| From UK-Analyst.com: Wednesday 18th September 2013 IMPORTANT: Are your UK-Analyst emails being delayed? Add UK-Analyst@news.t1ps.com to your safe senders/contact list to help resolve the problem The Markets The US Federal Reserve is set to announce a reduction in its asset bond buying programme as the economy begins to recover. Today's announcement - due this evening- is also likely to reveal that interest rates will stay at current low levels for the foreseeable future. The news comes as economic indicators have suggested a small, yet significant, ongoing recovery in the US economy with output increasing and unemployment falling in recent months. Carl Tannenbaum, Chief Economist at Northern Trust, said, "It is an important milestone ... juxtaposed against five years ago, when the Fed began the huge expansion of its balance sheet." Minutes from this months' Monetary Policy Committee Meeting reveal that third-quarter UK economic growth is now expected to be 0.7%, up from the 0.5% forecast reported in last month's Inflation Report. The upgraded forecasts come on the back of a succession of promising data releases over the last month and news that UK inflation had dropped by 0.1% to 2.7% in August. The minutes also confirm that the MPC unanimously voted to keep interest rates and quantitative easing on hold this month, in a move which shows that the BoE feels that the improving economy has enough strength to stand on its own two feet without the help of any additional stimulus. An extract from the minutes read, "Over the month the evidence was consistent with a recovery at least as strong as that expected at the time of the August Inflation Report. Were the recovery to falter, the case for further asset purchases would be stronger. But no member judged that further stimulus was appropriate at present." In Asia, new Chinese data confirmed that property prices continued to increase in August, marking the fourth consecutive month in which house prices were up in 69 of the country's 70 major cities. The increases came despite government attempts to subdue property prices in order to tame concerns of a potential property bubble and dip in public confidence in the housing market. The figures show that average new home prices in China's 70 major cities rose by 8.3% from a year earlier, up on the 7.5% gain which was delivered in July. Jinsong Du, Property Analyst at Credit Suisse commented, " We think the government is likely keep property policy stable as the mild recovery of the broader economy is not so stable yet." ADVERTISEMENT Get free trading guides from Evil Knievil (How to successfully short stocks), Zak Mir (Top AIM market picks for 2013) and other top financial commentators by CLICKING HERE 
At the London close the Dow Jones was up by 38.53 points at 15,491.20 and the Nasdaq was up by 3.89 points at 3,194.72. In London the FTSE 100 was down by 11.35 points at 6,558.82 and the FTSE 250 fell by 63.04 points to 15,089.22 The FTSE All-Share was down by 11.21 points at 3,489.31 while the FTSE AIM Index slipped by 2.51 points to 783.13.  Broker Notes Beaufort Securities maintained its "speculative buy" stance on clean energy group Acta (ACTA) after it announced a contract win with a "major mobile telecom company" for its back-up power system for telecommunications applications. The broker feels that this shows that the company "is successfully marching ahead with the commercialisation of its technology." Moreover, Beaufort is encouraged by the group's "unique set of patented technologies" and considerably strong order book. The shares remained flat at 8.63p. N+1 Singer retained its "buy" recommendation on JD Sports Fashion (JD.) with a target price of 1,100p. The broker sees International and multi-channel developments in the core sports business as key drivers of the investment case and is particularly excited by the company's plans of expanding into Germany and Holland. N+1 does go on to acknowledge the underperformance of the outdoor business but has faith in the new management team turning this around. The shares were down by 11p to 1,014p. Shore Capital stuck with its "buy" recommendation on asset manager Jupiter Fund Management (JUP) and is enthusiastic on the group's prospects after a recent meeting. The broker argues that the moderately improving economy should start to significantly increase investor confidence and therefore go on to markedly increase retail investment flows. On this basis, Shore Capital has increased its profit forecasts and stresses that Jupiter is the best placed asset manager to benefit from a UK economic recovery. The shares dropped by 1.1p to 369.2p. 
