Flutter Q1 revenues grow, Aston Martin pre-tax losses widen

London pre-open

The FTSE 100 was being called to open 13.7 points higher ahead of the bell on Wednesday after closing out the previous session 0.22% firmer at 7,561.33.

Stocks to watch

Bookmaker Flutter Entertainment saw group revenues grow in the three months ended 31 March as the number of average monthly players rose by 15% to 8.85m.

Flutter said on Wednesday that total revenues had grown 5% year-on-year to £1.56bn, with sports revenue growing 4% to £930.0m and gaming revenues up 8% to £636.0m.

Luxury car maker Aston Martin Lagonda reported a rise in adjusted core earnings on Wednesday as sales were boosted by strong retail demand.

The FTSE 250-listed company said adjusted underlying earnings had increased 18% to £24.4m in the three months ended 31 March. However, it also said pre-tax losses had widened from £42.2m to £111.0m. AML also announced the appointment of former Ferrari boss Amedeo Felisa as its new chief executive officer.

Newspaper round-up

Cuts to rail funding could lead to more serious rail accidents as well as fewer, more crowded trains, unions have said. A TUC report said passenger safety will be compromised should Network Rail press ahead with reductions to its maintenance workforce to save £100.0m a year. About 2,500 jobs are expected to go and the TUC said it would be impossible to make such cuts without putting passengers at risk. It warned that the Treasury was also demanding cuts from train operators that would disrupt services and leave fewer trains running, leaving commuters "packed like sardines". - Guardian

The buy now, pay later company Klarna will start reporting UK customer debts to credit agencies for the first time next month, in a move that could affect shoppers' credit ratings from 2023. The move is understood to be the result of two years of talks with the credit reference companies Experian and TransUnion, and comes as buy now, pay later firms face pressure from MPs and campaigners who say they should prevent customers from taking on more debt than they can afford. - Guardian

In the wake of unprecedented upheaval during the Covid crisis, much of Britain has returned to normal. From large Northern cities to seaside towns, footfall is up, restaurants are busy again and public transport use is recovering. But this rebound largely seems to have passed by the biggest city of them all. London has been left at the back of the pack as commuters and tourists stay away. The Centre for Cities, a think tank, has London languishing at the bottom of its recovery rankings. - Telegraph

Former employees of the Bank of England, the institution responsible for controlling inflation, may soon be the only pensioners in the country more than fully insulated from the cost-of-living crisis. The 5,500 retired members of the Bank's staff pension fund are set to receive a pension increase of about 11% this summer because of a generous quirk in the terms of their scheme. Unusually, the vast majority of Bank pensioners still get their incomes raised by the growth in the retail prices index, which hit 9% last month and is forecast to rise well into double figures in the coming months. - The Times

The boss of Brewdog is to give £100.0m of shares to staff and hopes to lead the business for years to come. James Watt intends to donate a 5% stake over the next four years to salaried workers at the firm. The company said that 750 of its 2,200 people were eligible for the scheme, which could mean that each receives shares valued at about £120,000. - The Times

US close

Wall Street stocks closed modestly higher on Tuesday as market participants awaited the outcome of the Federal Reserve's meeting on Wednesday.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.20% at 33,128.79, while the S&P 500 was 0.48% stronger at 4,175.48 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.22% firmer at 12,563.76.