wellnessfitpro
Key events
European shares have opened higher.
The FTSE 100 index in London has risen some 19 points to 10,908, a 0.2% gain, getting closer to the 11,000 level.
Persimmon is among the main risers, up 2.5%, after the UK housebuilder lifted its outlook for this year as hopes to benefit from Andy Burnham’s housing programme – shrugging off rising construction costs linked to disruption from the Iran war.
The Dax in Frankfurt edged up 0.15% while the CAC 40 in Paris climbed 0.7%, the FTSE MiB in Milan rose nearly 0.8% and the Ibex in Spain added more than 1%.
Persimmon ups outlook as it bets on Burnham’s housing programme despite higher costs
Kalyeena Makortoff
UK housebuilder Persimmon has lifted its outlook, saying it is “well-placed” to benefit from prime minister Andy Burnham’s policy agenda, despite growing costs linked to the Iran war.
The FTSE 100 builder told investors this morning that pre-tax profits were up 15% for the first six months of the year to £168m, following a 13% rise in the number of homes built over the period.
That was despite “challenging” market conditions, following a rise in building costs, and many consumers still struggling to afford homes.
Bosses added that cost pressures were likely to grow in the months ahead. “We expect additional inflationary pressure in 2027 including as a result of the conflict in the Middle East,” Persimmon said in a market update, warning that even its own
It warned that its cost cutting measures might not be enough to fully offset the impact of inflation.
But Persimmon said it was lifting its outlook for the full-year, with plans to complete 12,500 new homes by the end of the year, at the top end of its previous guidance.
The housebuilder is hoping to benefit from Burnham’s policy programme, including plans to boost housing and slash costs for cash-strapped consumers.
Persimmon remains well-placed to drive further growth through our unique set of capabilities. The UK housing market continues to experience both a long-term undersupply of housing and affordability challenges for new homeowners, which is a key focus for the new government.
As the most cost-efficient national housebuilder, with a clear focus on customer value and affordability, a growing land pipeline and expanding outlet network, we are well placed to respond.
Investec’s housing analyst Aynsley Lammin said:
Clearly markets remain challenging but Persimmon continues to be on the front foot and is delivering relatively well.
Introduction: German factory orders rise faster than expected; Asian shares fall on tech pullback
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy.
In Germany, factory orders rose more than expected in June as Europe’s biggest economy shrugged off disruption from the Iran war.
At the same time, Rheinmetall, the country’s biggest defence company, slashed its outlook after losing a big government contract.
New manufacturing orders increased by 3.1% from the previous month, according to Germany’s statistics office, comfortably beating analysts’ expectations of an 0.3% increase. However, stripping out large orders, new orders dipped 0.5%.
Over the three months to June, new orders rose 1.3% from the previous three months.
Machinery and equipment led the way with 12.7% growth along with computer, electronic and optical products, up 22.7%. There were big orders in both sectors. The car industry reported a 3.8% rise.
In contrast, orders plunged 41.7% for aircraft, ships, trains and military vehicle equipment, with only partial data in this sector available at the moment.
Foreign orders were up 0.2% in June, with orders from the euro area falling by 14% and orders from outside the eurozone rising by 10.2%. Domestic orders rose by 7.8%.
Meanwhile Rheinmetall cut its sales forecast for this year after losing a big German naval contract worth several billion euros.
Rheinmetall now says annual revenues could be as low as €13.7bn rather than the previously forecast €14bn at the low end of its targeted range. The arms maker stuck to its operating margin forecast.
This comes after Germany cancelled the F126 frigate programme in June, which Rheinmetall said could reduce its revenues by up to €300m.
Asian shares retreated on Thursday after the previous day’s tech rally, as investors turned cautious again, following in Wall Street’s footsteps where Elon Musk-run SpaceX plunged 13.6% and chipmaker AMD tumbled 7%.
Both delivered strong quarterly results but investors freaked out about SpaceX’s ballooning AI spending while AMD was hit by Musk saying SpaceX planned to buy its AI chips from rival Nvidia. While SpaceX’s quarterly revenue nearly doubled year-on-year to $7.8bn, capital spending jumped to $18.3bn – more than six times last year’s level – with most of it going towards AI.
Japan’s Nikkei fell 0.9% while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 1.9% and South Korea’s Kospi lost 4.6% and China’s CSI 300 index dipped 0.3%.
Brent crude is holding below $80 a barrel, dipping 21 cents, or 0.3%, to $79.22 a barrel.
The Agenda
-
8.30am BST: Eurozone construction PMI for July
-
9.30am BST: UK construction PMI for July
-
1.30pm BST: US Initial jobless claim for week to 1 August
#German #factory #orders #rise #faster #expected #Asian #shares #fall #tech #pullback #business #live #Business
