The Filter

Apr 11, 2022

Cambridge Index climbs 0.4% 12-04-2022 The Cambridge Index rose 86.4 points or 0.4% to close at 20630.0, as five out of the top ten index heavyweights posted weekly gains to their share price. Johnson Matthey, up 4.7%, in its pre-close trading update for the year ended 31 March 2022, announced that despite market uncertainty, its underlying operating performance is expected to be in line with current market expectations, with strong performances in its core businesses. Additionally, the company intends to release its annual results for the year ended 31st March 2022 on 26 May 2022. Abcam, up 5.3%, announced that Annual Report and Accounts 2021, along with the notice of Annual General Meeting have been published and are available on its website at corporate.abcam.com. Sareum, up 38%, announced that the European Patent Office has granted a patent for its proprietary SDC-1802 TYK2/JAK1 inhibitor programme, for the treatment of T-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia. CyanConnode, up 9.8%, announced that it has won an order for a smart metering deployment in MENA Region. 1Spatial, up 8.1%, announced that it would release its full year results for the year ended 31 January 2022 on 27 April 2022. Cambridge Cognition, up 6.3%, announced that it has appointed Stephen Symonds as its new Chief Financial Officer who is expected to join the board in due course. Xaar, up 3.9%, announced that it has appointed Graham Tweedale as new Chief Operating Officer. Quixant, up 3.4%, in its full year results, announced that revenues climbed to $87.12m from $63.79m recorded in the previous year. The board has proposed a 20% increase in the dividend to 2.4p per share for 2021. Gaming Realms, up 2.4%, announced that Seven games from Gaming Realms' Slingo portfolio are now live in Ontario with Rush Street Interactive (BetRivers), Kindred and BetMGM. Kier Group, down 6.2%, announced the completion of £68.25m restoration of the A-listed Burrell Collection for Glasgow Life. Hilton Food Group, down 2.1%, in its final results, announced that revenues climbed to £3,302.0m from £2,774.0m recorded in the previous year. The Board has proposed a final dividend of 21.5p per share. Dialight, down 1.2%, announced that a copy of the audited Company's annual report and accounts for the period ended 31 December 2021 can be viewed on its website www.dialight.com . Aferian, down 0.7%, announced that it has acquired 100% of the issued share capital of Exabre Limited, trading as The Filter, a UK-based AI-powered video recommendation service. Feedback, unchanged at 0.7p, announced that it has rolled out its cloud TB screening service at the Evangelical Hospital Khariar in Odisha, India. UK markets ended higher last week, following a rise in commodity prices. On the data front, UK’s services sector activity grew at its fastest pace since May 2021 in March, as the removal of Covid-19 restrictions increased spending on leisure and entertainment services. Moreover, UK’s Halifax house prices climbed for a ninth consecutive month in March, registering its biggest increase in six months, following strong demand for houses. Meanwhile, the nation’s construction PMI remained unchanged in March. The FTSE 100 index advanced 1.7% to settle at 7,669.6, while the FTSE AIM 100 index rose 0.8% to close at 5,106.4. Also, the FTSE techMARK 100 index gained 0.3% to end at 6,080.0. US markets ended lower in the previous week, after the US FOMC minutes indicated that the Fed would aggressively raise interest rates and shrink its balance sheet. On the macro front, the US factory orders fell for the first time in 10 months in February, while the nation’s trade deficit held at a record high in February. Meanwhile, the US ISM services PMI accelerated in March, as pandemic restrictions eased, while the US weekly jobless claims declined to its lowest level since 1968 in the week ended 1 April 2022. Meanwhile, the US consumer credit climbed at its highest rate in 20 years in February. Separately, the US FOMC minutes revealed plans for reduction in the central bank balance sheet by about $95b per month and a 50-basis point interest rate hike. The DJIA index fell 0.3% to end at 34,721.1, while the NASDAQ index lost 3.9% to close at 13,711.0.