ABC.L Share News (ABC)

LONDON (Alliance News) - UK shares have opened higher Tuesday, as Unilever and SABMiller have released results and trading statements in line with expectations.

Peel Hunt has issued ratings on the property sector, cutting Great Portland Estates, Derwent London and Workspace Group to Hold, while raising British Land and Segro to Buy.

Here is what you need to know at the UK market open:

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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: up 4.28 at 6,841.01
FTSE 250: up 6.66 at 16,233.77
AIM ALL-SHARE: up 0.05 at 882.39
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DJIA: closed up 41.55 at 16,458.56 on Friday
S&P 500: closed down 7.19 at 1,838.70 on Friday

US markets were closed on Monday
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GBP-USD: down at USD1.6410
EUR-USD: down at USD1.3525

GOLD: down at USD1,251.80 per ounce
OIL (Brent): up at USD106.70 a barrel

(changes since end of previous GMT day)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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Tuesday's Key Economic Events still to come

10:00 Germany ZEW Survey
10:00 EU ZEW Survey
11:00 UK CBI Industrial Trends Survey
13:55 US Redbook index
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Hundreds of radical opposition supporters pelted police with Molotov cocktails and cobblestones in the Ukrainian capital overnight, local media reported. Ukrainian riot police dismantled a barricade and a catapult built by protesters as the clashes continued in Kiev. The protesters also began chasing alleged provocateurs and rounded up several young men in the early morning, reports said. Opposition leader and former boxing champion Vitaly Klitschko warned protesters that the government was sending paid thugs to destabilise the situation.
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UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon revoked his invitation for Tehran to attend Wednesday's Syrian peace conference, saying Iranian officials had failed to support the goals of the international talks. After Ban's invitation late Sunday to Iran, a key ally of President Bashar al-Assad's regime, the Syrian National Coalition had threatened to back out of the talks. The coalition, slated to represent the opposition at the talks in Montreux, Switzerland, insisted that Iran must accept formation of a transitional government in Syria as a condition for its attendance. The group late Monday said it would participate, after Ban rescinded his invitation to Iran.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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JPMORGAN RAISES HARGREAVES LANSDOWN PRICE TARGET TO 1656 (1415) P - OVERWEIGHT
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TRADERS: LIBERUM INITIATES PLANT HEALTH CARE WITH 'BUY' - TARGET 75 PENCE
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TRADERS: LIBERUM CUTS GENEL ENERGY TO 'HOLD' ('BUY')
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TRADERS: PEEL HUNT CUTS WORKSPACE GROUP TO 'HOLD' ('BUY')
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TRADERS: PEEL HUNT CUTS GREAT PORTLAND TO 'HOLD' ('BUY')
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TRADERS: PEEL HUNT CUTS DERWENT LONDON TO 'HOLD' ('BUY')
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PEEL HUNT RAISES SEGRO PLC TO 'BUY' ('HOLD')
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PEEL HUNT RAISES BRITISH LAND TO 'BUY' ('HOLD')
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NOMURA RAISES IAG PRICE TARGET TO 474 (380) PENCE - 'BUY'
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NOMURA CUTS GO-AHEAD GROUP TO 'NEUTRAL' ('BUY') - TARGET 1918 (1700) PENCE
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Jefferies Initiates Greencore With Buy Rating, PT 275p
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Consumer goods giant Unilever PLC reported a drop in revenues in the fourth quarter as expected, but beat analysts expectations for underlying sales growth, margin improvements, and core earnings per share, for both the fourth quarter and the financial year as a whole. For the fourth quarter, Unilever reported total revenues of EUR11.8 billion, in line with analysts consensus, and driven by its personal-care division, which more than offset softness in its food division and its under-invested Spreads business. It reported underlying sales growth of 4.1%, with volume up 2.7% and pricing up 1.4%.
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SABMiller PLC issued its interim management statement for the group's third quarter ended 31 December 2013. The group said its financial performance is in line with expectations. Group net producer revenue, or NPR, grew by 4% and group NPR per hectolitre grew by 2% both on an organic, constant currency basis. Total beverage volumes grew by 2% for the third quarter on an organic basis, with lager volumes up 1% and soft drinks volumes up 7%.
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Otto Energy Limited said it has executed final binding agreements with BHP Billiton Petroleum (Philippines) Corporation or BHPB to terminate the farm-out agreement between the two parties over Service Contract 55 or SC55, offshore the Philippines. Otto noted that it has submitted a request to the Philippines Department of Energy or DOE for re-assignment of BHPB's 60% working interest to Otto, taking Otto's working interest in SC55 to 93.18%.
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Melrose Industries To Return 47p Per Share Capital To Shareholders; Also Proposes 11 For 13 Share Capital Consolidation; Capital Return Totals GBP600M
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IMI Details GBP620M Cash Return To Shareholders, 200p Per Share; Will Consolidate Every 8 Existing Shares Into 7 New Shares; Shareholders Can Receive Cash As Immediate Income Or Capital Payment, Or Deferred Capital Payment; Says Cash Return to Shareholders As Of Feb. 14
