European stocks are lower this morning, but are holding up relatively well when you consider the magnitude of the declines in Asia overnight and in the US last night. Investor are clearly nervous in this part of the world, and there are still concerns things could turn sour again. The erratic moves that have taken place in the US are unsettling investors here, and the sentiment in Europe could change when trading in New York resumes.
Trinity Mirror (LON:TNI), which owns the Daily Mirror, is acquiring Northern&Shell (LON:RDSa) which owns the Daily Express, and the deal is worth over £126 million. The move will reduce costs, and Trinity Mirror expects to save £20 million per year. The takeover come as hard-copy newspaper circulation is declining, so consolidation is not a surprise. The stocks is up 6.9% today.
Shares in Talk Talk Group (LON:TALK) are lower again today after the company had a difficult day yesterday when it issued a profit warning, cut its dividend and revealed plans to raise £200 million via a stock issue. The bottom line was hit as the company acquired 70,000 – 80,000 more customers than anticipated. There was a drive to ramp up its customer base in the face of falling revenue. The company is planning an aggressive fibre optic roll-out to 3 million premises in the UK. The stock has been in decline since 2015, and if the bearish move continues it could target 90p.
The pullback in the US dollar has assisted the EUR/USD and GBP/USD this morning. The UK revealed underwhelming economic data as manufacturing output cooled and industrial output was flat. The US government shutdown hasn’t had much of an impact on the greenback, but it is unlikely to be good for the currency.
We are expecting the Dow Jones to open up 240 points at 24,100 and we are calling the S&P 500 up 32 points at 2613.
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