Drivers are being warned by motoring organisations that Britain’s roads over this Bank Holiday will be the busiest they have ever been, potentially causing huge delays.
The RAC is predicting almost 21.5mln journeys will be made over the four-day break, kicking off on Good Friday when more than 4.5mln journeys are likely to be made.
Dunelm Group PLC (LSE:DNLM) said revenue grew 69% in its third-quarter update and expects profit before tax for the year in line with expectations despite macro-economic conditions.
There are continued “significant pressures on UK consumers,” although the homeware retailer said it is working with suppliers to limit the impact of inflation, particularly raw materials and freight costs.
Hermes International reported a 27% rise in first-quarter revenue, driven by strong performances in Europe and North America.
As a result of continued growth in the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain, sales in Europe (excluding France) surged by 44% while the Americas grew by 44%.
Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) is set to launch a US$43.4bn hostile bid for Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR).
The Tesla founder announced a 9.1% stake in the social media platform earlier this month, is proposing to buy all of the shares in Twitter he does not already own at US$54.20 a pop. The proposal is indicative and non-binding, which means there is no guarantee a firm offer will materialise.
Tesco PLC (LSE:TSCO) is to hand out £50mln worth of 'thank you bonuses' to employees next month just weeks after announcing a pay increase.
Around 290,000 employees across all departments will be eligible, with Tesco saying it was a thank you to its staff for their hard work over the past year.
Jersey, the tax haven in the English Channel, has frozen £5.4bn of assets linked to Russian billionaire, Roman Abramovich.
The Royal Court has imposed a freeze on the assets, “which are either located in Jersey or owned by Jersey incorporated entities.”
In the art world the phase ‘priceless’ is a common superlative. It sounds a bit like ‘worthless’, but that means something very different. Meanwhile, in the world of digital art and NFTs …
Crypto entrepreneur Sina Estavi, a crytpo entrepreneur, who in 2021 spent US$2.9mln on the NFT of the ‘first ever Tweet’ – showing founder Jack Dorsey saying “just set up my twttr” - recently put the “piece of digital history” up for auction with an asking price of US$48mln, only to receive offers between US$6 and US$277.
The rise of the rentier class continues with private rents rising at a record rate, according to the property listings web site Rightmove.
The company’s Rental Trends Tracker indicated asking rents outside of London rose to £1,088 a month, up 10.8% from £982 a year earlier.
CareTech Holdings (AIM:CTH) said it has received an improved takeover offer of 750p per share from the company’s co-founders, Haroon and Farouq Sheikh.
The £850mln cash bid from Sheikh Holdings is supported by investors speaking for a total of 50.1% of the social care services company’s shares, it said.
Hurricane Energy PLC (LSE:HUR) delivered what appears to be a significant upgrade to the reserves on its Lancaster Field, west of Shetland.
But while production rates were at the upper end of forecasts in the six months ended March 31, they will drop as the impact of the annual maintenance shutdown is factored in.
Horizonte Minerals PLC (AIM:HZM, TSX:HZM, OTC:HZMMF) said mining and commodity trading giant Glencore PLC (LSE:GLEN) now owns 9.8% of its shares.
In a routine statement, Horizonte said Glencore crossed the major shareholding threshold on Tuesday.
finnCap Group PLC expects 2022 revenue to grow and profits to be in line with expectations despite a “more complex equity market” due to the war in Ukraine.
In a trading update, the advisory and capital raising firm said revenue for the year ending 31 March 2022 is set to climb 12% to £52.4mln.
National Grid PLC (LSE:NG.) said the accelerating inflation rate boosted the underlying operating profit of its UK Electricity Transmission and Electricity Distribution business units
The group said underlying operating profit from these units will be ahead of previous guidance.
88 Energy Ltd (AIM:88E, ASX:88E, OTC:EEENF)’s quarterly activities report summed up three months in which the company’s recently acquired Texas assets put cash in the bank.
The 73%-owned producing assets in Texas, referred to by the company as Project Longhorn, yielded some 400 barrels of oil per day (gross) and in March delivered some A$600,000 as its first net cash flow.
Petropavlovsk PLC (LSE:POG) has appointed a corporate finance boutique to find a buyer saying it will struggle to refinance its debts due to the sanctions imposed on Russia.
In a statement, the Russia-focused gold miner said AlixPartners would assist the board as it explores its options.
Halma PLC (LSE:HLMA) said it has acquired underwater robots manufacturer Deep Trekker Inc for C$60mln (£36mln) to be part of its environmental and analysis sector.
Deep Trekker's remotely operated robots are used for inspection, surveying, analysis and maintenance largely in acquaculture, renewable energy, ocean science and research.
NextEnergy Solar Fund Ltd (LSE:NESF) has raised its target dividend by 5% for the current financial year ending 31 March 2023, its eighth consecutive dividend increase.
