London pre-open: More gains expected

23rd Jul 2009 07:43

Footsie is expected to continue its winning streak to move past 4,500 points as investors digest a stream of company updates.Bus and rail group National Express confirmed that it has received a second approach after rival FirstGroup walked away from a possible deal last night. "The group received an approach in connection with a possible offer for the group from another third party whose intentions are not yet known," the statement reads. The Times is reporting that Stagecoach was named by transport industry sources as the interested party.Power supplier Scottish & Southern Energy said it is on course to achieve moderate profit growth for the year despite distributing less electricity in the three months to June 30. The firm distributed 9.4TWh (terawatt-hours) of electricity in the quarter, compared with 9.9TWh over the same period the previous year. However, the firm gained 50,000 more electricity and gas customers during the period, bringing the total number to 9.1m.Outsourcing group Capita saw its bid pipeline ease back a little but said demand for outsourcing remains buoyant, after announcing a 18% increase in interim underlying pre-tax profit. Profit before tax, excluding various charges, rose to £141.7m in the first half of 2009 from £120.2m in the first half of 2008.Newspaper group Daily Mail and General Trust saw revenue decline sharply in the third quarter but said its business to business operations turned in a resilient performance. Revenue in the third quarter was down 13% on a year earlier to £520m, but was only down 3% in the business to business division. Trading in the consumer media division remains weak, however.Catering giant Compass said operating profit, margins and free cash flow continued to grow in the third quarter while revenue growth slowed. The group, which provides catering for schools and offices, said in the first nine months of the year, revenue growth on a constant currency basis was 1.8%, and organic revenue growth was 0.8%. As a result of the more challenging economic conditions it has accelerated cost cuts, the group said in Thursday's company statement.BSS Group, distributor to the plumbing and construction markets, said it is growing market share albeit in declining markets. Revenue in the first 16 weeks of the company's new financial year fell 5.6% to £369.5m, compared with a year earlier.