Friday’s Master Investor Market Report

– The FTSE 100 closed the day at 6,775.08, a decrease of 21.37 points.
– The FTSE 250 fell by 9.46 points to 17,755.91.
– The FTSE All Share declined 9.43 points to 3,690.58.
– The FTSE AIM All Share finished 0.08 points higher at 756.84.

The German Bundestag has voted in favour of the Greek bailout deal, clearing away another hurdle in the path of its implementation. The EU Council also released a €7 billion bridging loan to help the troubled state cover payments due to the ECB and IMF on Monday. However, the deal remains unpopular with many Germans who are unwilling to support a fresh bailout, and IMF President Christine Lagarde remains committed to a partial writedown of Greece’s debts.

Miner Anglo American (AAL) has completed the sale of its 50% stake in Lafarge Tarmac Holdings to Lafarge for a consideration of £885 million. Anglo American also received £107 million from adjustments made at the time of sale. Societe Generale stuck to its “hold” position, but slashed its target price from 1090p to 950p. Shares in the company fell by 12.9p to 877.4p.

Aer Lingus shareholders have voted in favour of a takeover offer from International Consolidated Airline Group (IAG), including the approval of the Irish government in its role as a shareholder. The European Commission has also approved the purchase on the condition that BA and Iberia both give up certain daily flight slots at Gatwick. The deal values Aer Lingus at £940 million and now looks set to ahead. IAG shares rose by 9p to 567p.

Emergency support business Homeserve (HSV) traded in line with expectations during the period between 1st April and 17th July, with management saying that growth in the current financial year will hit targets. UK performance is as forecast with 2.1 million registered customers at the end of June. Homeserve shares dropped by 1.3p to 437.5p.

Shares in 888 Holdings (888) rocketed 13.75p higher to 172.75p after it overcame a rival offer by GVC in its bid to take over Bwin.party. 888’s proposal values Bwin shares at around 104.9p, a premium over yesterday’s closing price of 103p. Panmure Gordon upped its rating on 888 to “hold” from “sell” following the news and pointed to synergies between the firms’ operations. Meanwhile, GVC’s shares declined by 10p to 432.5p.

Monday’s news today

Monday will see interim reports from WH Ireland (WHI) and Michelmersh Brick (MBH).

Quote of the day

“As politicians we have to react to the fact that many people do not feel that they can relate to the EU.”
– Angela Merkel