Good morning from London where the FTSE 100 opened higher on Wednesday morning, gaining nearly an entire percent to kick off a busy day of earnings.
Among those reporting today is sports betting giant Flutter Entertainment, whose share price continues to take a beating despite revealing this morning it swung into profit during the first half ahead of a planned listing in the US.
TUI also announced a profit in its latest quarter this morning, which it said was thanks to a rebound in demand for travel and rising prices.
But it was elsewhere in the tourism sector that we saw this morning’s gain, with Intercontinental Hotels Group hitting fresh all time highs in early trading. High end travel is holding up very well in Europe, the US and China.
Shares in Bellway are down on the day after the housebuilder indicated full-year sales will be materially lower than 2022’s on the back of surging mortgage rates. Water companies Severn Trent and United Utilities also suffered share price losses early on after reports emerged that they would face legal action over allegedly underreporting on pollution incidents and overcharging customers through bills.
And finally in small caps, Futura Medical announced this morning that its topical erectile dysfunction treatment Eroxon is now heading to the lucrative Saudi Arabian market, following recent success getting FDA approved in the US.