London pre-open: Bright start predicted

8th Sep 2009 07:36

The leading index is expected to extend yesterday's gains by about 10 points in early deals ahead of Wall Street's return following Monday's public holiday.Kingfisher mistakenly circulated some draft figures on Monday afternoon, forcing the DIY retailer to admit this morning that adjusted pre-tax profit for the six months to 1 August will be between £285m and £290m. The B&Q owner, which hadn't been due to report its interims until 17 September, blamed an administrative error for the early external release of the results. Retail profit will be in the range of £345m-£350m, broadly made up of £148m in the UK and Ireland, £146 for France and £53m in other international markets. Kingfisher stressed that these figures are yet to be approved by its Audit Committee and the board, so could be subject to change.Strong food sales helped pub group and Abbot Ale brewer Greene King post a healthy rise in like-for-like sales in the 17 weeks to 30 August, up 4.6%. Food operations grew 8.1%, while sales at Scottish business Belhaven were up 10.9%. Greene King added that margins have stayed strong across its pubs. Soco International has plugged and abandoned the Liyeke Marine 1 well, offshore the Republic of Congo, after the target reservoir was found to be water saturated. 'A 62 metre heavy oil column was encountered in the overlying sediments, but the log and sample data indicated that the oil would not flow,' Soco said. Cardboard and paper supplier DS Smith enjoyed a better than expected first quarter's trading, but is still concerned about the level of demand overall while input costs are rising. Results were better than those predicted at the group's final figures in June, reflecting a slower erosion of selling prices and a faster reduction in operating costs.Industrial equipment rental firm Ashtead saw pre-tax profits plunge in the quarter to July 31 as tough economic conditions forced customers in the US and UK to scale back spending. The firm, which rents out drills, turf cutters and flood lights, saw profit before tax slide to £8.2m from £35.2m over the same quarter the previous year as revenues fell to £221.6m from £273.4m.National Express is working on a daring last-ditch plan to offer its UK bus and rail franchises directly to Stagecoach in a side deal that could save it from a takeover by CVC. The transport group was weighing up last night whether to accept a £765m joint bid from CVC and Stagecoach or to sell assets, the Times reports.