Monday PM
DB Live: CGI Borders deal; Barclays backs Calnex; ASI funds
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4.30pm: FTSE closes lower
The FTSE 100 struggled to get out of negative territory all day and closed 34.93 points (0.59%) lower at 5,884.65.
3pm: Salmon exports seen lower
Salmon farmers are expecting a fall in exports this year despite stocks likely to be higher than last year’s record-breaking production level.
1.30pm: Polmont housing plan
A planning application has been submitted to Falkirk Council for a major mixed-use development on land to the east of Gilston Farm and Gilston Crescent, Polmont.
Landowner Hansteen Land wants to build 500 homes, including 125 affordable. There will be a new area of connected parks and a wetland area over half of the site.
The company ran an online consultation exercise during the summer to gauge local opinion.
12.45pm: Flybe reborn
Flybe administrators said they had agreed a rescue deal for the collapsed airline.
The regional airline was pushed into administration earlier this year as the Covid-19 pandemic destroyed large parts of the travel market.
12.30pm: CGI confirms Scottish Borders deal
IT consulting services provider CGI has confirmed an extension to its contract with Scottish Borders Council to supply end-to-end managed IT services until 2040, as Daily Business reported last month.
CGI, which is listed in New York and Toronto, will open a centre of excellence in Tweedbank next year.
11.30am: Covid tops finance leaders’ concerns
Finance leaders continue to rank the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic as the top risk to their businesses, followed by rising geopolitical issues and the effects of Brexit, according to Deloitte’s latest CFO survey.
Almost two-thirds (62%) of CFOs do not expect demand for their own businesses to recover to pre-pandemic levels until after Q2 2021, up from just under half (49%) in Q2’s survey.
11am: Calnex receives Barclays top-up
Telecoms technology business Calnex Solutions has secured £3m of funding from Barclays to drive acquisitions and organic growth.
The revolving credit facility will give the Linlithgow-based company access to capital to fund growth opportunities as well supporting R&D work.
Calnex became the first Scottish IPO in two years when it listed on the Alternative Investment Market on 5 October. The placing raised £22.5m, £6m of which has been earmarked to support growth plans, bolstered by the Barclays deal.
10.30am: ASI lifts funds suspension
Aberdeen Standard Investments has lifted the dealing suspensions on its open-ended property vehicles.
8.15am: Simpson & Marwick announces demerger
Estate agency and conveyancing firm Simpson & Marwick has become part of the newly-formed Aberdeins Group five years after combining with Clyde & Co.
8am: London opens higher
The FTSE 100 opened 38.4 points (0.65%) higher at 5,958.01 amid coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine hopes and the latest GDP figures from China (see below).
7.30am: German Donor Kebab expands
Fast food chain German Doner Kebab is opening 12 outlets this year across the UK, including one in Edinburgh, and creating 480 jobs despite turmoil in the UK’s dining sector.
The franchise chain, which has 47 units across the country, said UK same-store sales jumped by 46% in August against the same month last year, boosted by the Eat Out to Help Out scheme.
7am: Omega third party option
Omega Diagnostics the Scottish medical diagnostics company, said its deal with Abingdon Health to supply of one million COVID-19 lateral flow antibody tests to the UK government could be extended to third party customers.
Omega expects to manufacture 200,000 tests by the end of November at its Alva plant.
The consortium continues to hold talks regarding approval for self-test home use.
Colin King, CEO of Omega, commented: “The pricing model, whilst confidential, is slightly ahead of market expectations and there is the potential to create additional value by making the test available to third parties beyond the UK Government.
“We look forward to playing our part in fulfilling the UK Government’s initial order and will look to update investors on further orders as they come through.”
Craneware upbeat
Healthcare billing company Craneware confirmed a return to strong sales in the three months ended 30 September in line with the outlook released at the time of the final results.
Sales in Q1 are ahead of same period last year and the company continues to see substantial new opportunities entering the sales pipeline.
“While cognisant of the ongoing pandemic, the board is confident in the continued resilient performance of the business,” it said in a trading update.
The AGM on 17 November will be a closed meeting.
DeepMatter adds to board
DeepMatter, the AIM-quoted Glasgow company focusing on digitising chemistry, has appointed Karen Bach as non-executive chairman and Fraser Benson as as chief financial officer from 1 November.
Markets
The Shanghai composite was down 0.44% after China’s third-quarter GDP grew by 4.9% as compared to a year ago. Chinese economists were expecting a 5.2% GDP growth.
Other markets in Asia were mostly higher with Hong Kong’s Hang Seng up 0.82% while the Nikkei 225 in Japan rose 1.18%.
Today’s agenda
Steve Carson takes over as director of BBC Scotland
Today’s top Daily Business headlines