Blue Chips Engineering firm Smiths Group (SMIN) reported a 1% increase in operating profits to 560 million pounds for the year ended 31st July, as revenues inched up by 2% to 3.1 billion pounds over the period. The mechanical seal manufacturer explained that its margins have been squeezed as a result of "contract challenges" in its detection division as well as the implementation of a new US medical device tax. Looking ahead, the company remained cautious on its outlook given the government funding uncertainties which continue to plague both the defence and healthcare sectors. The shares jumped by 36p to 1,412p. Mining group Fresnillo (FRES) announced that court proceedings to re-instate its explosive permits are expected to reach a conclusion quickly, in a decision which could help to accelerate production at its sites in Diplos, Soledad, Herradura and Noche Buena. The news comes after Fresnillo announced back in August that the Magistrate in Sonora issued requests to suspend explosives permits at a number of sites. The shares slipped by 33p to 1,008p. Mid Caps Housebuilder Redrow (RDW) posted a 26% increase in revenues to 604.8 million pounds for the year ended 30th June, while pre-tax profits surged by 63% to 70 million pounds. Redrow attributed this improvement to a 15% increase in legal completions coupled with a 12% increase in the average selling price of these completed homes. Like many in the sector of late, Redrow was quick to praise the effect of the government's Help to Buy scheme in stimulating sales, with market confidence now "returning to more normal levels". The shares crept upwards by 5.7p to 236.5p. Building group Carrillion (CLLN) confirmed that it has been selected as preferred bidder by the Ministry of Transportation in Ontario for an Area Maintenance Contract which is expected to be worth a total of around 100 million pounds over 12 years. Under the deal, Carrillion will provide routine inspection and maintenance services, including snow clearance, together with minor capital works, for over 1,000 kilometers of a 2-lane highway. This deal is the latest in a succession of agreements over the last 18 months, in deals amounting to 720 million pounds. The shares swelled by 4p to 324.7p. Property group Londonmetric Property (LMP) announced that Metric Income Plus Limited, its joint-venture with Universities Superannuation Scheme, has purchased 5 Wickes retail units from Aberdeen Asset Management. The 28 million pounds purchase price implies an average net yield of 7.2%. The company will use its 75 million pounds loan facility to fund the transaction of the UK warehouses. Management argues that the transaction strengthens both its investment and occupational market. The shares remained flat at 115p. Small Caps Education group RM (RM.) claimed that the last three months have "continued to progress satisfactorily" as contracts within its educational technology division drive better than originally anticipated results. The company also went on to say that it has been awarded preferred bidder status to provide the RM Unify platform across all schools in Scotland for a further two years. However, RM did warn that it still expects minimal revenue in the second half of the year from the significant corporate and social responsibility programme sponsored by a major UK group. The shares surged by 20.5p to 114.25p. Radiotherapy specialist Advanced Oncotherapy (AVO) has signed a letter of intent with State University of New York Upstate Medical University to establish a three-room proton therapy facility on its 30-acre campus in Syracuse, New York. The idea is that the programme will help to form new business ventures and is designed to build on research collaborations between the academic world and industry. The shares advanced by 0.2p to 2.98p. Norcon (NCON) announced a 10.4% increase in revenues generated over the 6 months ended 30th June but swung into an EBITDA loss of $0.3 million (0.19 million pounds) over the period after it generated a profit of $0.3 million (0.19 million pounds) in the previous year. The firm - which also works with clients in the IT and defence sectors - blamed on the ongoing re-structuring of the company for its plight, as it looks to drastically diversify its geographical markets. The shares were up by 2.5p at 17p. 
Marketing firm Cello Group (CLL) posted a 14.3% increase in revenues to 71.5 million pounds for the period ended 30th June, while pre-tax profits were up by 11% to 3.5 million pounds. The group claimed that it had benefitted from investment in innovation and the expansion of its international presence as offices opened up in Chicago, Los Angeles and Hong Kong over the period. As a result of its success Cello upped its interim dividend by 10.3% to 0.64p. The shares were down by 5p to 63.5p. Specialists in the airline catering market Journey Group (JNY) delivered a 20% increase in revenues to 22.2 million pounds for the 6 months ended 30th June 2013, pushing up pre-tax profits from 0.34 million pounds to 0.94 million pounds. The firm highlighted the fact that it had renewed two key contracts with Delta Air Lines and British Airways over the period and also explained that it has benefitted from the restructuring of Continental Airlines and JetBlue Airways which now both serve more customers. The shares surged upwards by 9.5p to 136.5p. Technology group Cyan Holdings (CYAN) has signed a strategic partnership with Brazil's Nobre de la Torre for its smart metering systems. Under the terms of the agreement, the two companies will join forces to develop metering products with a view to penetrating the Brazilian power market. The announcement comes after Cyan - who also has a significant presence in the lighting market - recently announced a deal to supply energy-efficient lighting for Brazilian streets. The shares ticked upwards by 0.02p to 0.51p. | 
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