Shell must comply with the ruling immediately

A court in the Hague ordered Shell (LON:RDSB) to reduce its worldwide carbon emissions by 45% by the end of 2030.

The landmark ruling aimed at bringing the FTSE 100 company in line with the Paris Agreement, is the first of its kind in history.

“The court orders Royal Dutch Shell … to reduce its CO₂ output and those of its suppliers and buyers by the end of 2030 by a net of 45% based on 2019 levels,” the court said. “Royal Dutch Shell has to implement this decision at once.”

Shell, the ninth biggest polluter in the world from 1988-2015, will have the right to appeal the judgement.

Donald Pols, director of Friends of the Earth Netherlands (FOE NL), the group that organised the case, described the ruling as a “monumental victory”.

“The judge has left no room for doubt: Shell is causing dangerous climate change and must stop its destructive behaviour now,” Pols said in a statement.

Shell said that it was disappointed and would appeal the decision, although it must comply with the ruling immediately.

The Shell share price has been moving sideways for the past two months now and appears unsure of its next move.

Zoopla anticipates busiest property market for 14 years

The total value of homes sold across the UK is forecast to reach £461bn in 2021, a rise of 46% from the year before.

This is according to analysis by Zoopla, the property platform, that expects the housing boom to continue.

It could be the busiest property market for 14 years, according to the report.

Just last week the Office for National Statistics said average UK house prices in March had risen by 10.2% in year. It was the fastest rate of yearly growth since before the financial crisis.

Zoopla also confirmed it expected home sales would reach 1.52m in 2021, an increase of 45% from the year before. Therefore the value of the homes sold this year would amount to £461bn.

Director of sales at specialist lender Together, Sundeep Patel, commented on the factors bringing about a stronger than expected growth rate:

“Demand for homeownership across all customer bases shows no signs of abating, with buyers jostling to make the most of the Stamp Duty extension ahead of it tapering off on the 1 July. Indeed, the total value of homes sold in the UK this year is predicted to reach £461bn, an increase of 46% on 2020,” Patel said.

“That said, while record low interest rates and government incentives have clearly boosted activity, there are severe supply and demand issues to be cautious of in the long-term. Indeed, while it’s difficult to forecast what the property market will look like as we recover from the pandemic, we’re confident flexibility will be a top priority for hopeful borrowers and their needs in the future, given the financial considerations caused by the pandemic.”

Research by Wayhome, the Gradual Homeownership provider, has revealed that 58% of renters in the UK consider buying a home a priority, despite the pandemic putting many people’s plans on hold.

Owning a home takes precedence over getting married or entering a civil partnership (49%), or entering an early retirement (30%). 

Although lockdowns brought the housing market to a temporary halt for a significant portion of 2020, and house prices continued going up, 45% of 18-23 year olds remain steadfast in their desire to own a home.

“It was another dull session in a week that has seen the drama that has defined much of May wholly absent,” said Connor Campbell, financial analyst at Spreadex.

This was demonstrated on Wednesday by the FTSE 100, which again began the session unchanged at 7,040. Investors may be warily waiting for more news on the so-called ‘Indian’ strain of Covid-19, and what that might mean for the UK’s lockdown-easing plans, before making any further moves.

“The pound was just as lifeless”, said Campbell, “dipping 0.1% against the dollar but rising the same amount against the euro”. That means cable, which had briefly crossed $1.42 on Tuesday, is back at $1.4144.

The Eurozone was equally as lethargic this Wednesday, with the DAX and CAC both up 0.1%, and just short of 15,500 and 6,400 respectively.

“The Dow Jones is looking a bit livelier, with the futures pointing to a 0.3%, or 100-point, increase after the bell. But even then, that’d only lift the index back above 34,400, the level it had started at on Tuesday,” said Campbell.

FTSE 100 Top Movers

Croda International (2.82%), Flutter Entertainment (1.81%) and Entain (1.68%) have seen the biggest rises on the UK index a couple of hours into trading on Wednesday.

Intertek (-3.77%), British Land (-2.23%) and Rolls-Royce (-1.92%) make up the bottom three fallers on the FTSE 100 so far today.

British Land

British Land, one of the UK’s largest property development and investment companies, has seen the value of its properties fall by £1bn due to the outbreak of coronavirus. 

As the outlook for high streets and shopping centres worsened, many businesses were forced to close, and the FTSE 100 company saw its portfolio fall by more than 10% to £9.1bn. 

British Land confirmed its third annual loss in a row, as its loss after tax came in at £1.08bn. A year earlier the company made a £1.11bn loss.

SSE

SSE (LON:SSE), the energy company based in Scotland, announced on Wednesday that its profits rose during the year, as the company moved forward with its plan to reach net zero carbon emissions. 

The FTSE 100 company made an adjusted pre-tax profit of £1.06bn for the year to March, an increase of 4% compared to the year before. 

SSE believes the total cost of the pandemic will be £170m, below its initial expectations.