Thursday’s Master Investor Market Report

– The FTSE 100 closed the day at 6,568.33, a decrease of 2.86 points.
– The FTSE 250 rose by 157.38 points to finish at 17,595.47.
– The FTSE All Share climbed by 4.56 points to 3,593.90.
– The FTSE AIM All Share finished at 750.77, a rise of 2.15 points.

Another day, another devaluation. The People’s Bank of China has cut the parity of the Yuan for the third time this week. Analysts fear that the continued devaluations could push deflationary pressures to the surrounding region.

Electronics retailer Glencore (GLEN) announced that it has cut its capital expenditure targets for 2015 and that it intends to book a number of impairments due to the falling value of its assets in the current commodities environment. Production of copper and coal from the firm’s own mines fell somewhat, but zinc, nickel and ferrochrome all saw some improvements. Canaccord Genuity stuck to its “hold” position and said that things were broadly as anticipated. Glencore shares rose by 2.15p to 750.77.

Entertainment group Cineworld (CINE) saw a 22.5% rise in revenues over the six months ended 2 July as a crop of blockbusters including Fifty Shades of Grey, Fast and Furious 7, and Jurassic World helped push sales up to £329.1 million. EBITDA was up by 41% at £64.7 million. The company is confident that the second half of 2015 will also prove strong due to a good slate of releases and the lack of competing events such as the World Cup. Cineworld shares shot up by 40.5p to 589p.

Bottler Coca-Cola HBC (CCH) boosted pre-tax profits by 31.7% to €125.2 million (£89.1 million) despite a minor drop in sales due to foreign exchange movements. Operating margins have improved and the company believes that there is room for significant growth across Eastern Europe and in Nigeria. Shares in the firm fizzed up by 97p to 1,420p.

Residential property specialist Grainger (GRI) said that it plans to sell its German assets as part of a simplification programme that will refocus its strategy on the UK market. The company’s UK margin from disposal of property acquired in 2014 was 51.2%. Grainger shares grew by 3.4p to 242.8p.

Recruitment consultancy Michael Page International (MPI) reported a 13.7% increase in pre-tax profits to £40.4 million for the half year ended 30th June despite facing currency challenges. Strong performances in the UK, US and Asia Pacific offset weakness in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Michael Page shares climbed 19.5p to 546.5p.

Tomorrow’s news today

Akers Biosciences (AKR), Afarak (AFRK), and Biofrontera AG (B8F) are among the firms that will publish interim results tomorrow.

Quote of the day

“Headlines, in a way, are what mislead you because bad news is a headline, and gradual improvement is not.”
– Bill Gates