Weekly review
By Josh White
Date: Friday 03 Jul 2026
(Sharecast News) - The FTSE 100 ended the week up 171.2 points, or 1.63%, closing at 10,679.03 on Friday.
Equity view
AIM-listed Craneware has said it expects its full-year results to be below market expectations due to the timing of the 340B drug pricing programme in the US and the deferral of several contracts. Craneware, which provides financial software and solutions to the US healthcare market, now expects revenues for the 12 months to 30 June to be $205m-208m and adjusted EBITDA of $65m-67m, both broadly in line with last year.
Harbour Energy founder EIG said it had sold its remaining stake in the oil company via a secondary placing of 54.77 million shares to institutional investors through an accelerated bookbuild. The 3.5% stake was placed at 205p a share with gross proceeds of £112m. EIG, a US-based private equity firm, started the company in 2014 with a plan to build a "new global, independent oil and gas company by acquisition", according to Harbour's website.
Food ingredients manufacturer Tate & Lyle said on Friday that the scheme document for its recommended takeover by Ingredion has now been published and sent to shareholders. Tate & Lyle said the document sets out the full terms of the proposed acquisition, which was to be implemented via a court‑sanctioned scheme of arrangement and will require approval from shareholders at both the court meeting and general meeting, scheduled for 28 July.
Altitude Group, the AIM-listed tech group which serves the branded merchandise and promotional products industry, has re-appointed its former chief financial officer, with current CFO Drew Whibley set to leave the company after less than a year. Replacing Whibley will be Richard Sowerby, a Dowlis executive director and experienced board-level CFO who previously worked for Altitude in a number of senior capacities, including CFO in 2013 before progressing to executive chairman. Most recently, Sowerby served as a non-executive director for the company in 2017.
Safety equipment maker Halma on Thursday said it had made two acquisitions for a total of £54m. The firm bought Netherlands-based itemedical for €23m (£20m) and Sweden's Naslund Medical for $45m (£34m) both on a cash and debt free basis.
Budget airline Wizz Air carried 7.48 million passengers in June, an increase of 27.2% year-on-year. Capacity rose 27.5% year-on-year to 8.14 million seats and the load factor for the month was down 0.2 percentage points to 91.9%.
Supermarket Income REIT announced the completion on Thursday of a £445m refinancing delivering lower borrowing costs and increasing average debt maturity. The new facilities - a £375m syndicate and £70m bilateral - will refinance all of the company's existing unsecured loan facilities maturing over the next two years.
Electricals retailer Currys posted a jump in full-year earnings on Thursday, despite cost headwinds and a "subdued" consumer backdrop in the UK. Group revenues in the year to 2 May rose 6% to £9.2bn, or by 4% on a like-for-like basis, while adjusted earnings before interest and tax were 13% stronger at £220m. Adjusted pre-tax profits jumped 18% at £191m.
Software and security firm Bytes Technology Group said on Wednesday that Gavin Rochussen has been appointed as an independent non‑executive director and chair‑designate, with effect from 10 July. Rochussen will succeed Patrick De Smedt, who plans to step down as chair by 30 September after leading the board since Bytes Technology's 2020 listing.
Primary Health Properties has refinanced debt facilities totalling £800m, the property investor confirmed on Wednesday. The FTSE 250 firm, a specialist in critical healthcare infrastructure, said existing debt facilities had been refinanced with a new term loan and revolving credit facility with eight banks, including three new counterparties.
Aerospace and defence technology firm Chemring said on Wednesday that its US subsidiary, Chemring Sensors & Electronic Systems, has secured a sole‑source indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity full‑rate production contract as part of the Joint Biological Tactical Detection System programme. Chemring said the three‑year IDIQ, awarded by the Capability Program Executive for Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense, has a contract ceiling of $48.8m and an estimated completion date of June 2029.
Asos shares shot higher on Wednesday after the online fashion retailer completed the sale of a fulfilment centre in Atlanta that was no longer in operation. The lease has been assigned to a "global consumer brand" and the assets are being bought by a member of the DHL Group, Asos said.
Serviced offices provider International Workplace Group said on Tuesday that it has increased its 2026 share buyback programme by $50m, taking the total to $150m. IWG said the move was being carried out under authority granted at its AGM on 19 May, covering up to 145.91m ordinary shares. After purchases already made since the meeting, the maximum number of shares the company may still buy under that authority stands at 138.23m.
