Latest News In Stock Market Investment Research – April 30, 2010

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Total’s first-quarter profit up 14%

30 Apr 2010 at 1:11am

FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) — Oil and gas giant Total SA said Friday its first-quarter net profit rose 14% to 2.61 billion euros ($3.5 billion) from 2.29 billion euros. Analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires expected net profit of 2.34 billion euros. Profit was boosted by rising oil prices and increasing production. First-quarter sales increased 25% to 37.6 billion euros. Hydrocarbon production rose 4.5% to 2.43 million barrels of oil equivalent per day. Natural-gas prices remain under pressure from excessive supplies, and the environment for refining “remains difficult,” the firm said. (Updates to correct the number for hydrocarbon production).

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C&C climbs on selling unit for $397 million

30 Apr 2010 at 12:57am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — C&C Group shares climbed over 7% in early trade after the firm agreed to sell its spirits and liqeuers division to William Grant, the privately held maker of Glenfiddich, for 300 million euros ($397 million) in cash. The division, which makes Tullamore Dew, Carolans, Frangelico and Irish Mist, is expected to have an EBITDA of 15.3 million euros for the year to Feb. 28. The disposal will result in a pro-forma net debt to EBITDA of 0.6 times, C&C said.

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Essar Energy lowers IPO price due to volatility

30 Apr 2010 at 12:42am

MADRID (MarketWatch) — India power, oil and gas exploration company, Essar Energy, has reportedly lowered the price of its London initial public offering to 420 pence a share, owing to recent stock market volatility, according to Dow Jones Newswires, which cited a person familiar with the matter. The price was previously in a range of 450 pence to 550 pence, but new terms have been given to investors, lowering that price, said this person. The IPO will now be valued around $2 billion. Essar was due to start trading on Friday, which would be London’s biggest IPO in 2 years, but now it is unclear when trading will begin. “In view of the recent volatility in markets, the company decided to lower the price to achieve a more successful debut,” the person said, according to Dow Jones.

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Spain unemployment hits 20.05% in first quarter

30 Apr 2010 at 12:19am

MADRID (MarketWatch) — The number of persons unemployed in Spain reached 20.05% of the population in the first quarter of 2010, the National Institute of Statistics said here on Friday. The total number of jobless now stands at 18,394,200, a gain of 251,800 on the prior quarter. The jobless figure, which was accidentally released earlier in the week by Spanish daily ABC, but the level is the highest in Spain since 1997.

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European shares mostly lower in early trading

30 Apr 2010 at 12:07am

LONDON (MarketWatch) — European shares were mostly lower on Friday, with losses of 4.5% from lender Barclays , 1.6% from oil giant BP and 1.3% from France’s Total pressuring. The French CAC-40 index declined 0.3% to 3,827.86, the U.K. FTSE 100 index lost 0.3% to 5,603.62 while the German DAX index rose 0.1% to 6,149.40.

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Greece agrees outlines on 24 bln euro deal: report

29 Apr 2010 at 11:55pm

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Greece has agreed the outline of a 24 billion euro ($32 billion) austerity package, including a three-year wage freeze for public sector workers, in return for a multibillion-euro loan from the euro zone and the International Monetary Fund, the Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the talks. Final details of the measures, which are intended to slash the budget deficit by 10 to 11 percentage points of gross domestic product over the next three years, were still being worked out, the FT reported.

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OFT to cut dairy probe penalties

29 Apr 2010 at 11:50pm

LONDON (MarketWatch) — The U.K. Office of Fair Trading said Friday that it has concluded that evidence is insufficient to support an infringement finding with regard to liquid milk in 2002 and value butter in 2003. As a result, individual penalties that a number of early resolution parties had agreed to pay will be reduced. In addition, as the only allegation against Morrisons related to liquid milk in 2002, Morrisons is now no longer a party to the dairy investigation. The OFT also decided to drop certain allegations against Tesco as part of its dairy investigation, at the same time as agreeing a penalty discount with the firm.

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BP says expanding onshore preparations after spill

29 Apr 2010 at 11:44pm

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Oil giant BP said that it has launched the next phase of its effort to contain and clean up the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, with a significant expansion of onshore preparations in case spilled oil should reach the coast. Work will continue to complete installing marine protection booms along the coast, with an additional 300,000 feet staged or in the process of being deployed and more on the way. “We are doing absolutely everything in our power to eliminate the source of the leak and contain the environmental impact of the spill,” said CEO Tony Hayward. By this weekend, the Transocean Development Driller III is scheduled to spud a relief well intended to secure the existing well, it said. Drilling of this well is expected to take two to three months.

