Filtronic Share News (FTC)

LONDON (Alliance News) - UK shares have opened mixed Monday, following a strong lead from Asian markets but with little significant economic data scheduled until mid-week.

Reckitt Benckiser leads the FTSE 100 after saying it is on track to achieve revenue growth in the full year, while Aberdeen Asset Management is the worst FTSE 100 faller after saying its assets under management fell by 0.6% in the third-quarter.

After its surprise, and surprisingly good, results announcement on Friday, Royal Bank of Scotland has been raised by both UBS and JP Morgan to Neutral, from Sell and Underweight, respectively.

Here is what you need to know at the UK market open:
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MARKETS
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FTSE 100: up 0.1% at 6,799.76
FTSE 250: down 0.2% at 15,661.76
AIM ALL-SHARE: flat at 772.90
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Hang Seng: up 0.9% at 24,438.20
Nikkei 225: closed up 0.5% at 15,529.40
DJIA: closed down 0.7% at 16,960.57
S&P 500: closed down 0.5% at 1,978.34
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GBP-USD: up at USD1.6983
EUR-USD: flat at USD1.3430

GOLD: down at USD1,304.12 per ounce
OIL (Brent): down at USD107.79 a barrel

(changes since end of previous GMT day)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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Monday's Key Economic Events still to come
(all times British Summer Time)

