| From UK-Analyst.com: Wednesday 1st May 2013
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The Markets According to mortgage lender Nationwide, UK house prices fell by 0.1% in April over March but were still 0.9% higher than a year previously. However, the figures will not cause too much alarm as quarterly comparisons suggest an underlying trend of increasing house prices since October. The figures come just a week after the Bank of England extended the widely chastised Funding for Lending scheme, with banks now having access to cheap funds for an extra year, until the start of 2015. Nationwide's Chief Economist, Robert Gardner, commented, "The number of mortgage approvals has edged up from the levels prevailing last year and there are reasons for optimism that activity levels will continue to strengthen in the months ahead." The UK manufacturing sector contracted slightly in April, but not as severely as analysts expected. The first major set of data for the second quarter of the year revealed that the Markit/CIPS Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) grew to 49.8 in April, up from 48.6 in March, putting the sector just below the 50 mark which separates growth from contraction. The average analyst estimate for the manufacturing sector - which accounts for 10.5% of the total UK economy - was a reading of 48.5. The data revealed that the sector was boosted by a hike in sales to North America, the Middle East and Latin America, which all combined to more than offset continued sluggish demand from the Eurozone. Rob Dobson, a Senior Economist at Markit and author of the survey was upbeat on the figures and commented, "It is welcome to see the sector showing signs of stabilising in April...The sector should at least be less of a drag on broader GDP growth in the second quarter." Elsewhere, growth in the Chinese manufacturing sector slowed in April as a result of a contraction in new export orders and input prices. According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) for April fell to 50.6 from March's 11-month high of 50.9.. The figures will cast further doubt over global growth prospects this year after similarly gloomy data has recently been released from Europe and the United States. Zhang Liqun, an Economist at the Development Research Centre in China, warned, "The dip in April PMI shows that the foundation for China's economic recovery is still not solid... We must work to stabilise domestic demand and make our economic recovery more sustainable" ADVERTISEMENT
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At the London close the Dow Jones was down by 53.44 points at 14,786.36 and the Nasdaq was 5.12 points lower at 2,882.32. In London the FTSE 100 grew by 21.17 points to 6,451.29; the FTSE 250 finished 79.48 points higher at 14,029.35; the FTSE All-Share swelled by 6.71 points to 3,396.89; and the FTSE AIM Index inched up by 3.11 points to 710.71.  Broker Notes Panmure Gordon retained its "sell" stance on cinema operator Cineworld (CINE) with a target price of 238p. The broker is cautious on figures which show that February admissions were down by 8.8% to 14 million - the weakest since 2008 - and revealed March admissions were down by 7.% at 10.9 million, the weakest since 2006. On this basis, Panmure continues to question the aggressive organic expansion strategy being employed by Cineworld. The shares climbed by 7.75p to 297.25p. Cantor Fitzgerald maintained its "sell" stance on outsourcer and distribution group Bunzl (BNZL) with a target price of 1,060p. The broker is encouraged by the acquisition of three businesses forming part of the Industrial & Safety divisions of Jeminex Limited in Australia. However, Cantor Feels that this isn't enough to shift its fundamental cautious view on the group, which is based on its belief that the shares are highly rated, trading on a 1 year prospective P/E multiple of 16.5 times forecasts. The shares swelled by 12p to 1,291p. Canaccord Genuity stuck with its "buy" recommendation on construction services group Interserve (IRV) with an unchanged target price of 560p. The broker feels that Interserve will continue to surprise positively both at the top-line and on margin progression and feels that its strong balance sheet provides scope to augment growth through bolt-ons. Furthermore, Canaccord Genuity believes that the upcoming IMS should highlight further improvement in margins in both UK Support Services and Equipment Services. The shares edged up by 3.5p to 476.3p. 
Blue-Chips Engineering giant Weir (WEIR) reported a slide in both revenues and profits over the first three months of the year as original equipment orders were down by 32% on a reported basis. The group also had to contend with margin pressures, triggered by non-recurring restructuring costs within its pumping business. Despite the slowdown over the first quarter of the year, management remain adamant that full-year divisional revenue and underlying operating margin expectations remain unchanged. The shares dived by 48p to 2,156p. Aerospace components engineer Meggitt (MGGT) confirmed that revenues grew "modestly" over the first quarter of the year, building on 10% revenue growth which was achieved in 2012. Meggit went on to reaffirm its expectations of delivering mid-single-digit revenue growth for the year, banking on an acceleration in growth over the second half of the year consistent with an anticipated recovery in the civil aftermarket. The update comes just two days after JP Morgan retained its "neutral" recommendation on the group. The shares were up by 3.9p at 472.5p. Chilean mining heavyweight Antofagasta (ANTO) announced a 12.8% year-on-year increase in copper production to 138,000 tonnes for the first quarter, driven by higher output from its Esperanza project. However, production was down by 5.2% when compared to the previous quarter, in a fall attributed to the expected lower production at Los Pelambres as a result of major scheduled plant maintenance. Group cash costs grew by 1.8% on the previous quarter as lower costs at Esperanza were more than offset by increased cash costs at Los Pelambres. The shares slid by 2.5p to 895p.
