3 hours ago
FTSE100 hits record high
Britain's FTSE 100 index hit a record high in early trade on Wednesday, led by gains in credit data firm Experian.
The blue-chip index rose 0.5% at the start of trading, hitting a high of 8,474.41 points, its highest level in recent weeks.
By 9:50 a.m. London time, the index had pared its gains slightly to trade at 8,426 points.
Experian rose 7.6% on strong full-year sales forecasts.
— Karen Gilchrist
3 hours ago
IEA lowers oil demand forecast for 2024
Offshore oil drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico.
Ron Buskirk | Getty Images
The International Energy Agency on Wednesday cut its oil demand forecast by 140,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 1.1 million barrels per day, mainly due to weaker demand from OECD countries.
The Paris-based energy watchdog's new forecast widens the gap with OPEC, which reiterated on Tuesday that it expects global oil demand to rise by 2.25 million barrels per day in 2024.
— Karen Gilchrist
4 hours ago
Travel giant TUI says quarterly sales rose 16%, giving it hope for the summer
A Boeing 787 Dreamliner with the logo of tourism giant TUI at Hannover Airport in Langenhagen, central Germany.
Julian Stratenschulte | AFP | Getty Images
German travel giant TUI announced its first quarter results on Wednesday, saying the three months to the end of March 2024 were a “record” quarter. Revenue for the quarter was 3.6 billion euros ($3.9 billion), up 16% from a year earlier, the tour operator said.
TUI added that so far 60% of this year's summer trips have been sold, which is “promising” in line with 2023, with prices rising by around 4% on average.
“Travel is very popular with people, and we see this trend becoming even stronger in the future. Experiences are becoming more important than possessions, and the middle class is growing in many parts of the world,” TUI says. CEO Sebastian Ebel said in a statement. .
TUI shares fell as the market opened, but pared losses to remain around 2.1% higher as of 8:43 a.m. London time.
— Sophie Kiderin
6 hours ago
Burberry reports 34% drop in profits amid 'bleak' outlook
Shoppers passing by Burberry's Shanghai store
Kevin Lee | Getty Images
British fashion house Burberry on Wednesday reported a 34% drop in annual operating profit and said its outlook would remain “challenging” for the first half of this year as demand in the luxury goods market wanes.
Reported sales for the year to March 2024 were down 4%. This was due to a decline in sales in the Americas over the period, although there was a slight recovery in Europe and Asia.
The company said it expects cost-cutting efforts to bear fruit and the outlook to improve slightly in the second half of the year. However, it added that currency headwinds are expected to hurt sales by about 30 million pounds (about $37.7 million) and adjusted operating profit by about 20 million pounds next year.
Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Aykroyd said in a statement: “Although our financial results for 2024 were lower than initially expected, we continue to improve our operations by refocusing our brand image, evolving our products and strengthening our distribution. It has progressed smoothly.”
“We are leveraging what we have learned over the past year to fine-tune our approach as we adapt to the external environment,” he added.
— Karen Gilchrist
6 hours ago
Dutch bank ABN AMRO reports 29% increase in first-quarter net profit
Tuesday, February 1, 2022, at the ABN AMRO Group NV Bank branch in Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Peter Bohr | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Dutch bank ABN AMRO on Wednesday announced its first quarter 2024 financial results, with net profit of 674 million euros ($729.6 million).
This was a significant increase from the same period last year, when the bank's net profit was 523 million euros. Analyst estimates compiled by the bank earlier had expected net profit to be 521 million euros, Reuters reported.
The bank said it was benefiting from rising interest rates, and said strong net interest income and low cost of risk were some of the key drivers of its performance.
— Sophie Kiderin
6 hours ago
Commerzbank reports 29% increase in first-quarter net profit
The logo of the German bank Commerzbank seen on a branch near the Commerzbank Tower in Frankfurt.
Daniel Roland | AFP | Getty Images
Germany's Commerzbank reported on Wednesday that its first-quarter net profit exceeded expectations by 29% to 747 million euros ($808 million), its best quarterly profit in a decade.
Analysts had expected a profit of 652 million euros, according to Commerzbank's consensus forecast for April.
The bank also raised its full-year forecast for net interest income to approximately 8.1 billion euros.
— Karen Gilchrist
12 hours ago
CNBC Pro: Is meme trading coming back? These 4 stocks could benefit from the retail investor boom
12 hours ago
CNBC Pro: These are Goldman Sachs' favorite stocks with more than 50% upside potential
Stock prices are plummeting.
The S&P 500 has soared to record highs this year, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average just had its best week of the year, posting an eight-game winning streak last Friday.
But Goldman Sachs still gives some of its favorite stocks more than 50% upside and one stock more than 100% upside.
CNBC Pro subscribers can read more here.
— Tan Weizhen
8 hours ago
European Market: Click here for opening call
European markets are expected to open higher on Wednesday.
According to IG data, the UK's FTSE 100 index is expected to open 41 points lower at 8,470, Germany's DAX up 60 points to 18,783, France's CAC up 22 points to 8,249 and Italy's FTSE MIB. It is expected to open at 34,945, up 142 points.
Proceeds will be paid by Allianz, EON, RWE, Commerzbank, Thyssenkrupp, TUI, Bilfinger, ABN AMRO, Telecom Italia, Burberry and Ubisoft. The latest preliminary figures for the euro area's gross domestic product (GDP) are also scheduled to be announced.
— Holly Ellyatt