Monday, 24 October: FTSE indices sunk lower in the afternoon following bright morning trade, as hopes of an OPEC agreement to curb oil production were dashed by Iraq. Ministers from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates gathered in Riyadah for oil talks, before OPEC’s second largest producer argued it should be exempt from any output cuts because of their fight against Islamic militants.
Petra Diamonds(+6.61%) was the biggest climber in the FTSE 350 as it announced a bullish trading update. Production in Q1 of its financial year grew by a third year-on-year and it generated revenue, despite not holding a diamond sale a year before. The production increase was driven by improved grades and additional tailings production from the Kimberly Ekapa mine. The diamond miner was the beneficiary of broke upgrades on the news.
Cobham, the FTSE 250 aerospace and defence engineering firm slumped 14.65% lower on the back of a second profit warning in twelve months. The upper end of full-year 2016 guidance is £275m, a significant downwards adjustment compared with consensus expectations of £290m. Trading had been flagged as somewhat challenging in earlier reports this year, a trait which contributed to the profit warning and an emergency rights issue in April to reduce leverage.
Further survey data pertaining to the state of the UK was released today hinting at a growth in exports, heading a busy reporting week for U.S. equities before we get Q3 GDP reports for both the UK and US later this week. Survey data illustrated that we had the strongest growth in exports in two and a half years, in the three months to October, as a weaker pound boosted overseas demand since the June referendum. The Confederation of British Industry said its quarterly survey of sentiment in the manufacturing sector showed that exports order balance in the three months to October stood at +8, the highest quarterly reading since April 2014. The balance reflects the percentage of respondents experiencing an improvement against those predicting a decline, as manufacturers were optimistic about export prospects, with export orders growing.
At the close, european indices were mixed with the FTSE 100 -0.49%, the DAX 30 +0.47% and the CAC 40 +0.36%.