Antofagasta approves big expansion at Los Pelambres, Royal Mail profits take a hit
London open
The FTSE 100 is expected to open 17 points higher on Thursday, having closed down 0.28% at 7,033.79 on Wednesday.
Stocks to watch
Chilean miner Antofagasta has approved a $1.3bn expansion of its Los Pelambres copper mine in Chile, chief executive Ivan Arriagada said on Thursday. The expansion will produce additional ore equal to an extra 60,000 tonnes a year of refined copper over the first 15 years of the expansion project, lifting the mine's output for the first time in over a decade, Arriagada added.
Royal Mail reported revenue up 1% but a 25% decline in operating profits for the first half of the year. Chief executive Rico Back said a range of actions had been put in place to improve performance and confirmed the board's commitment to cut £100m of costs and generate adjusted group operating profit before transformation costs of £500-550m for the financial year.
3i Group issued its half-year results on Thursday, reporting “another good half” with a total return of £728m, or 10% on opening shareholders' funds, and a net asset value per share of 776p, up from 724p at the end of March. The FTSE 100 company said it saw a “good performance” from its private equity division, with a gross investment return of £667m or 11% for the six months ended 30 September, which it said was driven by growth across its larger investments in particular.
Newspaper round-up
Theresa May confronted her mutinous party with the threat of “no Brexit at all” after she forced her draft deal with the EU through a divided cabinet. Esther McVey, the welfare secretary, was believed to be on the verge of quitting last night after clashes at the end of a marathon five-hour meeting. She was shouted down by the chief whip and cabinet secretary after she demanded a vote by ministers on the deal. – The Times
Shareholders in GVC Holdings, the owner of Ladbrokes, were counting their winnings yesterday after a government U-turn on fixed-odds betting machines spared the gambling operator a potential £700 million payout. Shares of GVC jumped by 43½p, or 5.6 per cent, to 821p — an increase in its value of £253 million — as Theresa May caved in after a Commons revolt and brought forward the introduction of a £2 maximum stake on the machines. – The Times
Facebook hired a PR firm that attempted to discredit the company’s critics by claiming they were agents of billionaire George Soros, the New York Times reported Tuesday. Soros is a Jewish philanthropist who is the frequent subject of anti semitic conspiracy theories. At the same time, the social media company urged the Anti-Defamation League to object to a cartoon used by anti-Facebook protesters over its resemblance to anti semitic tropes. - Guardian
The convicted former UBS trader Kweku Adoboli has been deported from the UK to Ghana, his country of birth, after Home Office officials put him on a flight from Heathrow airport on Wednesday afternoon. Adoboli, who was arrested in Glasgow on Monday when he went to report to the Home Office, was taken to Harmondsworth immigration removal centre on Monday. He was not informed about when and how he would be deported but on Wednesday afternoon he was taken by five escorts to Heathrow airport and was due to be put on a flight at about 5pm to be returned to Ghana, where he has not lived since the age of four. – Guardian
Vaping products that have been pulled from sale in the US over fears about underage buyers remain on shelves at Sainsbury's in the UK. The US e-cigarette giant Juul, which struck a deal with the British supermarket earlier this month, has banned the sale of several of its flavoured cartridges after an outcry in the US. The company has also stopped using social media sites including Twitter and Instagram to promote its products in an attempt to extinguish criticism that it markets its products to children, and strengthened its age verification processes to restrict sales to those who are under 21 years old. - Telegraph
US close
Wall Street swung into negative territory by the close on Wednesday, as investors thumbed over the latest reading on inflation and earnings from the likes of Macy's and Blue Apron.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the session down 0.81% at 25,080.50, the S&P 500 lost 0.76% to 2,701.58, and the Nasdaq 100 was 0.89% lower at 6,789.87.
A sharp fall in oil prices in the previous session led to a heightened focus on consumer prices, which came in line with expectations.
“Wall Street may have rallied hard in the wake of last night's close, but the market is finding no success in sustaining this upside with fears over the collapsing oil price once again being seen as key in driving sentiment,” said James Hughes, chief market analyst at AxiTrader.
“There are wider problems afoot, however - last night’s US budget deficit grew even wider than had been expected, Japanese GDP missed expectations, interest rates are expected to continue rising and Europe faces a series of key political tests that could have a damaging impact on investment and in turn consumption.”
The dollar gained against the pound earlier in the session as investors were also looking across the pond after UK Prime Minister Theresa May called a Cabinet meeting to try and secure ministerial support for a draft Brexit deal she has agreed with the EU.