Good morning from London where the FTSE 100 continues its rather anaemic recovery from last week’s slump, up by less than 0.2% from yesterday’s close.
Fresh figures this morning show that UK government borrowed £4.3 billion in July, a figure significantly lower than its own prediction of £6 billion. But interest paid on the UK’s debt jumped to £7.7 billion during the month, the highest monthly figure on record – the UK is currently spending more on debt interest than it does on the entire education sector.
Turning to equities now and engineering firm John Wood announced higher revenue in its interims as well as a profit forecast upgrade. It was a different story over at miner BHP Group Ltd (LSE:BHP, ASX:BHP) though, who say a fall in ore prices are to blame for a slump in half-year profits.
Across the Atlantic, Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ:MSFT) faced a blow as the UK’s competition watchdog rejected the tech giant’s bid to overturn a block on its merger with gaming firm Activision, and in small caps, Plexus Holdings PLC (AIM:POS) shares soared as the oil and gas firm reported a hefty £3 million increase in the value of one of its contracts with an unnamed customer.
