Oxford BioDynamics plc reported an annual loss on Tuesday morning. This is as a result of its increased spending on R&D and staff. Pre-tax loss for the financial year to September was reported at £2.4 million. Additionally, revenue remained flat at roughly £1.2 million. The company also announced its “strategic” partnership in China with GL Capital Group. The leading Chinese Healthcare Investment group invested £9.75 million for a 5% stake in the company. Moreover, it announced that it successfully completed the UK grant-funded ALS project.

Oxford BioDynamics is a biotechnology company focused on the discovery and development of epigenetic biomarkers based on regulatory genome architecture.

These are designed to be used within the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industry. In November, Oxford BioDynamics signed a deal to develop ASD biomarkers. Chief Executive Officer of Oxford BioDynamics, Christian Hoyer Millar, commented on the results: “In 2018 we have continued to build on the strong foundations established in 2017 following our successful IPO. Investment in our commercial infrastructure has allowed us to further our customer and geographical reach, with our EpiSwitch™ technology increasingly becoming the leading industry standard for identifying epigenetic biomarkers. We have signed multiple commercial development partnerships, in Europe, the US and China in new and challenging clinical indications. Our EpiSwitch™ platform is fast becoming internationally recognised as an effective and novel platform to improve therapeutic options.” “We were delighted to sign a strategic partnership with GL earlier this year, not only strengthening our cash position but also further establishing our position in the rapidly growing Chinese market. We look forward to reporting progress on the multiple projects currently underway.” Other biotechnology sector news includes Biome Technologies being awarded additional grant funding to develop the production of a novel bioplastic building block. Elsewhere on Tuesday, Jadestone Energy announced its Montara Facility will resume production. At 13:28 GMT yesterday, shares in Oxford Biodynamics plc (LON:OBD) were trading at +1.45%.

Jadestone Energy has reported progress on the Montara Shutdown Work on Tuesday. The decision to shut the Montara asset was made in November. As a result of work progressing on target, the company expected production to resume later this month.

Jadestone Energy closed the Montara asset in November in order to correct an extensive backlog of inspection and maintenance routines.

All activities associated with the oil system is now fully complete and the facility is now ready to resume production. Additionally, the company has said that the Montara facility will now be able to operate reliably without any planned major maintenance shutdown until 2020 at the very least. President and CEO of Jadestone Energy, Paul Blakeley, commented on the announcement: “Whilst we were aware, through the due diligence process, of the opportunity to improve operating performance at the Montara asset, and had factored this into our analysis, integrity flaws in the incumbent operator’s MMS made it impossible to identify the full extent of the inspection backlog, and couldn’t provide clear information on inspection status, or the ability to plan future maintenance tasks.” “In the course of working with the operator during the transition phase, since closing the acquisition at the end of September, this became more fully apparent, and led to the identification of a number of incidents of non-compliance with the approved safety case. Having opted to shut down the facility and remedy the broad maintenance and inspection backlog, we have also corrected the MMS itself. While this work scope has resulted in a protracted shutdown timeline, it was a prudent operational decision and one that will significantly reduce ongoing work effort, uncertainty and inefficiency. The asset is now up to date with regards to inspection and major maintenance.” “The extensive scope of inspection work we have undertaken has confirmed our view that the Montara facility is in excellent condition. After having completed over 800 assurance tasks, we see nothing that changes our view of the exceptional value we have attributed to the Montara asset.” “This shutdown will more rapidly embed Jadestone’s proven operating philosophy and safety culture, and when Jadestone assumes operatorship, we will now inherit a high reliability facility that we can operate safely and with confidence. Whilst unplanned outages can always occur, the work undertaken in this shutdown is expected to materially improve uptime performance in the years ahead.” Elsewhere in oil and energy news, the UK’s energy price cap is expected to begin next month, as announced in November. Indeed, the price cap on default energy tariffs are set to begin soon as households have been overpaying for energy. Equally, oil prices fell in November on the back of OPEC’s output cut uncertainty. At 16:00 GMT -5 yesterday, shares in Jadestone Energy Inc (CVE:JSE) were trading at +1.72%.

New figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has revealed annual wage growth to reach ten-year high. The average weekly earnings in the UK increased at an annual rate of 3.3% in the three months to October, the best rate since the 3.2% growth in 2008. The number of people unemployed also grew to 1.38 million. People in employment also grew by 79,000 to a record high of 32.48 million. Many of the jobs that were created were in IT, healthcare and social work. Positive news amid the Brexit uncertainty. ONS senior statistician Matt Hughes said: “The employment rate has continued to rise in the most recent three months, returning to a joint record high, boosted by an increase in full-time workers.” “There was a corresponding fall in the inactivity rate, while the unemployment rate was virtually unchanged. Real earnings are now growing faster than at any time since around the end of 2016.” Geraint Johnes, Professor of Economics at Lancaster University Management School, said: “The latest labour force statistics indicate a rise in unemployment of 20000 over the quarter to August-October this year, the unemployment rate now standing at 4.1%.” “Employment, however, has continued to rise at a healthy pace, with an increase in the numbers of full-time employees of some 100000. Moreover, the gradual shift from part-time to full-time employment has continued, as has the shift of activity from self-employment to employee status. Particularly notable is a decline of 40000 in the numbers of part-time self-employed workers. These trends all align with a narrative of continued adjustment to normality following the severe labour market disruption of the recession and slow recovery.” “The data on pay continue to be encouraging. On the preferred three month measure, total pay rose at an annual rate of 3.3% in October, up from 3.1% the previous month. The less reliable single month estimate indicates growth of 3.9% – though this should be treated with caution because the base figure in October 2017 appears low,” he added. The UK wage news in the UK has helped support gains in the pound, which were down on Monday following Theresa May’s decision to pull the vote on her Brexit deal.

