The FTSE 100 index closed Monday up 0.1% to 7699 points, a two-month high amid positive trading in global markets on the back of oil-exposed stocks and miners amid indications that Chinese policymakers are looking to boost the economy in the coming weeks, CMC Markets U.K. chief market analyst Michael Hewson says in a note. British Airways owner International Consolidated Airlines outperformed the index, closing up 3.6%, followed by Centrica and Weir Group, up 2.9% and 2.5% respectively. Among the top fallers, Rolls-Royce shares closed down 4.4%, while retailer Ocado slipped 3.9%.


COMPANIES NEWS:

BT Group Appoints Allison Kirkby From Telia as CEO

BT Group said Monday that it has appointed Allison Kirkby as chief executive, succeeding Philip Jansen, from around the end of January 2024.

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Vanquis Banking to Buy Fintech Snoop

Vanquis Banking Group on Monday said it has bought fintech uSnoop Limited, or Snoop, for an undisclosed sum.

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Pearson 1H Pretax Profit, Sales Rose; Backs Full-Year Views

Pearson said Monday that first-half pretax profit and revenue rose after the education company made strategic and operational progress, and backed its full-year expectations.

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Beazley's 2022 Pretax Profit Rises on Change to IFRS 17 Accounting Standard

Beazley said Monday that the company has restated its financial information for 2022, experiencing a rise in pretax profit, after adopting new accounting standard IFRS 17.

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Capita CEO Jon Lewis to Retire, Adolfo Hernandez Named Successor

Capita said Monday that its Chief Executive Jon Lewis is retiring and named Adolfo Hernandez as his replacement.

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Spectris 1H Pretax Profit Rose on Higher Sales; Upgrades Full-Year Guidance

Spectris said Monday that pretax profit for the first half rose as sales increased, and upgraded its guidance for the full year.

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Pod Point 1H Pretax Loss Widened on Weaker Demand, Revenue

Pod Point Group Holdings said Monday that its pretax losses widened in the first half of 2023 on waning demand and weaker revenue, and backed its recently set-out full-year view.

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Aptamer Group Reshuffles Board; Raises GBP3.6 Mln in Discount Fundraise

Aptamer Group said Monday that it has reshuffled its board and conditionally raised 3.6 million pounds ($4.6 million) in a discount share placing, and accordingly cancelled its formal sales process.

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88 Energy to Launch Discounted Share Offer to Fund Portfolio Activity

88 Energy said Monday that it intends to raise 6.3 million pounds ($8.1 million) through a share offer to stakeholders at a 14% discount.

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Bank of Ireland Lifts 2023 Guidance After Interest Income Boosts 1H Profit

Bank of Ireland Group on Monday raised its net interest income guidance for 2023 after it posted a jump in pretax profit and income for the first half of the year.

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Gateley Says FY 2024 in Line With Views So Far

Gateley (Holdings) on Monday said trading since the start of fiscal 2024 has been in line with management expectations.

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Marshalls Shares Fall After 1H Profit Slipped, Sees 2023 Missing Views

Marshalls shares fell Monday after the company said it expects to report that first-half adjusted pretax profit slipped and that it sees full-year performance missing its expectations.

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Bluejay Mining Raises GBP30,000 via Shares Subscriptions

Bluejay Mining said Monday that it has raised 30,000 pounds ($38,547) via share subscriptions from some of its directors at a 28% premium.

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Boohoo Says Frasers Group Raises Stake to 7.8%

Boohoo Group said Monday that Frasers Group has increased its stake in the company to 7.8%, a shareholding worth around 39.0 million pounds ($50.1 million).

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Senior 1H Pretax Profit, Revenue Rose

Senior PLC said Monday that first-half pretax profit and revenue rose, and that although it expects to see on-year growth at its Flexonics division, it is mindful the potential of some of the markets in the second half.

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National World Sees Higher On-Year 2023 Revenue After 1H Pretax Profit Drop

National World on Monday said it expects its 2023 revenue to exceed the previous year's after it posted a fall in pretax profit in the first half of the year due to the advertising downturn and its investment in new brands.

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AIQ Shares Slump on Widened 1H Loss; Material Uncertainty Warning

AIQ shares fell Monday after it said its first-half pretax loss widened and revenue fell, and said it expects full-year revenue to be substantially lower, identifying a material uncertainty over its going concern.

