Sterling Turns Lower After BOE Rate Decision

Sterling turns lower after the Bank of England raised its benchmark interest rate by 25 basis points to 0.75% as expected. Policymakers voted 8-1 in favor of the decision with one preferring to leave rates unchanged. That compares to last month when four officials voted for a 50bp rate rise instead of the 25bp increase that was delivered. In Thursday's decision, the BOE said it judges that some "further modest tightening in monetary policy" may be appropriate in coming months but there are "risks on both sides of that judgement depending on how medium-term prospects for inflation evolve." GBP/USD falls to 1.3097 after the decision from 1.3203 beforehand. EUR/GBP rises to 0.8435 from 0.8372. 


 
Companies News:

Harbour Energy Swung to 2021 Profit as Gas Prices Soared

Harbour Energy PLC on Thursday reported a swing to a profit for 2021, as higher gas prices boosted revenue from its fields.

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AstraZeneca Agrees on Settlement With Chugai Pharmaceutical; To Pay $775M

AstraZeneca PLC said Thursday that its rare-disease group, Alexion, has agreed on a settlement with Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. that resolves all patent disputes related to Ultomiris, and that it will make a payment of $775 million in the second quarter.

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Cineworld Loss Narrowed in 2021 as Admissions Bounced Back

Cineworld Group PLC on Thursday reported a narrowed loss for 2021, as its performance partially recovered from the effect of the pandemic in 2020.

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Deliveroo 2021 Pretax Loss Widened; Sees 2022 Lower Growth on Market Uncertainties

Deliveroo PLC on Thursday said that 2021 pretax loss has widened despite higher revenue and also warned that it expects market uncertainties to reduce growth in 2022.

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Ceres Power 2021 Loss Widened Despite Revenue Growth of 44%

Ceres Power Holdings PLC on Thursday reported a widened loss for 2021 but forecast that strong top-line growth will continue this year.

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Helios Towers 2021 Pretax Loss Widened Significantly on Higher Costs

Helios Towers PLC on Thursday reported a significantly widened pretax loss for 2021, a result of higher costs as well as movements in the company's derivative financial instruments that reflect the embedded call option in its bond.

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Marshalls's 2021 Pretax Profit Soared, Sees 2022 Ahead of Views

Marshalls PLC reported Thursday a jump in 2021 pretax profit, announced a dividend payout and said it expects a robust 2022.

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OSB Group's 2021 Pretax Profit Rose; Outlook Seen as Positive

OSB Group PLC reported Thursday a significant rise in pretax profit for 2021 amid an improved outlook and said that it faces the future with optimism.

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PensionBee 2021 Pretax Loss Widened; Backs 2022 Views

PensionBee Group PLC said on Thursday that 2021 pretax loss widened as it booked higher costs, and that it reiterated its 2022 and medium-term guidance.

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Ocado Lowers FY 2022 Outlook as 1Q Retail Revenue Falls on Changing Customer Habits

Ocado Group PLC reported on Thursday a decline in sales in the first quarter of fiscal 2022 as pandemic restrictions eased and more customers returned to office working and said that it is lowering its full-year outlook as a result.

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National Express Urges Stagecoach Shareholders to Take No Action on DWS Offer

National Express Group PLC said Thursday that it encouraged Stagecoach Group PLC shareholders to take no action on a rival offer from DWS as it materially undervalues the company, and that a National Express-Stagecoach combination represents a superior value-creation opportunity.

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EMIS Group Says It Is Poised for Another Strong Year After 2021 Results

EMIS Group PLC on Thursday reported resilient results for 2021, and said it is building growth momentum and is well positioned for another strong performance in 2022. 


 
Market Talk:

Commodity-Linked Currencies Rise as Risk Appetite Improves

1226 GMT - Commodity-linked currencies including the krone, Canadian dollar and Australian dollar gain as risk appetite improves, BDSwiss Group says. China's pledge to roll out measures to support the economy and hopes for a settlement to the Ukraine war are supporting market sentiment, BDSwiss analyst Marshall Gittler says in a note. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell was also optimistic about the U.S. economic outlook at Wednesday's policy meeting, which might have bolstered investor confidence in the stock market, he says. "Can this risk-on mood continue? It all depends on what happens with the fighting in Ukraine." AUD/USD rises 0.7% to 0.7338, EUR/NOK falls 0.3% to 9.7865, and USD/CAD drops 0.1% to 1.2662 after hitting a one-week low of 1.2652 earlier.

