(Adds company news items and futures)
July 31 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 futures FFIc1 were down 0.15% ahead
of the cash market open on Wednesday.
* ST. JAMES'S PLACE: British wealth manager St. James's Place SJP.L said
on Wednesday that weaker client sentiment weighed on inflows of new money in the
first half of the year while costs rose, leading it to miss forecasts for
operating profit. * LLOYDS BANKING GROUP: Britain's biggest mortgage lender Lloyds Banking
Group LLOY.L posted weaker-than-expected pretax profits on Wednesday, as a
further 550 million pound ($668.9 million) provision to meet claims for mis-sold
insurance to consumers weighed on earnings. * ASTON MARTIN: Aston Martin AML.L swung to a half-year pretax loss of
78.8 million pounds ($95.8 million) as profits were hit by expansion costs,
lower average selling prices and weaker-than-anticipated volumes, the luxury
British carmaker said on Wednesday. * NEXT: British clothing chain Next NXT.L upgraded its forecast for
full-year sales and profit after a stronger-than-expected second quarter
performance, particularly in July, which saw a 6.8% rise in full prices sales
against the same month last year. * GLENCORE: Miner and trader Glencore GLEN.L on Wednesday said its African
copper business had failed to meet expected operational performance, and its
first-half copper output was around 5% lower than last year, although cobalt was
28% higher. * SERCO: British public-services outsourcer Serco SRP.L reported a 29%
jump in first-half underlying trading profit driven by its American business and
said on Wednesday it was confident of growing faster than the market for the
next two years. * JUST EAT: British food delivery firm Just Eat Plc JE.L on Wednesday said
its core profit dropped 16% in the first half of the year, as it increased
spending on the rollout of its delivery services. * BAE SYSTEMS: BAE Systems BAES.L , Britain's biggest defence company, said
operational improvements in its first half drove a 9% rise in core earnings to
999 million pounds ($1.21 billion), underpinning its guidance for the full year.
* COUNTRYWIDE: British real estate agent Countrywide Plc's CWD.L on
Wednesday reported a sharp fall in core earnings in the first half of the year,
blaming the impact of Brexit-related uncertainties on residential and commercial
property markets. * SMITH & NEPHEW: Smith & Nephew SN.L on Wednesday forecast higher
full-year revenue after reporting a better-than-expected first-half profit,
boosted by higher demand for its artificial hips and knees as well as sports
injury treatments, especially in emerging markets. * INTU PROPERTIES: British mall operator Intu Properties Plc INTUP.L on
Wednesday reported a lower first-half net rental income, as retail store
closures continue to weigh on its portfolio and said it expects like-for-like
net rental income to be moderately down in 2020. * MAN GROUP: British hedge fund manager Man Group on Wednesday reported a 5%
increase to its assets under management in the first half of 2019, even as it
saw an increased outflow of client cash. * DIRECT LINE: Direct Line DLGD.L , Britain's largest motor insurer,
reported a 10.2% fall in first-half profit on Wednesday but pushed its dividend
marginally higher as its overall number of policies in force fell in a very
competitive UK market. * TAYLOR WIMPEY: Britain's third-largest homebuilder Taylor Wimpey Plc
TW.L reported lower first-half pretax profit on Wednesday, hit by higher
costs, but said demand for homes was strong.
* DIGNITY: Dignity Plc DTY.L said on Wednesday it was temporarily
suspending its dividend payments after profits nearly halved in the first half
of 2019, due to a drop in the number of funerals it conducted. * INDIVIOR: Drugmaker Indivior Plc INDV.L reported a 14% rise in quarterly
profit on Wednesday, as its best-selling opioid addiction drug Suboxone lost
market share to generic rivals at a slower pace, than the company's previous
modelling had expected. * ROLLS-ROYCE: Indian federal police have opened an investigation into
Rolls-Royce Holdings Plc RR.L , alleging the UK-based engine maker and its
Indian arm improperly used a third-party to conduct business with three Indian
state-owned companies.
* LLOYDS BANKING: Britain's Lloyds Banking Group LLOY.L is in exclusive
talks to buy a 3.7 billion pound mortgage book from supermarket giant Tesco's
TSCO.L banking arm, Sky News reported on Tuesday. * OIL: Oil prices rose for a fifth day on Wednesday, buoyed by a
bigger-than-expected drop in U.S. inventories and as investors awaited a widely
expected cut in interest rates by the Federal Reserve, the first in more than 10
years. * GOLD: Gold prices inched down on Wednesday as the dollar held firm, while
investors waited on the outcome of the Federal Reserve's meeting later in the
day when policymakers are expected to cut interest rates. * London's FTSE 100 index ended lower on Tuesday, giving up earlier gains as
the mood soured in response to worries over U.S.-China trade and as major
British banks fell after the Bank of England issued a new plan to handle
potential banking crises. * For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on:
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