Saga reaffirmed its full-year outlook on Tuesday, boosted by buoyant demand for its cruises, despite war in the Middle East hitting its holiday division. The FTSE 250 firm, which provides holidays and insurance for the over 50s, said overall trading in the travel division had been strong in the first four months of the year, to 26 June.
UK supermarket chain Sainsbury's held annual guidance despite slower first quarter sales as the war in Iran and Lebanon continued to cause uncertainties for customers. Like-for-like sales excluding food in the 16 weeks to June 20 rose 2.1%, down from the previous quarter's 3.1% and estimates of 2.7%.
Plus500 announced on Monday the launch of sports event-based contracts in the US, expanding its prediction markets offering there. It said these CFTC-regulated financial contracts represent the highest-engagement category in prediction markets and "significantly" expand its addressable market.
Drugmaker AstraZeneca said on Monday that its breast cancer therapy Datroway has been recommended for approval in the EU as a first‑line monotherapy for adults with unresectable or metastatic triple‑negative breast cancer who are not eligible for PD‑1/PD‑L1 inhibitor treatment. AstraZeneca said the positive opinion from the European Medicines Agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use was based on results from its Phase III TROPION‑Breast02 trial.
BT Group and America's Verizon Communications have agreed to combine their international operations in a 50:50 joint venture, it was announced on Monday. The two telecoms firms will hold equal voting rights, with Verizon paying BT an equalisation payment of $645m. The JV - which BT said was designed "specifically for a cloud-first world in the age of AI" - will have around 3,000 customers in more than 180 countries, with combined annual revenues of around $4bn.
Investment manager Foresight Group reported higher assets and continued strong fundraising in FY26, alongside progress on simplifying its business following the agreed sale of its public markets arm. Foresight said assets under management rose 8% to £13bn, while funds under management increased 7% to £9bn, both reflecting continuing operations. On a constant‑currency basis, AUM and FUM each grew 5%, with FX movements partly offsetting declines linked to its FY23 Australia acquisition. Australian realisations, including Zenith Energy and Kinetic, strengthened performance‑fee income but reduced AUM by £250m.
Economic news
UK firms expect own-price inflation to increase slightly over the coming year, according to a survey released on Friday by the Bank of England, as lag effects of the energy crisis continue to weigh on bottom lines. The central bank's Monthly Decision Maker Panel, which surveys chief financial officers from small, medium and large UK businesses, showed that prices were 3.8% higher year-on-year over the three months to June, unchanged from the three months to May.
The downturn across the UK services sector deepened in June, according to revised figures from S&P Global on Friday, pointing to the sharpest contraction in activity in over three years. The final reading of the UK services purchasing managers' index was adjusted to 48.8, up slightly from the preliminary estimate of 48.7 but still down on May's print of 49.3.
The City watchdog has been forced to partially suspend its multi-billion pound redress scheme for motorists who were mis-sold car finance, it was announced on Thursday. London's Upper Tribunal ordered the suspension after legal action was brought by four parties, the consumer group Consumer Voice and three lenders: Volkswagen Financial Services, Mercedes Benz Financial Services and Credit Agricole Auto Finance. The Tribunal will hear the challenges either in December 2026 or February 2027, the Financial Conduct Authority confirmed.
Lenders expect demand for mortgage borrowing to soften in the coming months, a Bank of England survey showed on Thursday, while credit card defaults were slated to tick higher. Publishing its latest credit conditions survey, the BoE found that the availability of secured credit to households was unchanged in three months to May end, and was expected to increase over the next three-month period. However, while demand for secured lending for house purchase increased in the three months to May end, it was expected to decrease in the period to August end.
UK consumer confidence edged higher in June, though sentiment remained "fragile", according to a closely watched survey from YouGov and the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr). The report's headline consumer confidence gauge rose just 0.4 points to 105.3 last month, marking the second consecutive increase and continuing a string of positive readings - indicated by any figure above 100 - that began in mid-2023.
