UK Home Prices Index Declined 2.8%; WPP Net and Ocado Sales Rise

Arthi Gupta
04 Mar, 2011
New York City

The UK indexes edged higher after home prices dropped in February and new orders in the construction sector rose in the fourth quarter. WPP net rose 34% reflecting revenue growth. Ocado quarterly gross sales increased 24.7%.

[R]3:30 PM London – The UK indexes edged higher after home prices dropped in February and new orders in the construction sector rose in the fourth quarter. WPP net rose 34% reflecting revenue growth. Ocado quarterly gross sales increased 24.7%.[/R]

In London, FTSE 100 Index gained 24.95 or 0.44% to 6,030.06 and the pound edged lower to close at $1.6269. For the week, the FTSE 100 Index rose 0.51%.

UK Home Prices Drop

The UK house price index dropped 2.8% annually in February compared to a 2.4% decline in January, according to a report from Lloyds Banking Group Plc''s Halifax division released today. It was the biggest decline since October 2009.

Home prices dipped 0.9% on a monthly basis in February, reversing a 0.8% gain in January.

UK Construction Orders Up

The UK''s construction sector received 18% more new orders in the fourth quarter of 2010 compared with the previous quarter, the Office for National Statistics said today. On an annual basis, new orders rose 3%.

UK New Car Registrations Fall

New car registrations in the UK dropped 7.7% annually in February, data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders Limited showed today. The decline was the eighth in a row.

Total new registrations in February were 63,424 units.

Gainers & Losers

Brulines Group PLC plunged 12.20% to 90.00 pence after the data-management firm said that the group''s trading for the second-half is likely to be lower than anticipated and adjusted operating profit for the full year ending March 31 is expected to be around £4.0 million.

easyJet Plc gained 0.76% to 355.70 pence after the low-cost airline said passenger count increased in February 13.1% and 1.1 percentage point increase in load factor.

The airline said that February load factor increased to 86.4% from 85.3% reported in the same month last year. Passengers flown for February grew to 3.83 million from 3.39 million in the preceding year.

Ocado Group Plc rose 1.00% to 212.60 pence after the online grocer said gross sales rose 24.7% for the 12-week to February 20 to £146.2 million from £117.2 million in the prior-year period and average orders per week rose 26.1% to 103,207 from 81,823 in equivalent period in 2010.

SThree Plc fell 2.56% to 418.80 pence after the staffing business firm said for the first quarter ended February 27, gross profit rose 19% to £42 million from £35.8 million in the previous year. UK gross profit rose 12% from last year. The non-UK region, which now represents 63% of gross profit, had a 24% improvement.

WPP Plc slumped 3.17% to 810.00 pence after the Irish advertising firm stated fiscal year 2010 revenue rose 7.5% to £9.33 billion compared to £8.68 billion in the prior year. Like-for-like revenue was up 5.3%. Profit for the period increased 34% to £586.0 million or 45.9 pence per share versus £437.7 million or 35.3 pence per share in the prior year.