Below are the key headlines from the midday updated papers, featuring the Financial Times, The Times, The Telegraph, The Daily Mail & more - see the full Press section here.
Premier Inn owner Whitbread (WTB) sounds alarm on Brexit as hotel bookings stall. Premier Inn owner Whitbread spooked the City on Tuesday as chief executive Alison Brittain delivered a stark warning on Brexit turmoil sapping business confidence and hotel bookings. The firm is hugely exposed to the hotels market after completing a £3.9 billion sale of its Costa Coffee arm to Coca-Cola in January but says the political gloom has chilled business. Although Premier Inn’s UK sales rose 3.5% in the year to February 28, comparable sales slumped 0.6%. The weakness increased in March and April as firms faced up to the potential threat of a no-deal Brexit, the firm added.
Sainsbury’s sales slide as pressure mounts after failed Asda tie-up. Sainsbury (J) (SBRY) was the only major supermarket to suffer a decline in sales in the 12 weeks to April 21, according to closely watched industry figures. The company overtook Asda to reclaim its place as the UK’s second largest grocer by market share but suffered a 1.2% drop in sales compared to the same period last year, data from Kantar showed. The figures came a day before Sainsbury’s is due to deliver its annual results, with chief executive Mike Coupe under pressure to provide an update on its strategy following its failed takeover of supermarket rival Asda.
Sirius Minerals taps investors for $400m to keep building huge Yorkshire mine. Sirius Minerals (SXX) will tap investors for $400m (£307m) in the next stage of a debt-fuelled plan to build a massive fertiliser mine under the North York Moors. The FTSE 250 company will issue new shares at between 15 and 18p, an 18 to 32% discount to the 21p price at which it was trading last week. It has also signed up Wall Street giant JP Morgan to provide the rest of the project’s financing in the form of bonds and credit up to about $3.4bn, which it reckons will be enough to build the mine and have it in operation by 2024. Adding the equity element, it means the overall cost of the mine has risen from about $3.5bn to $3.8bn, due to the increased costs of financing the project.
BP profits fall — but by less than feared. BP (BP.) has reported a smaller than expected fall in first-quarter profits as higher production and stronger trading were offset by a lower average oil price and weaker refining margins. While the price of Brent crude has risen by more than 30% since the start of the year, the average price over the quarter was $63 a barrel, down from $67 in the first quarter of last year and $69 in the final quarter. Underlying replacement cost profit — the oil industry’s favoured measure — was $2.4 billion in the first quarter, down from $2.6 billion in the same quarter last year but better than the $2.3 billion the City had expected.
Standard Chartered (STAN) rose to the top of the FTSE 100 in morning trading after the emerging markets-focused lender announced a $1 billion buyback. The lender said that its first buyback since 2002 was a result of its improved profitability and low share price. The news came as the company reported a 5% rise in quarterly pre-tax profit to $1.2 billion and a 2% rise in operating income, excluding the impact of currency fluctuations, to $3.8 billion. Andy Halford, chief financial officer, said: “Given the discount to book value we currently trade at and coupled with our confidence at the improved profitability of the group, buying back our own shares is the most natural best use of surplus capital currently.
Estate agent group Countrywide (CWD) has warned profits will fall in the first half due to a Brexit-induced slowdown in the property market, especially in London and the South. The group, which operates several brands including Bairstow Eves and Hamptons estate agents, said it expects underlying earnings to fall by around £5million – the maximum fall within its previous expected range. It had previously forecast a profit fall of between £3million and £5million. The group said in a statement ahead of its annual general meeting today: ‘As outlined at our preliminary results in March 2019, the ongoing uncertainties surrounding Brexit continue to weigh heavily on consumer confidence as a whole. ‘For Countrywide, this uncertainty is affecting the residential and commercial property markets, particularly in London and the South.’