was based in Chicago with offices in the US, Canada, Poland and Ukraine.

 

Oil Prices fell after Chinese import data showed a slowdown in demand and as a trade dispute between Washington and Beijing escalated further.

 

Gold Prices steadied, but expectations of a higher dollar due to rising U.S. interest rates and strong demand for U.S. Treasury bonds seen as a refuge from trade tensions are expected to weigh.

Market Close

UK 100 7,776.7 +58.2 +0.8%
UK 250 20,770.6 +95.0 +0.5%
GER 30 12,633.5 -14.7 -0.1%
FRA 40 5,501.9 -19.4 -0.4%
US 30 25,585.16 -43.75 -0.2%
US 500 2,859.25 +0.80 +0.0%
OIL (BRENT) 72.26 -2.39 -3.2%
GOLD 1,209.95 -1.02 -0.1%

UK Risers & Fallers

Prudential 1822 +64.5 +3.7%
Standard Life Aberdeen 331.5 +10.2 +3.2%
Nostrum Oil & Gas 231.5 +14.5 +6.7%
Paddy Power Betfair 7540 -580 -7.1%
London Stock Exchange 4510 -29 -0.6%
Hill & Smith 1109 -368 -25.0%

Reported Economic Data

3.30pm: US Crude Oil Inventories 3.8m -2.8m -1.4m

 

Sources:

http://www.stockmarketwire.com/article/6084401/WPP-acquires-Chicago-based-e-commerce-specialist-Gorilla.html

 

http://www.stockmarketwire.com/article/6084319/Prudential-operating-profit-up-9pct-says-MG-de-merger-on-track.html

 

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-ryanair-unions-germany/ryanair-strike-widens-as-german-pilots-join-friday-stoppage-idUKKBN1KT0Y6?il=0

 

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-tesla-musk/tesla-board-evaluating-ceo-musks-idea-to-take-company-private-idUKKBN1KT1NY?il=0

 

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-glencore-results/glencore-looks-to-buybacks-not-dealmaking-idUKKBN1KT0IR?il=0

 

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-global-oil/oil-falls-on-slowing-chinese-demand-us-china-trade-spat-idUKKBN1KT01E?il=0

 

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-britain-eu-hsbc/hsbc-shifts-european-branches-to-french-unit-control-ahead-of-brexit-idUKKBN1KT1G1?il=0

 

https://www.wsj.com/articles/global-shares-weaken-ahead-of-new-wave-of-tariffs-1533714540

 

https://uk.reuters.com/article/global-precious/precious-gold-steady-dollar-headwinds-on-the-radar-idUKL5N1UZ5SS

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