Market Live Email
Vodafone FY earnings seen at upper end of guidance, Shell Q4 earnings slide 22pc
By Iain Gilbert
Date: Thursday 05 Feb 2026
(Sharecast News) - LONDON PRE-OPEN
The FTSE 100 was expected to open 18.5 points lower ahead of the bell on Thursday, after wrapping up the previous session 0.85% higher at 10,402.34.
STOCKS TO WATCH
Telecommunicatios giant BT said on Thursday that third‑quarter revenues had dropped 4% year-on-year to £5.0bn, as lower service and handset sales and recent disposals weighed on the top line. BT said adjusted UK service revenue slipped 2% amid continued legacy voice drag and prior‑year phasing effects, while adjusted underlying earnings slipped 1% to £2.1bn, broadly flat once last year's one‑off income was excluded, with strong cost‑cutting helping offset softer revenue. Reported pre-tax profits came to £183m, down £244m year-on-year, principally due to a £214m share of losses from its Sports joint venture with Warner Brosthers Discovery.
Shell posted a slide in quarterly earnings on Thursday, after lower prices and a rise in operating expenses weighed heavily. Income attributable to Shell shareholders was $4.1bn in the final three months of 2025, a 22% slide on the third quarter, while adjusted earnings tumbled 40% at $3.3bn. Shell blamed the slide on "unfavourable tax movements [...] lower marketing margins, lower realised prices and higher operating expenses". Over the full year, income rose 11% to $17.8bn, while adjusted earnings slid 22% at $18.5bn.
Telecoms operator Vodafone said it expects full year earnings to be at the upper end of forecasts after a strong third quarter performance, supported by top line growth in Germany and Turkey. Vodafone said on Thursday that Q3 revenues had increased by 6.5% to €10.5bn.
NEWSPAPER ROUND-UP
A government minister has defended long delays to a military spending plan that are also stalling the UK's next-generation Tempest fighter jet programme, but refused to say when it will be complete. The defence investment plan, originally expected last autumn, has faced repeated postponements amid warnings that the military faces a £28bn funding gap over the next four years. - Guardian
The US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has launched an investigation into Nike over allegations that the sports giant discriminated against white employees and job applicants. The federal agency is demanding that Nike turn over information related to the allegations, including the company's "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion-related 2025 Targets and other DEI-related objectives", it announced on Wednesday. - Guardian
Bond markets are increasingly at risk of a worldwide meltdown after hedge funds piled a record £2.2trn into government debt, a global watchdog has warned. The Financial Stability Board, led by Andrew Bailey, the Bank of England Governor, warned countries are dangerously exposed to the threat of fire sales in the event of economic shocks. - Telegraph
The UK's reliance on China is making the country "the weak link" in the West, MPs have warned. In a damning report published on Thursday, the House of Commons Business and Trade Committee said a dependence on "hostile actors" such as China for investment and trade was alarming international allies. - Telegraph
A London-based business which uses artificial intelligence to generate realistic sounding human-like voices has raised $500m in a deal which values it at $11bn. ElevenLabs, one of the UK's most valuable private companies, said the latest funding round was led by Sequoia Capital, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm. Its other backers include Andreessen Horowitz, also an American venture capital firm, and Matthew McConaughey, the Oscar-winning actor. - The Times
US CLOSE
Major indices delivered a mixed performance on Wednesday as tech stocks remained under pressure.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.53% at 49,501.30, while the S&P 500 shed 0.51% to 6,882.77 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.51% weaker at 22,904.58.
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com
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