09:00 Italy Business Confidence
14:45 US Markit Services and Composite PMI Preliminary
15:00 US Pending Home Sales
15:30 US Dallas Fed Manufacturing Business Index
16:30 US 3-Month and 6-Month Bill Auction
18:00 US 2-Year Note Auction
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British homebuyers' confidence deteriorated in the second quarter, a survey from mortgage lender Halifax showed. The balance of people who believe now is 'a good time to buy' fell to 5 percentage points from 34 in the previous quarter. This was the largest fall since April 2011. Meanwhile, about 57% felt it would be a good time to sell and 32% think it is a bad time, giving a balance of 25 percentage points.
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An unofficial, partial truce is being observed by Israel in the Gaza Strip Monday. A military spokeswoman in Tel Aviv confirms that the air force is not carrying airstrikes in the coastal enclave. But Israeli ground troops continue to search for and destroy tunnels in the Gaza Strip's eastern border areas. Hamas announced Sunday that it would stop rocket attacks for 24 hours, after earlier rejecting an Israeli-accepted humanitarian truce.
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The UN Security Council called for an immediate halt to fighting in the Gaza Strip to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid Monday. It also urged all parties to achieve "a durable and fully respected ceasefire."
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The US on Sunday released what it said was evidence that Russia had supplied weapons to separatists in Ukraine. The surveillance images taken by satellite cameras also showed that Russia has fired artillery rounds at Ukrainian military units from its side of the border. The photographs were taken between Wednesday and Saturday, the White House said. The photos show "ground scarring" at a multiple rocket-launch site on the Russian side of the border, a statement accompanying the images said.
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Malaysia is attempting to negotiate a ceasefire between pro-Russian separatist rebels and the Ukrainian government in the area where a Malaysia Airlines jetliner crashed, a senior official was quoted as saying Monday. Khairil Hilmi Mokhtar, chief of the Malaysia special investigation team in Utrecht, said a ceasefire would cover a 35-kilometre radius including the area where the aircraft wreckage had been found.
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Profits of Chinese industrial firms increased at an accelerated pace in June, a report from the National Bureau of Statistics showed Sunday. Industrial profit rose 18% year-over-year in June, following the 9% increase in May. Total industrial profit in the January to June period rose 11% compared to the corresponding period of the previous year. For the January to May period, profits had increased 9.8%.
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Thousands of protesters took to the streets in the Philippine capital on Monday, police said, ahead of President Benigno Aquino's annual state of the nation address. Police blocked off a main road leading to the House of Representatives compound in the Manila suburban city of Quezon, forcing the demonstrators to gather about three kilometres away. They brought an effigy of Aquino as a thief, accusing him of reneging on a vow to fight corruption by implementing an economic stimulus programme that allows for the discretionary distribution of state funds.
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The US shut down its embassy in Libya and relocated all its staff to Tunisia, the State Department said Saturday, citing the deteriorating security situation and infighting between rival militias in Tripoli. "Regrettably, we had to take this step because the location of our embassy is in very close proximity to intense fighting and ongoing violence between armed Libyan factions," said Marie Harf, deputy spokeswoman. The relocation was done over land, with personnel arriving in Tunisia from where they will fly home, the statement said.
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Militants from Nigeria's radical Islamist group Boko Haram kidnapped the wife of Cameroon's Vice Prime Minister Amadou Ali during an attack on the northern border town of Kolofata on Sunday, a government minister said. The town's Muslim religious leader, called the lamido, was also seized along with his entire family, Communications Minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary told dpa. The overnight assault by the Nigerian fighters follows cross-border attacks into neighbouring Cameroon on Friday and Saturday that left four Cameroonian soldiers dead and ten wounded.
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The United Nations said it recovered the second black box from the site of the Air Algerie plane crash in Mali, reports said. A team from the UN mission to Mali assisting local authorities investigating the crash found the recording device, spokeswoman Radhia Achouri said, according to Bloomberg news. Troops from France and Burkina Faso are also assisting in the recovery efforts. There were no survivors among the 116 people on board the flight, which took off Thursday from Burkina Faso bound for Algeria. It crashed in a semi-arid area near the border with Burkina Faso.
About half of the passengers were from France.
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BROKER RATING CHANGES
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HSBC CUTS KINGFISHER TO 'NEUTRAL' ('OVERWEIGHT') - TARGET 325 (435) PENCE
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UBS CUTS ANGLO AMERICAN TO 'NEUTRAL' ('BUY') - TARGET 1700 PENCE
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UBS RAISES RBS TO 'NEUTRAL' ('SELL') - PRICE TARGET 378 (320) PENCE
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TRADERS: JPMORGAN RAISES RBS TO 'NEUTRAL' ('UNDERWEIGHT')
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TRADERS: NOMURA RAISES BSKYB TO 'NEUTRAL' ('REDUCE')
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TRADERS: JEFFERIES RAISES SOCO INTERNATIONAL TO 'BUY' ('HOLD')
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LIBERUM CUTS AIR PARTNER TO 'HOLD' ('BUY') - TARGET 400 (700) PENCE
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COMPANIES - FTSE 100
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Reckitt Benckiser CEO: Expects Market Conditions To Remain Challenging In H2; Undertaking RB Pharmaceuticals Strategic Review, Pursuing UK Listed De-Merger; On Track To Achieve FY Total Revenue Growth Target Of 4-5%
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National Grid PLC said it is on track to meet its targets for the full financial year ending March 31, 2015, benefiting from improvements made to its UK and US businesses. In an interim management statement for the period April 1 to date, the company said it expects capital expenditure for 2014/15 to be at a similar level to the GBP3.4 billion it invested in 2013/14, which contributed to the 5% growth in regulated assets during the period.
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British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC said it has made a USD400,000 investment in California-based early-stage technology company Jaunt Inc. The company specialises in video capture and display. The investment follows a USD350,000 equity investment that BSkyB previously made in the company during an earlier round of funding in December 2013.
