FTSE 100 Live: Stocks off highs but boosted by upbeat earnings

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FTSE 100 holds firm, boosted by upbeat earnings, up 4 points at 7,697
NatWest (LON:NWG) rises as profit tops forecast, launches buy-back
IAG (LON:ICAG), AstraZeneca (NASDAQ:AZN), StanChart higher after upbeat results
Vanquis shares plunge after dip into the red

Shares in Vanquis Banking Group PLC (LON:VANQ), the former Provident Financial , continue to languish, down 32% at 124p, putting it top of the FTSE 250 fallers list, after the company announced a swing to losses in the first half.

An adjusted loss before tax of £5.5mln was made, compared to a £54.3m profit before tax a year ago.

This reduction in profitability reflected impairment charges increasing to £85.6mln, with these expected credit losses associated with the acceleration in receivables growth to 26% in the half.

Insolvencies at highest level since 2009

More businesses in England and Wales collapsed in the second quarter of the year than in any three month period since 2009, according to the latest figures from the Insolvency Service.

The government agency said the number of company insolvencies in the three months to the end of June was 9% higher than the previous quarter and 13% higher than the same period last year.

Company insolvencies reached 6,342 in the quarter, comprising 5,240 creditors’ voluntary liquidations, 637 compulsory liquidations, 409 administrations and 56 company voluntary arrangements.

Jeremy Whiteson, restructuring and insolvency partner, at Fladgate said the data: “matches our experience.”

“There have been an increase in requests for advice in relation to troubled businesses.”

He explained the rise in interest rates seems to have exacerbated troubles for many businesses – particularly those exposed to high borrowings.

“However, it has also affected the general funding environment and added to investors’ scepticism with early stage businesses which have not yet turned profits, or in some cases, yet generated income,” he added.

“The impact of these changes has hit a business world already battered by a cost of living crisis, shortage of labour, high fuel costs, the after effects of covid and the lockdowns, and geo-political uncertainty,” he pointed out.

HMRC reports surprise rise in house sales in June

HMRC reported a 6% increase in seasonally adjusted residential transaction and a 5% increase in seasonally adjusted non-residential transactions relative to May in contrast to the downward trend in residential and non-residential property transactions in recent months.

However, in comparison to June 2022, figures were down 9% and 1% respectively.

HMRC explained part of the month-on-month increase in both seasonally adjusted and non-seasonally adjusted transactions across both sectors can be explained by the higher number of working days in June than in May due to the coronation and other bank holidays.

Nicholas Finn, executive director of Garrington Property Finders, said: “It’s too early to call if this is a fluke or a fillip for the property market, but June’s jump in home sales is a welcome surprise.”

“What it certainly isn’t – yet – is a complete turnaround. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the number of sales completed last month was 15% lower than in a typical June, and barely a third more than the level achieved during the lockdown-affected June of 2020,” he added.

“With property prices ticking down in most parts of the UK, some discretionary sellers are pausing their plans and this is holding back the number of homes being sold,” he noted.

High Court dismisses challemge to Ulez

The High Court has dismissed a legal challenge by five Conservative-led councils against the expansion of London’s ultra-low emission zone (Ulez).

The zone, which the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has said is a vital move to tackle toxic air, is due to be extended throughout the whole of Greater London at the end of August, making owners of the most polluting cars pay to drive.

The outer London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Harrow and Hillingdon, along with Surrey county council, launched legal action in February. At the high court earlier this month, barristers argued that Khan had failed to adequately consult, overstepped his powers, and had provided a flawed £110m scrappage scheme.

Drivers of vehicles that do not meet the Ulez standards – typically petrol cars from before 2006 and diesels registered before 2015 – have to pay £12.50 a day when they enter the zone.