Wednesday’s Master Investor Market Report

– The FTSE 100 closed the day at 6,571.19, a decrease of 93.35 points.
– The FTSE 250 fell by 228.87 points to finish at 17,438.09.
– The FTSE All Share dropped by 49.60 points to 3,589.34.
– The FTSE AIM All Share finished at 748.62, a rise of 5.64 points.

The Office for National Statistics has said that the number of people in the UK without work rose by 25,000 over the second quarter, the first time since 2013 that there have been consecutive monthly rises in the quarterly rate. However, the number of unemployed was still more than 200,000 lower than it was at the same time last year.

Outsourcing specialist G4S (GFS) has increased revenues by 2.8% to £3.2 billion over the six months ended 30th June, as strong performances in emerging markets outweighed a decline in UK income. The company also signed new contracts worth £1.4 billion over the course of the period. Shares in the company climbed by 3.2p to 269.9p.

Construction outfit Balfour Beatty (BBY) has chosen not to pay an interim dividend this year as its losses before tax for the half year to 26th June ballooned to £140 million from £58 million a year earlier. The company is working to cut costs to the tune of £100 million by the end of 2016 and management believe that Balfour Beatty is well placed to benefit from market trends. The shares rose by 9.9p to 261.6p.

Online property broker Zoopla (ZPLA) announced that it returned to growth in the three months ended 31st July after the launch of a rival service earlier in the year and management said that they are confident of meeting prior full year guidance. Numis maintained its “add” rating, while Canaccord Genuity stuck to a “hold” but raised its target price by 60p to 280p. Zoopla shares shot up 11.9p to 266.2p.

Publisher Pearson (PSON) has agreed to the sale of its 50% stake in The Economist to Exor for a cash consideration of £469 million. This is the group’s second major divestment in recent weeks after the sale of the Financial Times as the firm works to refocus itself around its core education products. The deal is expected to complete in the final quarter of 2015 and the proceeds will fund its global education strategy. Pearson shares dropped by 7p to 1,166p.

Electric scooter manufacturer Vmoto (VMT) increased total revenues for the six months ended 30th June by 57% to $24.9 million (£15.9 million). Higher margin international sales to markets including China have also boosted the company’s profitability. FinnCap said that the update gave them greater confidence heading in to the second half of 2015. Vmoto shares rocketed up by 12.5% to 20.25p.

Tomorrow’s news today

Cineworld (CINE), Derwent London (DLN), Ophir Energy (OPHR), and Coca-Cola HBC AG (CCH) are among the firms that will publish interim results tomorrow.

Quote of the day

“The worse a situation becomes, the less it takes to turn it around, the bigger the upside.”
– George Soros