DS Smith, down 5.2%, announced that it has signed a partnership contract with Bioenzymatic Fuel Cells (BeFC) to expedite smart packaging solutions.
Darktrace, up 26.4%, announced that it agreed to be acquired by Luke Bidco Limited (Bidco) for an equity value of about $5.32b.
Hilton Food Group, up 1.6%, announced that its AGM 2024 would be held and broadcast from Hilton Food Group plc, 2-8 The Interchange, Latham Road, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE29 6YE on 20 May 2024.
Kier Group, up 8.2%, announced that it, along with Vinci and Morgan Sindall are among 56 companies that have been appointed by Pagabo for a £1.6b decarbonisation framework.
1Spatial, up 3.4%, in its final results, announced that revenues rose to £32.32m from £33.00m recorded in the previous year.
Cambridge Cognition, unchanged at 52.0p, stated that its partly-owned company, Monument Therapeutics Limited (Monument) has completed a fundraising of £1.0m and announced a further £0.5m grant funding for the development of Schizophrenia treatment.
Netcall, unchanged at 90.0p, announced that it has introduced its next-generation AI-powered contact centre solution, Liberty Converse CX to enhance customer engagement proposition with a cloud-native contact centre solution.
Oracle Power, unchanged at 0.03p, announced the submission of Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) study report for the proposed 1.3 GW renewable power plant in Jhimpir, Sindh Province, Pakistan to the Sindh Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) for review.
Aferian, down 41.0%, in its trading update, announced that it now expects to report revenue and adjusted EBITDA at the lower end of these ranges.
Checkit, down 6.8%, in its final results, announced that revenues rose to £12.0m from £10.3m recorded in the previous year.
Bango, down 0.4%, announced that its AGM 2024 would be held at 14:00 BST (UTC+1), on 22 May 2024, at Bango Cambridge offices (326 Cambridge Science Park, Milton Road, Cambridge, CB4 0WG). GetBusy, unchanged at 66.5p, today, announced that its AGMusy would be held at the Company's offices at The Works, Unity Campus, Pampisford, Cambridgeshire, CB22 3FT at 10.30 am BST on 21 May 2024.
UK markets ended higher last week, amid hopes that the Bank of England (BoE) would start cutting interest rates in August. On the data front, UK’s services sector unexpectedly climbed in April, while the nation’s GfK consumer confidence rose to a two-year high in April. Meanwhile, UK’s manufacturing PMI unexpectedly dropped in April, while the nation’s public sector net borrowing deficit widened more than expected in March. The FTSE 100 index advanced 3.1% to settle at 8,139.8, while the FTSE AIM 100 index rose 1.2% to close at 3,637.4. Meanwhile, the FTSE techMARK 100 index gained 2.5% to end at 6,715.2.
US markets ended higher in the previous week, lifted by upbeat quarterly corporate earnings reports. On the macro front, the US new home sales climbed to a six-month high in March, while the nation’s pending home sales rose more than anticipated in March. Additionally, the US durable goods orders rebounded more than expected in March, while the nation’s weekly jobless claims unexpectedly fell in the week ended 19 April 2024. Meanwhile, the US annualised gross domestic product grew at its slowest pace in nearly two years in 1Q24, amid a rise in imports and a small build-up of unsold goods at businesses. Additionally, the US manufacturing PMI unexpectedly fell in April, while the nation’s services PMI unexpectedly declined in the same month, indicating weaker demand. Also, the US goods trade deficit unexpectedly widened in March, while the nation’ Michigan consumer sentiment index dropped more than anticipated in April. The DJIA index rose 0.7% to end at 38,239.7, while the NASDAQ index gained 4.2% to close at 15,927.9.