The minister of state for employment, Alok Sharma, said about the figures released on Tuesday: “Today’s statistics show the enduring strength of our jobs market, with wages outpacing inflation for the ninth month in a row and employment at a record high.”

“This is benefitting people across the country, with almost 400,000 more people in work in the last year. Putting more money in the pockets of working families, and showing the UK remains a great place to invest and do business.”

   

Barclays has a new feature on its mobile banking app that can block payments to particular retailers. Launching on Tuesday, the new tool hopes to help “customers in vulnerable circumstances in mind” by blocking spending in pubs, supermarkets and gambling websites/shops. “We are always looking for new ways to support our customers and make it easier for them to manage their finances,” said the Barclays managing director, Catherine McGrath. “We work with a range of advisors and partners, as well as consulting with our customers, to identify how our customers’ needs are changing and what works for them.” “This new control feature is the latest new service that we have introduced in the Barclays Mobile Banking app that aims to give all of our customers a better way to manage their money in a simple, secure and effective way,” she added. The bank used research from the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute to work on the new feature. Monzo introduced a similar feature in June and has reported a 70% plummet on gambling spending. Marc Etches, the chief executive of GambleAware, said: “GambleAware welcomes this initiative by Barclays, which we hope will encourage other banks to do the same. “There are 340,000 problem gamblers in Britain and a further 1.7 million at risk, and initiatives like this can play an important role in helping to reduce gambling-related harms,” he added. The categories that customers can block spending on are groceries and supermarkets, restaurants, takeaways, pubs and bars, petrol and diesel, gambling, and premium rate websites and phone lines. Martin Lewis, the founder of MoneySavingExpert, welcomed the move and hopes other banks will adopt similar banks. Shares in Barclays (LON: BARC) are trading -0.12% at 153,18 (0953GMT).  

The new WPP boss has unveiled a new strategy that will return the advertising agency to growth. Mark Read said the plan will reduce the number of agencies they work with and use the savings to hire more talent in New York and invest in technology. The turnaround strategy will cost the group £300 million over the next three years. WPP has lost 40% of its value in the last year. Read said: “The restructuring of our business will enable increased investment in creativity, technology and talent, enhancing our capabilities in the categories with the greatest potential for future growth.” “As well as improving our offer and creating opportunities for clients, this investment will drive sustainable, profitable growth for our shareholders.” The advertising group’s previous boss, Martin Sorrell leave amid allegations of personal misconduct and is now running his own advertising agency, S4 Capital. On the news of the strategy, analysts at Liberium said they were giving it a “cautious welcome”. “We will hear more at the (capital markets day) later today but our initial view is that WPP is taking the approach RELX took post its problems in 2008/2009, namely recognise the share price will not see much of a recovery short term, focus on running the business and accept the need to deliver to re-rate,” said the stockbroker. “Therefore, we do not see much of a catalyst for the shares short-term.” Shares (LON: WPP) jumped over 5% in morning trading and are currently up 3.89% (0925GMT).

Half-year losses at the retailer Carpetright have increased from £0.6 million to £11.7 million as the group carries out store closures. In the six months to the end of October, pre-tax losses widened, with revenue also falling from £226 million last year to £191 million. The struggling retailer agreed on a rescue plan earlier this year, which included the closure of 81 stores. “This is a transitional year for Carpetright as we work through our restructuring plan,” said Wilf Walsh, the chief executive of Carpetright. “We remain on schedule and are confident that this activity is already starting to yield benefits. This is the first stage in returning the group to sustainable long-term profitability.” The higher losses and lower revenue did not shock investors and were to be expected. Instead, analysts were encouraged by the results and shares were up 4% in early trading. Analysts from Shore Capital said: “In terms of the outlook, the restructure unfortunately comes at a time of increased uncertainty for the UK consumer with the process around the exit from the EU ongoing. This is especially unhelpful in what was already a challenging market. However, the transition plan is on track and management see itself as well-placed to deal with the challenges ahead.” Carpetright sells headboards, flooring, tiles and mattresses. The group is hoping to invest in digital technology to improve the online and in-store experience for customers. Shares in the group (LON: CPR) are currently trading +8.72% (0907GMT).