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WPP quarterly revenue down 1.8%

29 Apr 2010 at 11:37pm

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Advertising group WPP said Friday that first-quarter revenue fell 1.8% to 2.1 billion pounds ($3.2 billion). Revenue in constant currency rose 0.5%, reflecting the strength of sterling against the U.S. dollar and euro. WPP said it’s too early to say whether the stabilization it saw in the first quarter and the growth it saw in March will be sustained. “The second quarter should continue the trend, if only because the comparatives are easier,” it said. Still, revenue stabilization and growth have certainly come earlier than expected in 2010, the firm said. It was expecting growth from the second quarter of the year.

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Barclays quarterly net profit rises 29%

29 Apr 2010 at 11:31pm

LONDON (MarketWatch) — Barclays said Friday that its first-quarter net profit rose 29% to 1.1 billion pounds ($1.7 billion). Total net income rose 4% to 8.1 billion pounds, helped by good growth at the lender’s investment banking operations. Impairments declined 35% to 1.5 billion pounds, compared to the same point a year ago and fell 19% compared to the fourth-quarter of 2009. The lender said that month-to-date trading for April has been consistent with first-quarter trends and it’s encouraged by the continued improvement in impairment levels. This reflects a better economic environment in many markets, the firm said. It said it continues to operate with strong capital and liquidity levels in anticipation of future regulatory requirements.

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Pearson sees underlying profit growth this year

29 Apr 2010 at 11:25pm

FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) — U.K. media and publishing firm Pearson PLC said Friday its first-quarter revenue rose 7% to 1.08 billion British pounds ($16 billion). “The first quarter is always a very light trading period for Pearson owing to the seasonal phasing of our book publishing businesses, and we expect these growth rates to moderate as we go through the year,” the firm said. Pearson said it’s trading in line with expectations and it still projected another year of underlying profit growth.

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Japan’s cabinet reverses Japan Post privatization

29 Apr 2010 at 11:19pm

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) — Japan’s Cabinet approved Friday a bill to expand the financial products offered by the government-owned Japan Post Holdings Co., reversing efforts to privatize the entity, according to a report by Kyodo. The bill, which could become law in June, will double the ceiling on individual deposits to 20 million yen ($213,000), and hike the coverage limit on life insurance to 25 million yen from 13 million yen, the report said. It also paves the way for the insurance unit to broaden the range of products it offers. The plan will also see some restructuring of group companies.

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Metro’s first-quarter net loss narrows

29 Apr 2010 at 11:15pm

FRANKFURT (MarketWatch) — German retailer Metro AG said on Friday that its first-quarter net loss narrowed to 16 million euros ($21 million) from 98 million euros in the same period a year ago. Sales rose 2.3% to 15.5 billion euros. Analysts polled by Dow Jones Newswires expected a net loss of 36 million euros and revenue of 15.38 billion euros. “In some countries, the worst of the economic crisis seems to be over. Although the situation remains challenging, we see a first economic silver lining on the horizon,” said Chief Executive Eckhard Cordes in a statement.

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Bank of Japan keeps rates, policy unchanged

29 Apr 2010 at 9:28pm

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch) — Japan’s central bank voted unanimously Friday to keep its policy interest rate and special monetary stimulus programs unchanged, as widely expected. The Bank of Japan also said in its policy statement that it was looking into other “possible ways to support private financial institutions in terms of fund provisioning with a view to strengthening the foundations for economic growth,” but didn’t elaborate further. The BOJ’s policy announcement came as the government reported a 1.2% fall in March consumer prices, excluding volatile fresh food, and said the jobless rate for last month ticked up to 5.0% from 4.9% in February.

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Hong Kong stocks jump on U.S. gains, results boost

29 Apr 2010 at 7:33pm

HONG KONG (MarketWatch) — Hong Kong shares rallied early Friday on the back of sharp gains on Wall Street and in regional markets, with financial and commodity-linked stocks especially strong. Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd. and Tsingtao Brewery Co. also advanced, as investors cheered their strong corporate results Thursday, despite continued weakness in the mainland Chinese markets. The Hang Seng Index advanced 1.1% to 21,011.02, while the Hang Seng China Enterprises Index gained 1.6% to 12,065.21, shrugging off the Shanghai Composite’s 1% decline to 2,841.01. Pacing the gains in Hong Kong, HSBC Holdings PLC added 1.9%, and Cnooc Ltd. climbed 2.7%. ICBC rose 1.6%, and Tsingtao advanced by 3.6%.

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April 30 2010 12:22 am | Stock Market News

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