Activity across the UK manufacturing sector grew less than initially predicted in June as growth slowed from a four-year high the previous month, according to data out on Wednesday from S&P Global. The UK manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) came in at 52.5 in June, down from the preliminary estimate of 53.1 released a week ago.
UK house prices were flat in June, industry data showed on Wednesday, on the back of cautious consumer sentiment. According to the latest Nationwide house price index, prices rose 2.2% on an annual basis but were broadly unchanged month-on-month, following a 0.6% decline a month earlier. Economists had expected a slightly higher annual increase, of 2.4%.
The British government is to ramp up investment in drones and strengthen the country's nuclear deterrent as part of a £15bn hike in defence spending, it was confirmed on Tuesday. Speaking at Malloy Aeronautics, outgoing prime minister Keir Starmer said the long-delayed defence investment plan (DIP) would prioritise the public's security while "transforming our armed forces and giving them the funding and equipment they need to fight and defend our nation".
The UK economy grew 0.6% in the three months to March, in line with expectations and following revised growth of 0.1% in the final quarter of 2025, according to figures released on Tuesday by the Office for National Statistics. Growth was driven by an increase in all three sectors, the ONS said, with the largest contribution from the services sector, which grew 0.8%.
Shop price inflation was steady in June amid summer discounting, while food inflation dipped, according to figures released on Tuesday. The BRC-NIQ shop price index showed that shop price inflation was unchanged versus May at 1.2% year-on-year in June. This was above the three-month average of 1.1%.
International events
Private sector activity across the eurozone stabilised in June, according to the final composite purchasing managers' index released on Friday by S&P Global and the Hamburg Commercial Bank (HCOB), with the downturn in the services sector easing more than initially expected. The eurozone composite PMI, which tracks business conditions across both the services and manufacturing sectors, rose to 50 points last month - marking no change in activity after two months of declines.
Activity in China's services sector eased less than expected in June, according to a private survey released on Friday. The RatingDog China general services purchasing managers' index, compiled by S&P Global, fell to 54.1 from 54.4 in May, beating expectations for a reading of 53.0. A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below signals contraction.
Americans lined up for unemployment benefits at a decelerated pace in the week ended 27 June, according to the Labor Department, with initial jobless claims dropping by 1,000 to 220,000. Continuing claims, on the other hand, rose by 2,000 to 1.81m, while the four week moving average, which aims to strip out week-to-week volatility, decreased by 2,500 to 222,000.
The US economy added just 57,000 jobs in June, well below the downwardly revised 129,000 recorded in May and short of forecasts for 110,000, marking the weakest gain in four months. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, hiring continued to trend higher in professional and business services, up by 36,000, while the social assistance and health care sectors added 25,000 and 22,000 jobs, respectively.
Private sector employment in the US grew less than expected in June, according to figures released on Wednesday by ADP. Employment rose by 98,000 following an unrevised 122,000 jump in May, coming in below economists' expectations for a 120,000 increase.
The European Union on Wednesday said it was imposing a €3 customs duty on all e-commerce purchases valued at €150 or less arriving from China as it looked to counter what it called unfair competition from cheap retailers such as Shein and Temu. European finance ministers approved the change to address mounting concerns over unfair domestic competition, widespread tax fraud, and massive carbon footprints.
US mortgage applications were unchanged in the week ended 26 June, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association of America. Last week's flat reading comes as mortgage applications were also little changed during the period, with the benchmark fixed 30-year contract easing two basis points to 6.57%.
Eurozone inflation fell more than expected in June, driven by a sharp decline in energy costs and marking the first significant cooling of consumer prices across the single-currency bloc since January, according to official data published on Wednesday. A flash reading showed the annual rate dropped sharply to 2.8% in June from 3.2% in May and came in below the market consensus estimate of 3.0%.
Eurozone manufacturing activity continued to expand in June as cost pressures eased despite continuing supply difficulties due to the Iran war, according to a widely-read survey published on Wednesday. The S&P Global Manufacturing purchasing managers index recorded its fifth straight month of growth despite registering a small fall to 51.4, slightly below May's 51.6.
The annual rate of inflation slowed again in June, according to estimates from the country's Federal Statistical Office, falling to its lowest level in four months as energy price growth eased. The year-on-year change in the consumer price index decreased to 2.3% this month, down from 2.6% in May, Destatis reported on Tuesday.
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