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Digital 9's Investments Seem Attractive

1222 GMT - Digital 9 Infrastructure investments in Verne Global and Aqua Comms could provide short-term value protection and remains highly attractive, Liberum says. Demand for high-speed data rose during the pandemic and is expected to continue growing, the U.K. investment bank says. Two of Digital 9's four core investment sectors are subsea fiber--which represents around 98% of all international data flows--and data centers, both of which are critical infrastructure, Liberum says. "These investments provide portfolio revenues that are contracted for around seven years, with 85% of revenues providing inflation-linkage," the brokerage says. Shares are up 1.0% at 109.8 pence.

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UK Borrowing Costs Fall After BOE Raises Rates, One Policymaker Votes to Hold

1216 GMT - U.K. borrowing costs fall after the Bank of England lifted the base rate by 25 basis points to 0.75%, as expected. However, it only voted to do so by a 8-to-1 majority, with rate-setter Jon Cunliffe unexpectedly voting to keep the bank rate unchanged at 0.5%. The yield on the two-year benchmark government bond falls to 1.332% from 1.457% before the announcement, according to Tradeweb.

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Harbour Energy 2021 Cash Generation, Ebitda Beat Expectations

1156 GMT - Harbour Energy has reported better-than-expected cash generation and net debt for 2021, with Ebitda of $2.4 billion also slightly ahead due to higher oil price realization, Jefferies says. In addition, free cash flow guidance for 2022 is exactly in line with the bank's estimates, showing that the U.K. oil-and-gas producer could be debt free by 2023. Jefferies also highlights that Harbour intends to seek shareholder approval at the general meeting to perform share buybacks. Shares in the FTSE 250 energy company rise 4.4% after reporting full-year earnings. Jefferies has a buy rating on the stock.

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National Express Response to Stagecoach's DWS Offer Is Likely to Be Overlooked

1149 GMT - National Express's response to DWS's offer to acquire Stagecoach has a low probability of being accepted by the board as it hasn't placed a revised counter offer and has set out a value-creation scenario instead, Citi says. Not only has Stagecoach's board expressed support for the DWS offer, the company's founding family's preference is likely to be a cash deal, as they have previously stated their intention to sell down the stake in Stagecoach, the U.S. bank says. Still, given its footprint in the U.K., National Express is a key player for consolidation in its public transport market, analysts at Citi say. Citi rates the stock buy with a GBP3.50 target price.

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Marshalls Seen With 'Robust' Business Model

1131 GMT - While Marshalls's full-year results were broadly in line with expectations, the dividend increase was better than expected and net debt was slightly lower, Peel Hunt says. The U.K. concrete-products company is continuing to look for M&A opportunities, which could provide further uplift to profitability, Peel Hunt says. The U.K. brokerage raises its forecast for pretax profit to GBP81 million in 2022 and GBP86 million in 2023, which "should give investors further confidence about the robustness of the business model." Marshalls posted a pretax profit of GBP69.3 million for last year. Peel Hunt maintains a buy recommendation and 800 pence target price. Shares rise 3.6% to 666.5 pence.

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Oil Majors' Exit From Russia Will Be Tricky

1122 GMT - The exits and asset sales of the oil majors from Russia will be tricky, as these are likely to involve government-to-government conversations, rather than discussions around the value of the assets themselves, RBC Capital Markets says. "For example, we would imagine if a Chinese national oil company was looking to buy BP's Rosneft stake, it would need the nod from the very top as this would send very clear signals around China's willingness to do business in Russia in the face of recent events," the bank says. A number of oil majors have announced plans to exit their Russian operations after the invasion of Ukraine started.


Contact: London NewsPlus, Dow Jones Newswires; Write to Sarka Halas at sarka.halas@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

03-17-22 0903ET