TheTimes8April2020

the times | Wednesday April 8 2020 2GM 43

MarketsBusiness

Exchange rates

Bank sells Bank buys

Australia $ 1.917 2.204

Canada $ 1.644 1.891

Denmark Kr 8.001 9.126

Euro ¤ 1.086 1.242

Hong Kong $ 9.000 10.233

Hungary 374.851 455.620

Indonesia 18473.700 23160.100

Israel Shk 4.138 4.850

Japan Yen 125.446 144.849

New Zealand $ 1.955 2.311

Norway Kr 12.044 13.933

Poland 4.691 5.725

Russia 84.039 100.921

S Africa Rd 21.597 25.503

Sweden Kr 11.829 13.304

Switzerland Fr 1.137 1.320

Turkey Lira 7.996 9.345

USA $ 1.176 1.340

Rates for banknotes as traded by Royal Bank of

Scotland plc yesterday

Dollar rates

Australia 1.6138-1.6139

Canada 1.3954-1.3956

Denmark 6.8471-6.8480

Euro 0.9172-0.9173

Hong Kong 7.7522-7.7527

Japan 108.90-108.90

Malaysia 4.3350-4.3400

Norway 10.229-10.233

Singapore 1.4223-1.4227

Sweden 10.007-10.015

Switzerland 0.9700-0.9701

Other Sterling

Argentina peso 80.138-80.150

Australia dollar 1.9908-1.9912

Bahrain dinar 0.4632-0.4700

Brazil real 6.4440-6.4538

Euro 1.1314-1.1317

Hong Kong dollar 9.5632-9.5648

India rupee 93.213-93.214

Indonesia rupiah 18323-18365

Kuwait dinar KD 0.3831-0.3853

Malaysia ringgit 5.3472-5.3534

New Zealand dollar 2.0584-2.0591

Singapore dollar 1.7546-1.7552

S Africa rand 22.436-22.455

U A E dirham 4.5245-4.5248

Money rates %

Base Rates Clearing Banks 0.10 ECB Refi -0.50 US Fed Fd 0.00-0.25

Halifax Mortgage Rate 3.74

Treasury Bills (Dis) Buy: 1 mth 0.220; 3 mth 0.220. Sell: 1 mth 0.090; 3 mth 0.100

1 mth 2 mth 3 mth 6 mth 12 mth

Interbank Rates 0.2271 0.4486 0.6528 0.7206 0.8260

Clearer CDs 0.80-0.70 0.84-0.74 0.88-0.78 0.97-0.82 1.04-0.89

Depo CDs 0.80-0.70 0.84-0.74 0.88-0.78 0.97-0.82 1.04-0.89

Eurodollar Deps 0.51-0.91 0.75-1.15 1.26-1.38 0.87-1.27 0.69-1.09

Mkt Rates for Range Close 1 month 3 month

Copenhagen 8.4283-8.4818 8.4447-8.4497 71ds 191ds

Euro 1.1363-1.1292 1.1317-1.1314 7pr 19pr

Montreal 1.7213-1.7338 1.7213-1.7218 4ds 6ds

New York 1.2218-1.2380 1.2336-1.2337 4pr 11pr

Oslo 12.508-12.760 12.609-12.638 49ds 91ds

Stockholm 12.291-12.413 12.346-12.351 74ds 194ds

Tokyo 133.11-134.94 134.34-134.36 12ds 29ds

Zurich 1.1936-1.2015 1.1966-1.1969 13ds 33ds

Premium = pr Discount = ds

Sterling spot and forward rates

London Grain Futures
LIFFE Wheat (close £/t)
May 157.00 Jul unq Nov 166.50
Jan unq Mar unq Volume: 492

London Metal Exchange

(Official)

Cash 3mth Dec 21

Copper Gde A ($/tonne)

5067.5-5067.5 5085.5-5085.5 5176.5-5176.5

Lead ($/tonne)

1692.5-1692.5 1707.0-1707.0 1745.0-1745.0

Zinc Spec Hi Gde ($/tonne)

1932.0-1932.0 1940.0-1940.0 1990.5-1990.5

Alum Hi Gde ($/tonne)

