AVEVA Group, up 1.4%, announced that it would be participating at Gitex Global 2022 to be held from 12-14 October.
Johnson Matthey, up 0.7%, announced that it has entered into a fuel cell recycling contract in China.
DS Smith, down 5.9%, announced that it has elected Michael Orye as new Managing Director of its recycling division in Europe and Rogier Gerritsen as Managing Director of its paper division in Europe. Today, the company, in its trading update, announced that it expects its adjusted operating profit of at least £400 million for the six-month period ending 31 October 2022.
Netcall, up 26.4%, announced in its annual results for the year ended 30 June 2022, that revenues rose 12.0% to £30.5 million from £27.2 million recorded in the same period a year ago. Profit before tax widened to £2.3 million from £1.0 million. The Board is proposing a final dividend of 0.54p (FY21: 0.37p).
Tristel, up 4.5%, announced that it has appointed Heidi Allard, UK Finance Director and Global Financial Controller as Company Secretary, with effect from 4 October 2022.
Quartix Technologies, up 4.1%, today, in its trading update, announced that annualised recurring revenue of the fleet subscription base stood at £26.9 million on 1 October, indicating a gain, in constant currency terms, of £2.60 million year on year. The company's subscription base grew by 17% annually, to just over 229,000 vehicles.
IQGeo Group, up 4.0%, announced that a major Dutch utility has selected its geospatial software to provide office and field access to its gas and electric network information. The overall software contract, which was a competitive process through a public tender, is worth €2.6 million as a subscription over 6 years plus an initial order of around €0.5 million for services.
Frontier Developments, down 4.5%, today, announced that its Annual General Meeting will be held at 9.30am on Tuesday 8 November 2022 at The Trinity Centre, 24 Cambridge Science Park, Milton Road, Cambridge, CB4 0FN.
Kier Group, down 1.8%, announced that its Annual General Meeting will be held at the offices of Linklaters LLP, One Silk Street, London, EC2Y 8HQ on 17 November 2022 at 9:30 am.
UK markets closed firmer last week, after the British government cancelled plans to cut tax on high earners. On the macro front, UK’s construction PMI unexpectedly advanced in September. Meanwhile, UK’s manufacturing PMI contracted for a third consecutive month in September, amid drop in output and weak foreign demand, while the nation’s services PMI fell in September. Additionally, Britain’s house prices fell for a second time in three months to September, amid surging borrowing costs. The FTSE 100 index advanced 1.4% to settle at 6,991.1, while the FTSE techMARK 100 index gained 0.3% to end at 5,928.9. Meanwhile, the FTSE AIM 100 index fell 0.3% to close at 3,846.1.
US markets ended higher in the previous week, amid expectations of less aggressive monetary tightening by the US Federal Reserve (Fed). On the data front, the US nonfarm payrolls climbed by more than anticipated in September while the nation’s unemployment rate dropped in September, amid tight labour market. Moreover, the US ISM services PMI fell less than anticipated in September, while the nation’s private sector employment added more than expected jobs in September. Further, the US good trade deficit narrowed for a fifth straight month in August, as imports fell. Meanwhile, the US ISM manufacturing PMI fell the most since May 2020 in September, amid drop in new orders while the nation’s factory orders recorded a flat reading in August. Moreover, the US JOLTS job openings dropped to its lowest since June 2021 in August, while the nation’s initial jobless claims advanced more than anticipated in the week ended 30 September 2022. Meanwhile, The DJIA index rose 2.0% to end at 29,296.8, while the NASDAQ index gained 0.7% to close at 10,652.4.
