TMCnet News
MARKET REPORT [Western Mail (Wales)](Western Mail (Wales) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) UNREST in Hong Kong added to City jitters yesterday in a session where traders continued to sell the stock of the country's largest supermarkets. Standard Chartered said it temporarily shut ATMs and branches in five locations as part of a "business continuity plan". The bank, whose UKlisted shares fell almost 2% or 19p to 1155.5p, has 6,000 staff across 78 branches in Hong Kong. HSBC, which has 27,000 staff and around 100 branches in the city, said it too activated elements of its continuity plan after closing a couple of branches early. HSBC's main building in Hong Kong operated normally during the day but one office was closed and alternative arrangements put in place. Shares were 2% lower, off 15.2p to 635p. Prudential, which is a major insurer in Asia, fell 9p to 1414.5p. Supermarkets also featured on the fallers board after discount rival Aldi posted a record profits haul and a survey from the EY ITEM Club pointed to another three years of squeezed spending power for middle income households. Tesco fell 2% or 3.75p to 187.8p, Morrisons dipped 1.3p to 169.7p and Sainsbury's dropped 2.8p to 247.3p ahead of its trading update on Wednesday. Analysts at Shore Capital expect the chain to report a drop in like-for-like sales of between 3.5% and 4% in the second quarter update. Shares in Compass were heading in the right direction after the world's biggest caterer said it expected to post 4% full-year organic sales growth, offset by the impact of a strong pound. The FTSE 100 company lifted 23p to 984p, a gain of more than 2%. Outside the top flight, shares in Balfour Beatty slid by another 15% after its third profits warning this year. The infrastructure firm highlighted a further Pounds 75m shortfall in its UK construction arm and said it had hired KPMG to carry out a review of the division. Balfour, which is currently without a full-time chief executive, fell 34.4p to 190.5p. The biggest risers on the FTSE 100 Index were Petrofac up 29p at 1039p, Compass up 23 at 984p, Admiral up 28p at 1281p and Sports Direct International up 13.5p at 634p The biggest fallers on the FTSE 100 Index were HSBC down 15.2p at 635p, Tesco down 3.8p at 187.8p, Standard Chartered down 19p at 1155.5p and Anglo American down 22.5p at 1384p. (c) 2014 ProQuest Information and Learning Company; All Rights Reserved. |