London pre-open: Slight declines expected on FTSE

29th Aug 2012 07:34

City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open down six points from yesterday's close of 5,776, as hopes of further stimulus action from central banks offsets worries over global growth. Tuesday proved to be a subdued first day back after the bank holiday weekend, as investors await market direction. Outsourcing group Serco was hit by tough markets and reorganising costs in the first half but said it expected a strong showing in the second. Revenue was up 4.3% to £2.3bn, with adjusted pre-tax profit down 17.4% to £102.1m. Organic revenue, which strips out acquisitions and currency effects, dropped by 2.1%. Ignoring reorganisation costs, profits were down 4.7% to £117.8m, with the company citing challenging US market conditions.FirstGroup has accused Virgin Rail Group of being a sore loser over the West Coast rail franchise, which the Department of Transport (DfT) has awarded to FirstGroup, noting that Virgin's legal challenge to the selection process came only after Virgin had lost out in its bid to retain the franchise. On Tuesday, Virgin Rail Group began court proceedings seeking a review of the decision by the DfT to award the new InterCity West Coast rail franchise to a subsidiary of FirstGroup.Chile-based copper miner Antofagasta saw earnings per share (EPS) come in a smidgen ahead of expectations in the first half as a decrease in copper prices was offset by higher levels of production. EPS for this six months to June 30th were 65.5 US cents, 7.2% under the 70.6 cents reported the year before but slightly ahead of consensus forecasts of 65.0 cents. Credit Suisse had estimated EPS of 63 cents. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) fell by 5.4% from $1,946.7m to $1,841.4m.