1455.5-1455.5 1491.5-1491.5 1623.5-1623.5

Nickel ($/tonne)

11350.0-11350.0 11409.0-11409.0 11787.0-11787.0

Tin ($/tonne) 15mth

14929.0-14929.0 14770.0-14770.0 14645.0-14645.0

Gold/Precious

metals (US dollars per ounce)

European money

deposits %

Currency

1mth 3mth 6mth 12mth

Dollar

0.13 0.20 0.29 0.55

Sterling

0.23 0.65 0.72 0.83

Euro

0.10 0.15 0.20 0.50

Bullion: Open $1657.61

Close $1654.37-1656.59 High $1667.20

Low $1641.60

AM $1652.20 PM $1649.25

Krugerrand $1638.00-1871.00 (£1327.68-1516.54)

Platinum $749.37 (£607.40)

Silver $15.17 (£12.30)

Palladium $2219.00 (£1798.61)

Data as shown is

for information

purposes only. No offer is made by

Morningstar or this publication

T

he crisis gripping

airlines has

intensified after

the industry body said

that 25 million jobs

worldwide could be put

at risk as a result of the

collapse in travel

(Miles Costello writes).

The International

Air Transport

Association said that

some passenger

carriers were so cash-

strapped that they

could not afford to

issue refunds. Its

members include

International Airlines

Group, the owner of

British Airways, and

Lufthansa.

Global air travel has

slumped by 70 per cent

since the start of the

month, the IATA said

yesterday, as

lockdowns have led to

the closure of airports

and forced airlines to

ground entire fleets.

where it stood ahead of the

coronavirus restrictions, “but the

vulnerable and more mature

customers to the online scene could

move the dial, which we would

imagine the incumbent superstores

may hold on to”.

The mid-cap FTSE 250 jumped

756.6 points, or 5.11 per cent, to

15,568.96. Cineworld topped the

index with a blockbuster increase of

49 per cent, or 19½p, to 59p after

reassuring investors that landlords,

studios and suppliers had been

supportive and understanding with

only “very few exceptions” as the

shutters remain down on its cinemas.

As many turn to podcasts during

the lockdown, a leading producer was

in demand on the junior market.

Audioboom’s rollercoaster ride on

Aim is worthy of a podcast series in

and of itself. Yesterday the company

backed by Nick Candy, the property

tycoon, reported a 40 per cent rise in

revenues in the first quarter, lifting its

shares 19.4 per cent, or 30p, to 185p.

ULI DECK/ALAMY LIVE NEWS

Diageo provides shot in the

arm for frazzled investors

Callum Jones Market report

I

nvestors, it seems, are recovering

their confidence, helping the

FTSE 100 to slowly but surely

recuperate some of the losses

incurred during the coronavirus

slump. Finding the stocks to back,

however, is proving more than a little

challenging in these most turbulent of

times. Time, perhaps, to reach for a

stiff drink.

Diageo, the beverages

multinational behind hundreds of

brands, including Tanqueray gin and

Smirnoff vodka, in 180 or so

countries, was in demand yesterday

after an upgrade by Liberum.

“Whisky is not risky,” its analysts

declared (rather ignoring the fact that

in wider parlancer such advice can

feel markedly less plausible the

following morning). Nevertheless, the

broker’s logic is clear. While the

company has been hit by the forced

closure of bars, pubs and restaurants,

not to mention the limited cause for

celebration across the world, it passes

Liberum’s “cashflow stress test”.

Earnings will take a knock in the

second half, with analysts expecting

zero growth in all markets outside the

Asia Pacific region in 2021. That said,

they told clients: “We are confident

that Diageo’s brands and hard to

replicate route-to-consumer will

survive Covid-19.” Shares in Diageo

initially fizzed, but lost some early

gains as trading progressed to finish

up 15½p, or 0.6 per cent, at £25.69.

The wider Footsie spent another

day on the rise, closing up 122.06

points, or 2.2 per cent, at 5,704.45 in

the midst of a wider international

relief rally.

Struggling travel stocks enjoyed

some respite, leading the index higher

after weeks of declines. Easyjet rose

15.1 per cent, or 83½p, to 635¾p as the

budget airline continued to mull its

funding options. International

Consolidated Airlines Group, the

owner of British Airways, increased

7.2 per cent, or 16¼p, to 242¾p.

