DS Smith, down 1.9%, announces a strategic partnership contract with ABB to provide an automation upgrade at DS Smith's paper mill in Lucca, Italy.
Hilton Food Group, up 1.5%, announced that it has adopted a new crustacean welfare policy with support from the Aquatic Life Institute, which includes stopping the practice of eye stalk ablation within two years.
Nexteq, up 3.1%, announced that its current Gaming Business Leader and Chief Commercial Officer, Duncan Faithfull has been appointed as Group Chief Executive Officer with immediate effect.
CyanConnode, up 1.9%, announced that its subsidiary, CyanConnode Pvt Ltd, has received a Letter of Award (LOA) from a global partner for 6.5m Omnimesh Modules, together with advanced metering infrastructure, standards-based hardware, Omnimesh head-end software, perpetual license, and a support and maintenance contract.
Tristel, up 0.5%, today, announced the appointment of Matt Sassone as CEO of the company, following Paul Swinney's retirement.
Bango, up 0.4%, announced that it will release its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2024 on 30 September 2024. Oracle Power, unchanged at 0.02p, announced that it has received further assay results from the recently completed 1,903m Aircore (AC) drilling campaign at the Northern Zone Intrusive Hosted Gold Project.
Xaar, down 5.6%, announced that it has introduced a new creative print mode to its Versatex Printbar, enabling label and flexible packaging producers to apply varnish as an embellishment.
Frontier Developments, down 2.9%, announced that it expects to release its full-year financial results for the 12 months ended 31 May 2024 on 11 September 2024.
Feedback, down 1.8%, today, announced that it has received additional funding to extend its Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC) pathway pilot at the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust in Oldham.
SDI Group, down 1.5%, announced that its AGM would be held at the offices of Cavendish Capital Markets Ltd, One Bartholomew Close, London, EC1A 7BL on 26 September 2024 at 11.30am.
Gaming Realms, down 0.1%, announced that it has introduced its portfolio with operator Danske Licens Spil A/S, part of the state-owned Danske Spil group in Denmark, a milestone achievement that sees it significantly cement its foothold in the market.
UK markets ended mostly higher last week, amid weakness in the British Pound. On the data front, the UK mortgage approvals unexpectedly rose in July. Meanwhile, the UK Nationwide housing prices fell for the first time since April in August, while the nation’s BRC Shop price dropped for the first time in nearly 3 years in August. The FTSE 100 index advanced 0.6% to settle at 8,376.6, while the FTSE techMARK 100 index gained 1.3% to end at 6,981.2. Meanwhile, the FTSE AIM 100 index fell 0.5% to close at 3,723.6.
US markets ended mixed in the previous week. On the macro front, the US annualised gross domestic product grew more than anticipated in 2Q24, amid the rise in consumer spending, while the nation’s durable goods orders climbed more than expected in July, driven by higher orders for transportation equipment. Moreover, the US weekly jobless claims fell more than expected in the week ended 23 August 2024, while the nation’s consumer confidence rose to a six-month high in August. Also, the US personal income advanced more than expected in July, while the nation’s personal spending rose as anticipated in July. Meanwhile, the US pending home sales unexpectedly dropped to a record low in July, due to higher prices and borrowing costs, while the Michigan consumer sentiment index rose less than expected in August. The DJIA index rose 0.9% to end at 41,563.1, while the NASDAQ index lost 0.9% to close at 17,713.6.