The specialist solar power renewable energy investment company said its board approved a target dividend of 7.52p per share, compared to 7.16p per share in the past year.
Medical imaging specialist Polarean Imaging PLC (AIM:POLX, OTC:PLLWF) has appointed a former chief financial officer of GE Healthcare as an independent director.
Frank Schulkes’ last appointment was as CFO of ConvaTec Group, the FTSE 250 medical products and technologies group.
Anglo Asian Mining produced 13,720 gold equivalent ounces from its mines in western Azerbaijan in the three months to 31 March 2022.
Total gold bullion sales were 7,519 ounces at an average of $1,904 per oz (Q1 2021: 5,635 ounces at $1,697 oz) with cash at the period end of US$29.4mln (US$37.5mln).
Primary Health Properties PLC (LSE:PHP, OTC:PHPRF) has acquired the Chiswick Medical Centre in London for £34.5mln.
The property is fully let to HCA International Ltd with an unexpired term of just under 20 years and benefits from five-yearly annually compounded retail price index led rent reviews.
Cryptocurrencies moved higher, mirroring wider markets, with traders eagerly awaiting the European Central Banks’ (ECB) monetary policy decision.
Bitcoin increased 2.89% to US$41,265, clawing back some of the almost 6% losses suffered earlier in the week. The largest coin by market value had briefly dipped below the key resistance level of US$40,000 yesterday.
Wizz Air Holdings PLC (AIM:WIZZ) said its fourth quarter loss will be less than predicted as a recovery in the airline industry begins to "take shape."
The low-cost airline forecast an operating loss of between €210-€190mln for the quarter. This is ahead of the €213.6mln loss estimated when it reported third-quarter results in January.
Custodian REIT PLC (LSE:CREI) said it is acquiring an industrial facility in Grangemouth, Scotland, that is leased to a sawmill for the next 18 years for £7.49mln.
The unit is rented for £388,261. With the RPI-linked rent increase planned for next September, the net yield from the property will be 5.5%.
Cloudbreak Discovery PLC (LSE:CDL) unveiled Paul Gurney as a non-executive director with immediate effect.
Prior to joining the natural resource project generator, he spent over 15 years in capital markets, most recently as a managing director for the Bank of Montreal (CSE:BMO)’s (BMO) equity desk in London.
Voyager Life PLC (AQSE:VOY) said revenues have grown strongly and it had £1.43mln cash in the bank at year-end to continue developing its business model.
In what was its first year of operations, the hemp and cannabidiol (CDB) retailer and product manufacturer said it generated revenue of roughly £178,000 in the 16 months to 31 March 2022, from sales made online, to third party retailers and via the three stores it opened during the year.
ANGLE PLC (AIM:AGL, OTCQX:ANPCY) said a poster presentation showcasing its breast cancer technology attracted 'industry interest’ at a world-leading medical conference.
Delegates learned the company’s Parsortix device was able to detect the key markers for the triple-negative form of the disease via a blood draw rather than a painful and invasive biopsy.
DiscoverIE Group PLC enjoyed a strong finish to the financial year, meaning results will be ahead of expectations.
The designer and manufacturer of customised electronics for industrial applications said group orders in the final two months of the year to the March remained well ahead of sales, growing organically 13% year-on-year and 27% compared with two years ago.
Bens Creek Group PLC (AIM:BEN, OTC:BENCF) said it entered into a coal sub-lease agreement with Star Ridge Land LLC on two parcels of land covering about 2,640 acres in Mingo County, West Virginia.
The land touches Bens Creek’s recently re-opened metallurgical coal mine.
Trident Royalties PLC (AIM:TRR) said it agreed to the sale of the Mercedes Gold-Silver Mine in Sonora, Mexico by Equinox Gold (TSX:EQX).
The group has an offtake agreement with Premier Gold, a subsidiary of Equinox, over the mine and will receive US$3.75mln in addition to royalty payments of US$307,600 already received.
Poolbeg Pharma PLC (AIM:POLB, OTCQB:POLBF) was granted European patent protection over its key asset, POLB 002, a nasally administered treatment with the potential to protect against respiratory virus infections.
Specifically, the patent covers the use of defective interfering (DI) influenza virus against the flu.
Graduates and students in England will have to pay up to 12% interest on loans this autumn compared to 4.5% currently, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).
For those currently enrolled at university in England, interest is calculated by adding 3% to the retail price index (RPI) measure of inflation.
Latin Resources Ltd (ASX:LRS) has raised $35 million and is now well funded to fast track its Bananal Valley drilling program at the Salinas Lithium Project in Brazil.
The company sees the raise, which was anchored by a cornerstone investment of $15 million by Electrification and Decarbonization AIE LP Fund (E&D Fund), a 100%-owned subsidiary of Toronto based Waratah Capital Advisers, as transformational.
Ora Banda Mining Ltd (ASX:OBM) is reviewing its Davyhurst gold operations due to production and cost performance issues.