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The Commons Energy Select Committee is to question bosses of UK energy distribution companies Tuesday about power cuts over the Christmas period, according to the BBC. The committee will ask about the response towards customers, which has been criticised, and discuss the compensation levels paid to those left without power. The companies attending the committee meeting are Scottish and Southern Energy PLC, Scottish Power Ltd, UK Power Networks, Electricity North West, Western Power Distribution and the Energy Networks Association.
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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African Barrick Gold Q4 Gold Production Down, 165,374 Oz Vs 180,684 Oz; Q4 Gold Sales Volumes Up, 168,177 Oz Vs 159,585 Oz; Q4 Copper Production Down, 3.5M Pounds Vs 4.3M Pounds; FY Production Surpasses Guidance
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Intermediate Capital AuM Rises By 2% To EUR12.3B Between Sept End-Jan 20; Says Mezzanine Portfolio Remains Broadly Resilient; New Third Party Money Raised In Q3 EUR1.1B
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Cairn Energy Plans Nine Wells in 2014 Exploration Programme;Says Programme To Repurchase USD300M Of Shares In The Group Is Ongoing
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Carphone Warehouse Q3 Like-For-Like Revenue Up 3.1%; Reiterates Full Year Guidance Of EPS 17.0p-20.0p; Reiterates Full Year Pro Forma Headline EBIT Range GBP140M-GBP160M; Says Encouraging Progress On 4G Sales
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PZ Cussons H1 Pretax Profit Up 6.2% To GBP43.1M Vs GBP40.6M; Declares Interim Dividend Of 2.53P; Up 7.7%; H1 Revenue Up 4.1% To GBP431.8M Vs GBP414.8M;
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Polymetal International Exceeds Original FY Production Guidance, Producing 1.3M Oz Gold Equivalent, Up 21%; FY Gold Production Up 37% To 805,000 Oz; Reiterates FY 2014 Production Guidance Of 1.3M Oz Gold Equivalent
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Marston's Says Trading To Date Has Been Encouraging, Profitability In Line With Expectations; Good Trading Over Christmas, New Year Period
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Wood Group Secures Two Major Contract Extensions In Africa Worth Around USD250M
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The Restaurant Group PLC said Chief Executive Officer Andrew Page will retire in August. The restaurant and pub operator has commenced its search for a replacement, it said in a statement.
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Petra Diamonds Recovers "Exceptional" 29.6 Carat Blue Diamond At Cullinan Mine In South Africa
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COMPANIES - ALL-SHARE AND AIM
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Red Rock Resources Places 77M Shares At 0.47p, Raising GBP360,000
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Faroe Petroleum Says Spudding Commenced At VNG-Operated Pil Exploration Well 6406/12-3S
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William Sinclair Holdings FY Revenue GBP46.5M Versus GBP48.2M; Cuts Total Dividend To 3p Per Share From 4.5p;Says More Normal Trading Conditions To Return In 2014
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NewRiver Retail Proposes To Raise GBP75M From Placing At 265p; Has Commitments For GBP50M; Plans To Start Paying Dividends Quarterly, 1st In October
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Optos Says Q1 Headline Revenues Of GBP36.4M Down From GBP40.3M Year Before; Q1 In Line With Expectations And Reiterates Full-Year Guidance; Agrees New GBP30M Revolving Credit Facility With Bank Of Scotland To Jan17
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Hochschild Mining FY Attributable Silver Production Exceeds 20.0 M Oz Target At 20.5 M Oz
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ReNeuron Group Records Positive Pre-Clinical Data In Stem Cell Tests On Human Retinal Cells; Says Data Shows Human Progenitor Cells Protect Visual Function In Rat Model For Retinal Degeneration
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Abcam Says Underlying Revenue From Core Products Grew 9.3% At Constant Currencies In 6 Mos To Dec. 31; Total Growth 8.1% At Constant Currencies
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Hydrogen Group Forecast To Report FY Pretax Profit GBP2.3M
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Netcall Traded Within Expectations In H1; Saw Double Digit Percentage Growth In Orders From New & Existing Customers In H1
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1PM CEO: Group Made An Excellent Start To The Trading Year; Pretax Profit For Half-Year Up 84% To GBP610,000 Vs GBP330,000; Revenue For Half-Year Up 37% To GBP1.95M Vs GBP1.42M
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Ubisense Expects Full Year Results In Line With Expectations; Saw Orders of GBP32M For The Year, 30% Increase On 2012
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Next 15 Comms Says It Made A Strong Trading Start To The Year; Double Digit Organic Growth, Strong Overall Margins In Northern America
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Promethean World Expects Full Year Adjusted EBITDA Of Around GBP9M, Up From GBP5.1M; Expects Full Year Revenue GBP141M, Down 10%, Slower Decline Than 2012
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IQE Says FY Revenue Expected To Be At Least GBP126M Vs GBP88M; Says Record EBITDA Expected, At Least GBP24.5M Vs GBP16.4M
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RTC Expects FY To Show Revenue Broadly In Line With Market Expectations; Expects FY To Show Material Improvement In Pretax Profit Against Market Expectations
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Tuesday's Scheduled AGMs/EGMs

Marston's
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite

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