FTSE 100 was under the cosh early on as US tech shares fell overnight and some results this morning disappointed. London’s blue-chip index was down 39 at 7,215.
Scottish Power says customers are facing two or three price rises due to the energy price crisis. Boss Keith Anderson said in addition to the energy price cap going up in April costs related to a string of supplier collapses would have to be covered. Bulb with 1.7mln customers is the latest supplier to fail.
AO issued another profit warning as it said a range of electrical products including phones and consoles will be hard to get this Christmas. Annual profit and revenue will suffer as a result.
By contrast, Pets at Home has experienced a surge in first half sales as purchases of Christmas treats soar. This coincides with a large rise in pet ownership since the beginning of the pandemic.
Among the small caps, eSports specialist Semper Fortis has qualified for the Rocket League fall international major. Taking place in Stockholm at the start of December, the prize pool stands at US$300,000.
Supply@Me Capital has confirmed an agreement with private bank Intesa Sanpaolo. The two will work on finalising the structuring of the funding for the company's Shariah-compliant inventory monetisation platform.
FX specialist Record released strong interim results, with revenue growth of 38%. The interim dividend also increases by 56%.