FTSE 100 a mixed bag with SSE good, M&S OK and Ocado disappointing
Published: 05:32 25 May 2022 EDT
FTSE 100 lost some of its early sparkle as results from a host of household names proved a mixed bag. SSE was good, M&S OK and Ocado disappointing was the early verdict. The blue -chip index was 30 points up at 7,714 early on.
Marks & Spencer said it will be closing 48 of its stores in Russia due to its continued invasion of Ukraine. The FTSE 100 company also warned that sales growth would slow as the cost-of-living crisis worsens.
Chelsea FC’s takeover by Todd Boehly has been given the green light by the UK government. In a statement, the government said it “reached a position where we could issue a licence that permits the sale.”
Railway workers voted overwhelmingly in favour of a national strike following a vote by the RMT union. 89% out of 40,000 voted in favour of the strike.
Among the small caps, Synairgen said it is “working in haste” on new trials as it remains encouraged that its lead drug still has potential for patients over the past year with severe viral lung infections At year-end, its cash balance stood at £33.8mln.
Gulf Keystone Petroleum unveiled a US$50mln special dividend and announced that the Kurdistan regional government has now settled outstanding invoices from November 2019 to February 2020. Shares were up as much as 10%.
Kromek has won a repeat order worth US$695,000 from a US federal entity for wearable nuclear radiation detector. The order follows on from a US$1.6m two-year contract from the same customer last September.