Shares in Carnival, the cruise

operator, surged 22.2 per cent, or

158¾p, to 874¾p after a significant

vote of confidence from Saudi

Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. The

Public Investment Fund disclosed an

8.2 per cent stake in the company,

which has lost more than three

quarters of its market value this year,

on Monday.

In contrast Ocado came under

pressure, falling 4.6 per cent, or 64½p,

to £13.24½, despite being named one

of Berenberg’s top picks to weather

the storm. As food retailers grapple

with demand, Clive Black, at Shore

Capital Markets, observed in a note

that “the relative rigidity of the online

capacity ceiling has been exposed as

being quite low”. He added that it

“remains to be seen” whether digital

penetration of the grocery market

would grow much from 7 per cent,

Gilt sales raise £4.5bn for crisis

government bonds

B

ritain met robust

investor appetite

for its debt

yesterday as it pressed

ahead with a record-

breaking programme

of gilt sales to finance

its response to the

coronavirus pandemic

(Ben Martin writes).

The Debt

Management Office

held two auctions to

raise £1.25 billion and

£3.25 billion and both

received bids for more

than three times the

amount being sold.

The smaller auction

was covered by 3.13

times, making it the

most heavily

oversubscribed gilt

sale for 15 years.

It was the first time

that the office, which

manages the

government’s cash

and debt needs, has

held two auctions on

the same day.

Britain is planning

to raise £45 billion this

month to shore up an

economy frozen by

social distancing

measures and

widespread

restrictions on travel.

Last month the

government unveiled

£350 billion of

initiatives, including a

scheme to pay the

salaries of workers

put on leave because

of the Copvid-19

outbreak.

The money that

the UK plans to raise

during April is

believed to be a

monthly record,

surpassing the jump

in issuance during the

2008-09 financial

crisis, when the

taxpayer was forced to

prop up Britain’s

banking system.

The Treasury is

planning to raise

£45 billion this month

Wall Street report

Early gains of more than 900 points

fell away in afternoon trading as

investors reacted to more gloomy

news about coronavirus. At the

close, the Dow Jones industrial

average was down 0.1 per cent, or

26.13 points, at 22,643.86.

Company Change

Cineworld Assures investors that most landlords have been supportive 49.0%
Hammerson In recovery mode after 75 per cent collapse 34.7%

Carnival Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund reveals stake 22.2%

Easyjet Intends to borrow a further $500 million from creditors 15.1%
Rolls-Royce On the rise after disclosing £6.7 billion cash pile 12.8%

Astrazeneca Goldman Sachs maintains “sell” rating -2.6%
Ocado Analysts highlight “relative rigidity” of online grocery delivery capacity -4.6%

Helios Towers Investors mull impact of Covid-19 on African markets -5.8%

Hikma Pharmaceuticals Sharp rally runs out of steam -6.4%
Assura Raises £185 million in share placing -10.2%

The day’s biggest movers

Name Pre-tax figure

Profit (+) loss (-)

Dividend

Alliance Pharma (health FY) £31.1m (£22.8m) nil
Anglo Pacific (industrials FY) £37.6m (£44.5m) 9p f 4.125p p TBC

Atalaya Mining (resources FY) € 36.9m (€41.5m) nil

EKF Diagnostics (health FY) £5.5m (£12.2m) 1p p Dec 1
Hilton Food (consumer FY) £43.2m (£43.3m) 21.4p f 15.4p p Jun 26

Sabre Insurance (finance FY) £56.5m (£61.4m) 12.8p f 8.1p p May 28

Zotefoams (industrials FY) £9.8m (£9.9m) nil
6 Results in brief are given for all companies valued at more than £30 million. f = final p = payable

Results in brief

Carriers have been

turning to their

governments seeking

emergencybailouts.

Roughly $35 billion of

refunds were due by

the end of March,

according to the

association, which said

that all airlines could

afford was to offer

vouchers or delayed

payouts.

About a third of the

2.7 million workers

directly employed in

the sector have lost

their jobs or been

furloughed.

‘Millions’ of

jobs said to

be at risk