The company recently completed stage one of the review, resulting in a 24-month plan to improve productivity, lower costs and build cash to invest back into exploration and next mine resource development.
Housing Secretary Michael Gove today warned developers that failure to sign up for its cladding remedy proposals would mean ‘consequences’ as he kept up his rhetoric against the industry.
Builders that do not sign up for the safety pledge might be excluded from any more constructing any more houses, Gove said.
Rising inflation usually correlates to rising costs for the end consumer as industries, including retailers, increase prices to protect margins.
Surprisingly, though, some of the UK’s leading supermarkets have done the opposite and reduced the prices on some, if not most, of their products.
Wind turbines produced more energy in the first quarter of the year than in any other previous three-month period on record.
Renewable sources, overall, also created more power than coal and gas for just the second time, according to market specialist EnAppSys.
Ted Baker PLC (LSE:TED) said New York-based private equity firm Sycamore is one of the parties involved in its formal sales process.
The high-street retailer previously rejected two unsolicited bids from Sycamore, claiming they significantly undervalued the London-listed fashion chain.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak have rejected calls to resign over their ‘partygate fines’ yesterday but it was another bad day in the headlines for both.
Predictably opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer led the calls alongside SNP head Nicola Sturgeon but a growing list of Conservative backbenchers unhappy over Johnson’s two-and half-year tenure also chimed in.
Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) chief executive Tim Cook lashed out at pending antitrust regulations in the US and Europe, saying they would harm iPhone user privacy and security.
During a speech at the Global Privacy Summit in Washington, Cook said regulators' efforts to force Apple to allow iPhone users the option to install apps from the web, called sideloading, could result in users being tricked into installing malware that steals data.
Empyrean Energy PLC (AIM:EME) says the Jade well, offshore China, is making good progress with the 17-1/2" section drilled to 1056 metres Measured Depth.
Casing is now underway to be followed by the installation of a blowout preventer, after which drilling down to 2140 metres Measured Depth will get underway.
Shell’s deal yesterday to produce hydrogen in a collaboration with German utility Uniper has underlined predictions that it will become a ‘carbon management’ ‘ business in future.
Uniper’s Killingholme power station site will produce blue hydrogen to decarbonise industry, transport and power throughout the Humber region, said Shell.
Util, a UK fintech startup that measures the social and environmental impact of companies and investment portfolios, has closed a funding round where investors included US firm Eldridge Industries and Andy Brown, former chief technology officer at UBS.
The seed funding round brought Util's total investment to date to US$5mln.
Boxpark, self-dubbed the 'world’s first pop-up mall', is to open a new 17,000 square foot location by London's Liverpool Street station next year.
Dubbed the “BoxHall City”, the site will open in the summer of 2023 and will replace the existing Metropolitan Arcade, according to the Evening Standard.
Atalaya Mining (AIM:ATYM, TSX:AYM) PLC reported a 19.5% drop in copper production in the first quarter following a temporary plant shutdown and lower copper grades.
The mining and development company produced 11,249 tonnes of copper in the first quarter, down from 13,979 tonnes in the year-earlier period.
Polymetal International PLC (LSE:POLY) (Polymetal International PLC (LSE:POLY)) led the fallers in the FTSE 350 after the Russia-based precious metals miner shelved its dividend.
The company said its board decided to postpone the payout and a decision on making an interim dividend payment until at least August based on "significant changes in operating conditions" in the last few weeks - ie since Russia invaded Ukraine.
Bid target Meggitt PLC (LSE:MGGT) said it is to sell its Danish ceramics business for £59mln in cash as part of its strategy to focus on core markets.
The aerospace and defence engineering group will sell Meggitt A/S, which manufactures piezoelectric ceramic components for medical and industrial applications, to CTS Ceramics Denmark.
Europa Oil & Gas (Holdings) PLC (AIM:EOG) marked £2.2mln of first-half revenue as its part-owned Wressle field continued to perform “from strength to strength”.
In what the company described as its “strongest interim financial performance since H1 2014” the company reported a £700,000 pre-tax profit and noted £900,000 of net cash from operations.
Darktrace PLC (LSE:DARK) has raised its revenue and margin estimates for this year for a second time after strong growth in customer numbers in the third quarter.
Concern about more Russia-based cyber attacks in the wake of the Ukraine war has put the spotlight on the need for greater protection and Darktrace said new customer wins had driven sales in the past three months.
Amur Minerals Corp said international sanctions against Russia following the invasion of Ukraine have had a minimal impact on its operations.
The exploration and development company focused on Russia’s far east said the flow of funds supporting its flagship AO Kun-Manie operation continue.
Tesco PLC (LSE:TSCO) delivered profits and dividends bang in line with expectations and committed to another £750mln share buyback by April 2023, but made guarded comments about the outlook for costs and prices.
The shares fell 5.5% to 255.76p in early trading.