UK Indexes Surge 2.6%; HSBC Soars

Arthi Gupta
02 Aug, 2010
New York City

The UK indexes soar after HSBC first-half profit more than doubles. The UK manufacturing index dips in July. Irish manufacturing sector slows in July. BP establishes $100 million fund through Baton Rouge Foundation and is gearing to permanently seal ruptured oil well in the Gulf of Mexico.

[R]4:30 PM London – The UK indexes soar after HSBC first-half profit more than doubles. The UK manufacturing index dips in July. Irish manufacturing sector slows in July. BP establishes $100 million fund through Baton Rouge Foundation and is gearing to permanently seal ruptured oil well in the Gulf of Mexico.[/R]

HSBC Holdings plc, the financial services firm reported a surge in profit for the first half of fiscal 2010 helped by reduced loan impairment charges and other credit risk provisions, mainly in its North American business division.

In London, FTSE 100 Index traded higher 135.48 or 2.58% to 5,393.50 and the pound edged higher to close at $1.5861.

British manufacturing sector dropped to a 5-month low in July. The Markit / Chartered Institute of Purchasing & Supply manufacturing purchasing managers'' index fell to 57.3 in July from 57.6 in June.

Output in the UK manufacturing sector increased for the 14th month in July. The rise in production was mainly driven by further growth in new business.

Irish manufacturing sector expanded at a slower pace in July. The HSBC manufacturing purchasing managers’ index dropped to 51.4 in July from 51.8 in June, according to a report published by the Markit economics today.

BP announced establishing a $100 million charitable fund to support unemployed rig workers experiencing economic hardship as a result of the moratorium on deepwater drilling imposed by the United States federal government.

The Rig Worker Assistance Fund will be administered through the Gulf Coast Restoration and Protection Foundation, a supporting organization of The Baton Rouge Area Foundation.

BP is gearing up to begin sealing the broken Maconda well in the Gulf of Mexico either tonight or tomorrow. Mud will be injected into the well to overpower the pressure from huge oil and gas reserves beneath the sea, allowing engineers to plug the well.

The process, known as ""static kill"" is a precursor to the final solution of a relief well, which BP has almost completed and is expected to have up and running by the middle of the month.

National Incident Commander Thad Allen told reporters Sunday that the latest attempt to seal the well would depend on results of ongoing tests. He also warned that the static kill “is not the end-all, be-all,"" suggesting there is much work to be done before the disaster is over.

Gainers & Losers

Fidessa Group plc rose 1.91% to 1,491.00 pence after the trading systems developer reported pre-tax profit surged 54% to £19.5 million from £12.7 million for the period ended June 30.

Hammerson plc edged higher 2.09% to 396.50pence after the property group reported adjusted pre-tax profit increased 7.0% to £70.2 million from £65.6 million for the six months ended June 30. Net rental income fell 10.5% to £140 million from £156.4 million due to property disposals in 2009, but like-for-like net rental income rose 5%.

HSBC Holdings plc soars 5.72% to 54.01 pence after banking and financial services company reported its interim results for the six months ended June. Pre-tax profit more than doubled to $11.1 billion from $5.02 billion last year. On an underlying basis, pre-tax profit for the period rose 30% to $9.63 billion from last year.

Intertek Group plc surged 5.96% to 1,671.00 pence after the provider of quality checking and safety services raised its full-year revenue forecasts on a 3.3% rise in half-year profits. For the period ended June 30, adjusted pre-tax profits rose 3.3% to £97.3 million as against £94.2 million a year ago. Revenue increased 4.9% to £652.6 million from £622.3 million previously.

WS Atkins increased 4.48% to 745.50 pence after the engineering contractor is buying Florida-based professional services firm PBSJ Corporation for $280 million or £178 million in cash.

Xchanging plc plummeted 12.70% to 174.60 pence after the business processing company reported its full-year revenue growth will be slightly lower than its previous anticipation.