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Ingenta Sees 2023 Trading in Line With View After 1H Growth

Ingenta said Monday that it expects to report growth in revenue and profit for the first half of 2023 and is confident that its full-year performance will be comfortably in line with market expectations.

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Surface Transforms Backs 2023, 1H Revenue Guidance

Surface Transforms on Monday backed its revenue guidance for the first half and 2023, and said output continued to rise in July.

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Glantus Holdings Expects to Beat its 1H Views

Glantus Holdings said Monday that it expects to post half-year results ahead of its expectations as trading has remained strong, driven by a continuation of the positive trends and momentum outlined in its 2022 results last month.

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Caspian Sunrise Shares Fall After Payment for Drilling Vessel Not Received

Caspian Sunrise shares fell on Monday after the company said it hasn't received payments for the sale of half of its shallow-water drilling vessel and that it has scheduled works at three of its wells currently not contributing to production.

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Epwin Group Sees 1H Revenue Rising; Expects to Meet Full-Year Market Views

Epwin Group said Monday that it expects first-half revenue to rise and that it is confident in meeting market expectations for full-year underlying operating profit.

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Venture Life Sees 2023 Trading Meeting Market Views After 1H Revenue Growth

Venture Life Group on Monday said that it is cautiously optimistic that trading is on track to meet market expectations for 2023 as it posted revenue growth for the first half of the year.

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Metals One Shares Drop In AIM Debut

Shares in Metals One fall 21% in the company's stock market debut on the AIM, following its fundraise of 2.2 million pounds ($2.8 million) through a placing of 44 million shares at 5 pence each,.

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Kropz 2022 Pretax Loss Widened on Impairment Losses; AIM Trading Suspension Lifted

Kropz said Monday that its 2022 pretax loss widened after booking impairment losses in the period, and that the suspension of trading on its shares on AIM was lifted following publication of its annual audited accounts.

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RBG Holdings Names Ian Rosenblatt as Vice Chair

RBG Holdings said Monday that Ian Rosenblatt will join the board as an executive director, and that he will be vice chair with a focus on strategy.

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ThomasLloyd Energy Urges Shareholders to Vote Against Its Continuation

ThomasLloyd Energy Impact Trust said Monday that it has received a notice requiring it to convene a shareholder meeting to vote on three resolutions, including a vote on the continuation of the company.

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MTN Nigeria Communications 1H Pretax Profit Fell on Higher Costs

MTN Nigeria Communications said Monday that its first-half pretax profit fell after booking higher costs, and that it expects the full effect of Nigeria's foreign exchange liberalization to be seen in the second half.


MARKET TALK:

BT's Share Reaction to New CEO Shows Investors May Need Some Convincing

0952 GMT - BT's appointment of Allison Kirkby as CEO favors continuity and investors will hope she can steer shares in a more positive direction, having almost halved under outgoing CEO Philip Jansen's watch since 2019, Interactive Investor Head of Investment Victoria Scholar says in a market comment. "However, the lack of market reaction today from the stock suggests shareholders may need some convincing," Scholar says.Kirkby has benefited from first-hand insight into the business at board level and as the boss of Swedish telecommunications giant Telia, she offers a wealth of experience in the sector, Scholar says. Shares are 1.2% down at 122.65 pence. (christian.moess@wsj.com)

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Vanquis's Snoop Acquisition Seen Steering Customers to Its Products

0950 GMT - Vanquis Banking's acquisition of Snoop is the new CEO's first strategic move and shows his desire to help customers improve their financial situation, Shore Capital says in a note after U.K. consumer-finance company announced the transaction for an undisclosed sum. "The benefits to Vanquis will primarily be (1) improving customer finances which will in turn improve their ability to afford and so access much-needed loans that the group is able to provide and (2) improving customer loyalty and so reducing churn," analyst Gary Greenwood writes. He adds that Vanquis' medium-term prospects remain attractive given its shift toward focusing on the mid-cost credit market, an area largely under-served by mainstream banks. Shore has Vanquis as a house stock. (elena.vardon@wsj.com)

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Standard Chartered's Structural Growth Seen Supporting Revenues

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07-31-23 1216ET