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Deutsche Bank, HSBC Holdings PLC and Bank of Nova Scotia have been accused of attempting to rig the price of silver, the Guardian reported online on Sunday. According to the Guardian, the accusation is contained in a lawsuit filed in New York. The plaintiff alleges that the banks unlawfully manipulated the price of the metal and its derivatives.
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Aberdeen Asset Management PLC said its assets under management fell by 0.6% in the third-quarter, hit by a GBP4.0 billion withdrawal by a single client of low margin assets under management from its Asia Pacific and global equities strategies. In a statement, FTSE 100 constituent Aberdeen said that assets under management fell to GBP322.5 billion at the end of June from GBP324.5 billion at the end of March. Net outflows from the main business, recently acquired Scottish Widows Investment Partnership, and negative foreign exchange movements were in the main compensated for by positive market movements and performance in the quarter.
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GlaxoSmithKline PLC Chief Executive Andrew Witty has opened up the possibility of the company being broken up, the Financial Times reported Sunday. Witty said Glaxo had the option to spin-off its consumer healthcare business if a time came when it offered more value as a standalone company. However, he made it clear there were no plans to do this in the near term.
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AstraZeneca PLC said it is working with Roche Holding AG and QIAGEN N.V to develop companion diagnostic tests to support its portfolio of lung cancer medicines. The pharmaceutical giant said it was working with QIAGEN to develop a test that analyses DNA from a patients tumour circulating in their blood to identify non-small cell lung cancer for patients whose tumours have the EGFR mutation and may be able to be treated with IRESSA.
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Randgold Resources Says Tongon Gold Mine Production Ramp-up Not Achieved; Failure Due To Need To Expand Flotation Circuit
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COMPANIES - FTSE 250
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Home Retail Group PLC is considering a plan to spin off its GBP1.5 billion DIY chain Homebase, the Mail On Sunday reported. According to the report, the possibility of a spin-off is being considered by new Chief Executive John Walden so that the group can focus on developing its more prosperous Argos chain.
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Great Portland Estates Says Portfolio Value Up 3.8% In Q1; Says Rental Value Growth Of 1.9% In Q1
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Hiscox H1 Gross Premiums Written GBP978.9M Vs GBP1.02B; Pretax Profit GBP124.6M Vs GBP180.7M; Interim Dividend 7.5p Vs 7.0p; Combined Ratio 82.0% Vs 74.7%
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Pace Names Financial Controller Belinda Ellis As Acting CFO; Roddy Murray Steps Down; H1 Pretax Profit USD72.0M Vs USD68.6M; H1 Revenue USD1.14B Vs USD1.32B; Interim Dividend 2.25c Vs 1.83c; Raises Guidance For Full Year Profits, Cash Flow
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Premier Oil Names Richard Rose As Finance Director, Joins From Ophir Energy
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Petra Diamonds Production Up 17% At FY To June 30; Says Revenue Up 17% To USD472.6M In FY
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International Public Partnerships Divest Stake In French PPP Investment; Sells Holding In Medicast SAS
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Debenhams PLC said it has appointed Mothercare PLC CFO Matt Smith as its own chief financial officer. Smith will also join the retailer's board upon his appointment. He had served as CFO at Mothercare since 2013 and before this held a number of finance positions at Home Retail PLC.
Debenhams said Smith will join "upon the satisfaction of his existing contractual obligations".
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Cranswick Says Trading In Line With Board's Expectations; Revenue In 3-Mos To June 30 Up 5% Due To Growth Across Most Product Categories
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COMPANIES - MAIN MARKET AND AIM
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Ryanair Holdings PLC said the timing of a very strong Easter boosted its first quarter results as it reported higher revenue and pretax profit for the period, leading the company to "cautiously" raise its full-year profit after tax guidance. The low-cost airline said that in its first quarter to June 30, revenue rose 11% to EUR1.50 billion from EUR1.34 billion in the comparable quarter year. Pretax profit also jumped, coming in at EUR223.6 million, compared to EUR88.5 million in 2013. Ryanair said it flew 24.3 million passengers during the period, up 4% on the 23.2 million flown in the comparative year as load factors rose 4% to 86% for the quarter.
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US-based maternity apparel retailer Destination Maternity Corp Friday said it is withdrawing its proposal to merge with Mothercare. Earlier this month, Destination Maternity increased its offer to GBP266 million after two non-binding written proposals were rejected by Mothercare's board. Under the offer, Mothercare shareholders would have received 300 pence for each Mothercare share, compared with 250-275 pence it initially proposed. Destination Maternity said it is unwilling to increase the value of its proposal further and has therefore decided to withdraw it.
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Mothercare Acknowledges Destination Maternity's Withdrawal Of Interest; Says It Is Fully Focused On Its UK Turnaround Plan; Remains Confident In Strategy As Independent Company
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MDM Engineering Gets Approval For Merger With Foster Wheeler AG
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Eco Animal Health Group Says Current Year Has Started Strongly
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Trinity Mirror H1 Pretax Profit GBP50.5M Vs GBP30.3M; Says H1 Performance Ahead Of Its Expectations; Revenue GBP342.2M Vs GBP332.0M; Expects H2 Marginally Ahead Of Expectations; To Reinstate Dividends At End Of This Year
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Air Partner: Trading Since Early June Has Been Weaker Than Expected; Trading Hit Primarily By Poor Commercial Jet Performance; Trading In The Rest Of The Group In Line With Expectations; Now Expects H1 Pretax Profit Of "Not Less Than" GBP1.1M; Ups Dividend 10% To 6.66P
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Filtronic FY Pretax Loss GBP3.7M Vs Pretax Profit GBP200,000; Revenue GBP32.9M Vs GBP40.0M; Says It Is Confident About Its Prospects
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Waterlogic Says Formal Sale Process Continuing; Will Provide Update With Results Sept 22; H1 Revenue USD68.6M, Up From USD54.6M Year Before
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CloudBuy H1 Trading In Line With Expectations For FY; Global Expansion Investment Has Resulted In Increased H1 Loss, As Expected
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Snoozebox Expects H1 Revenue Of GBP0.7M; Expects Higher H2 Revenues Due To Key Event Being Sold Out, Experiencing High Demand; Says Next Generation Portable Hotel Production On Track For Autumn Launch
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Stadium Group Acquires United Wireless For Up To GBP8M Cash And Shares
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Monday's Scheduled AGMs/EGMs

National Grid
Cranswick
Polar Capital Holdings
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By Tom Waite; thomaslwaite@alliancenews.com; @thomaslwaite

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