UKX FTSE 100 Index

FTSE 100 Rises as Energy, Telecom Stocks Rally

The FTSE 100 climbs 0.9% to 7186 points with energy andtelecom stocks among the best performers. Energy shares Royal Dutch Shell and BP rally on higher oil prices. Telecom stocks Vodafone and BT advance as "vague and ongoing takeover speculation" continues to overhang the sector, Interactive Investor analyst Richard Hunter says. Travel stocks gain as "investors continue to assess whether the recent markdowns have been overdone, especially when looking further out to what could be a promising summer season," he says. "However, the outlook remains immediately uncertain and the mixed economic messages, let alone the new [Omicron coronavirus] variant, are muddying the waters." Meanwhile, London Stock Exchange Group rises 1.6% after buying Quantile Group to bolster risk management solutions.

 
Companies News: 

Versarien 1H Pretax Loss Narrowed on Higher Revenue

Versarien PLC said Monday that its pretax loss for the first half of fiscal 2022 narrowed as revenue increased.

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Fusion Antibodies 1H Pretax Loss Widened, Revenue Rose

Fusion Antibodies PLC said Monday that its pretax loss widened for the first half of fiscal 2022 despite increased revenue, and it expects its full-year revenue to meet expectations.

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Cellular Goods Appoints New CEO

Cellular Goods PLC said Monday that it has appointed Anna Chokina as its new chief executive officer.

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Thungela Sees 2021 Export Coal Production in Line With Guidance

Thungela Resources Ltd. said Monday that it expects export saleable production of 14.9 million metric tons of coal in 2021, in line with the latest guidance.

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Fulham Shore Swung to 1H Pretax Profit; Sees FY22 Ahead of Market Expectations

Fulham Shore PLC on Monday reported a swing to pretax profit for the first half of fiscal 2022 boosted by higher revenue and said it expects its full-year performance to be ahead of market expectations.

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Hardide FY 2021 Pretax Loss Widened; Sees Improved Performance in FY 2022

Hardide PLC on Monday reported a widened pretax loss for fiscal 2021 on lower revenue, but said it expects its performance to improve next fiscal year as demand recovers.

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Hammerson to Buyback Around GBP2.5 Mln of Shares

Hammerson PLC said Monday that it will start a share repurchase program, rebuying shares worth up to around an implied 2.5 million pounds ($3.3 million).

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Apax Global Alpha Funds to Sell Stakes in Unilabs

Apax Global Alpha Ltd. said Monday that two funds that it advises have agreed to sell their stakes in Unilabs to AP Moller Holding, with the transaction expected to close in the first quarter of 2022.

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3i Infrastructure Invests GBP191 Mln in SRL Traffic Systems for Majority Stake

3i Infrastructure PLC said Monday that it has invested 191 million pounds ($252.8 million) for a 92% stake in SRL Traffic Systems, a traffic-management rental company in the U.K.

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AG Barr Acquires 60% of MOMA Foods, Plans Full Control Within Three Years

AG Barr PLC said Monday that it has taken a 60% equity stake in MOMA Foods Ltd. and plans to take full ownership of the company over the next three years.

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Windward Shares Rise on London Debut

Shares in Windward Ltd. rose Monday as the company began trading on the AIM.

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Brandshield Reaches $5.0 Mln in Annual Recurring Revenue

BrandShield Systems PLC said Monday that it has suprassed $5.0 million in annual recurring revenue, its primary performance indicator.

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Spectra Systems' New Customer K-Cup Optical Material Orders Exceed Expectations

Spectra Systems Corp. said Monday that a new customer has placed three orders totaling $394,000 for K-cup optical materials since September.

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Norman Broadbent Raises GBP75,347 From Large Shareholder

Norman Broadbent PLC said Monday that it has raised 75,347 pounds ($99,729) after issuing shares to shareholder Downing LLP.

 
Market Talk: 

Uranium Price Could Increase Further, Benefiting Yellow Cake

1010 GMT - The price of uranium is up 60% over the past year, but it could increase further if political momentum behind nuclear power continues to gather, AJ Bell says. China plans to build 150 new nuclear plants, France intends to restart its nuclear power program, Japan's new prime minister favors restarting at least 30 nuclear sites, and the U.K. has begun to champion Rolls-Royce's modular nuclear reactors, AJ Bell recaps. Yellow Cake is a London-listed company which buys and holds uranium. "If uranium prices keep rising, then so will the value of Yellow Cake's 17.9 million pounds of uranium (and it has an option to buy another one million pounds by next June)," AJ Bell says.

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Petropavlovsk's Sale of IRC Stake Removes Risk

1006 GMT - Petropavlovsk has completed the sale of its 31.1% shareholding in iron-ore group IRC, lifting a material source of downside risk to its shares, Peel Hunt says. This is because the disposal releases Petropavlovsk from a loan guarantee, which is likely to mean that the gold miner now has many more refinancing options at more competitive rates. While the sale was at a low price, it will allow the company to focus purely on its gold assets and strategy, Peel Hunt says. "We believe the group now needs to see a period of quiet delivery to reassure investors, rather than a repeat of the recent headlines of UGC taking the company to court," the brokerage says.

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Pound to Fall Vs Dollar if Fed Accelerates Tapering, BOE Delays Rate Rise

0843 GMT - Sterling could weaken against the dollar if the Federal Reserve accelerates its tapering of asset purchases and the Bank of England delays raising interest rates this month, MUFG Bank says. In that case "the timing of the gap between the first Fed and BOE and rate hikes could be a lot shorter than expected and keeps risks tilted to the downside for [GBP/USD] in the near-term," MUFG's Lee Hardman says. Fed policymakers have signalled a faster withdrawal of asset purchases at the December 14-15 meeting despite the emergence of the Omicron coronavirus variant, while BOE policymaker Michael Saunders on Friday said there could be advantages to assessing the variant's impact before raising rates. GBP/USD is last up 0.1% at 1.3252.

Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires; Write to Sarka Halas at sarka.halas@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 06, 2021 06:02 ET (11:02 GMT)

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