London pre-open: London ignores Wall Street lead

5th Oct 2010 07:41

Fears that London might follow Wall Street lower look set to be allayed, with City sources predicting the FTSE100 will open 15 points up from yesterday's close of 5,556.Supermarket giant Tesco's first half profits surged 12% despite sluggish underlying sales in the UK. Pre-tax profits rose to £1.6bn in the half year to August on sales up 8.3% to £32.9bn including VAT. All regions saw an improved trading performance in the second quarter over the first Tesco said. Group sales increased by 8.8% over the latest three months.Travel firm TUI Travel allayed fears about full year trading by saying it is confident results will be in line with previous guidance. Summer holiday bookings in the year to September 26 were up, year on year, in all regions except the Netherlands, which showed a 2% fall. Gains per region were as follows: UK +2%; Nordic region +17%; Germany +5%; France +11%; Belgium +4%.Cranswick has had a "positive" first half, with turnover up 8% at the meat supplier, or 12% adjusted for the sale of its cooked meats business.