Mid Caps Asset manager Henderson (HGG) revealed that assets under management grew by 3.2 billion pounds to 68.9 billion pounds over the first three months of the year. The group also benefitted from strong net inflows into its SICAV and US retail funds. Furthermore, Henderson confirmed that net cash over the period increased from 17.9 million pounds to 31.9 million pounds. The shares crept upwards by 1p to 166p. Home Retail Group (HOME) announced that pre-tax profits for the year ended 2nd March fell by 10% to 91 million pounds as revenues remained flat at 5.47 billion pounds. Sales at budget retailer Argos grew by 1.5%, in an increase driven by growing online penetration. However, this growth was offset by a 5.2% revenue decline within the group's Homebase division which suffered from a fall in sales of big ticket products as adverse weather disrupted usual seasonal shopping trends. The shares ended the day 10.9p lower at 144.9p. Construction group Kentz Corporation (KENZ) has secured a contract to carry out electrical & instrumentation installation works for CB&I for the Reficar Refinery Expansion Project in Cartagena, Colombia. The 58 million pound contract has a duration of 15 months. The deal represents the first work for Kier in Colombia, in a move which is in line with the group's strategy of expanding geographically. The shares gained 7.2p, finishing the day at 396.3p. 
Small Caps Energy storage company ITM Power (ITM) has secured the first sales of products to South America and Hungary following a successful Hydrogen and Fuel Cell exhibition in Hannover last month. Furthermore, the group stressed that its products attracted a high level of interest at the fair and that it received many other enquiries for specific products from international companies. The shares jumped by 2.875p to 46.875p. Engineering firm Hayward Tyler Group (HAYT) revealed that its order book stood at 49.5 million pounds at the end of March after it secured 15 million pounds worth of work over the first three months of the year. Among other deals, the group secured a 2.8 million pounds contract to provide power pumps to clients in China and India, while its US business won a 3.1 million pound contract for the provision of nuclear related services in the country. The group went on to say that these contract wins, coupled with its cost control measures and investment strategies, give it confidence for the remainder of the current year. The shares increased by 3p to 31p. Medical testing group Cyprotex (CRX) has won a five-year contract with the US Environmental Protection Agency. The deal is part of the ongoing ToxCast Project which is developing ways to predict the potential toxicity of chemicals to humans in a prioritised order. The Maccesfield based group had expected to start work on the contract last year and has not revealed the financial details of the deal. The shares swelled by 0.5p to 3.875p. 
Kitchen designer John Lewis of Hungerford (JLH) claimed that like-for-like revenues were up by 24.7% to 3.1 million pounds for the six months ended 28th February, in a performance which resulted in the company generating an operating profit of 18,000 pounds. The bulk of the increase in revenues came from a 0.6 million pounds increase in turnover from its core furniture and kitchen business, which has recently benefited from a new store opening in Cirencester performing ahead of budget. The shares rose by 0.12p to 0.7p. Alternative energy group Energetix (EGX) announced that pre-tax losses narrowed from 6.75 million pounds to 5 million pounds in 2012 but declared that its operating loss almost doubled to 4.8 million pounds as the group increased investment in an attempt to push its products towards commercialisation. Despite the disappointing financial results, Energetix is now adamant that the company has a strong enough management team and infrastructure to build a market leading energy service. The shares fell by 5.75p to 17.25p. Chinese manufacturer of cooking and dipping sauces China Food Company (CFC) revealed that sales over the Chinese new year - a pivotal time for the business - were in line with expectations. The food company went on to confirm that it continues to seek a buyer for its animal feed business in order repay outstanding loans. In addition, the firm revealed that it transferred some funds from China to its Singapore holding company in April 2013 to "cover a small amount of internal expenses". The shares were up by 0.625p at 13.875p. | 
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