London pre-open: Footsie to rise for 4th day

1st Sep 2010 07:36

Leading shares are expected to continue yesterday's rally, despite a lackluster finish in the US overnight, as investors look to decent economic data out of China this morning.China's official purchasing managers' index rose to 51.7 in August from a 17-month low of 51.2 in July, causing an improvement in commodity prices and overall sentiment.Australian stock markets were also boosted by better-than-expected second quarter GDP. Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed the economy grew 1.2% during the three months.UK futures prices indicate a 28-point gain for the FTSE 100 early on. It has risen for the past three sessions from a six-week low of 5,109 last Wednesday. In company news, Soco International has discovered oil at the Te Giac Den appraisal well, TGD-2X, offshore Vietnam. The Hoang Long Joint Operating Company, operator of Block 16-1 in the Cuu Long Basin, says the well encountered "hydrocarbons in a clastics sequence" at about 4,450 metres measured depth. Drilling shows and early log interpretation indicate two main reservoir sand intervals, but testing will take about three weeks. Wealth management firm Hargreaves Lansdown has had a record year despite tough market conditions, lifting profits by 18%. Profit before tax jumped to £86.3m in the year ended 30 June, up from £73.1m 12 months ago, on revenue 20% higher at £159m. Total assets under administration rose 47% to £17.5bn. "I suspect the problems that we can foresee at the moment are less critical than the ones we envisaged a year ago," said Peter Hargreaves, CEO and co-founder who's stepping down in the autumn.Global business media company United Business Media (UBM) has bought Astound, a privately owned US virtual career fairs business. The initial payment will be $0.12m, but further performance related payments over the next three years could take the eventual purchase price up to $3m. Astound's key virtual career fair products are Milicruit, aimed at people leaving the US military, and Unicruit, a job fair in which universities help students find employment after graduation.