Gretfin

09/07/2026

09/07/2026

Computacenter hits decade high after lifting profit outlook on AI, U.S. demand
Computacenter Plc shares rose to their highest level in at least a decade on Thursday, up 11%, after the company said in a trading statement that full-year results are expected to come in "comfortably ahead of market expectations."

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In a trading statement, Computacenter said second-quarter performance was "ahead of our expectations," and that it now expects first-half adjusted profit before tax to exceed the prior-year comparative of £81.5 million. The company did not disclose an exact first-half profit figure in the statement.

Company-compiled analyst consensus for full-year 2026 adjusted profit before tax stands at £313.7 million, according to the statement.

The company cited "even stronger than expected volume growth" in North America across Technology Sourcing and Professional Services.

It said the UK business delivered growth tied to further AI-related projects and strong growth in Professional Services, while in Germany, Professional Services "remained subdued."

On June 30, Computacenter’s committed product order backlog was "well ahead" of the prior year’s £7.1 billion level, which the company attributed to strong order intake during the half.

The company said it remains "mindful of a tougher comparative" in the second half of the year but reiterated that it expects to deliver full-year results comfortably ahead of expectations.

09/07/2026

FTSE 100 today:Stocks fall on U.S.-Iran fears; AstraZeneca hit by trial miss
British stocks fell on Thursday as escalating conflict in the Middle East weighed on sentiment, while heavyweight AstraZeneca slumped after its experimental heart drug failed a late-stage trial.

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The FTSE 100 fell 0.49% as of 03:30 ET (07:30 GMT), underperforming European peers as Germany’s DAX rose 0.61% and France’s CAC 40 gained 0.45%, while sterling strengthened 0.30% against the dollar to $1.3426.

U.S. Central Command said it struck approximately 90 Iranian military targets overnight, including air defense systems, missile and drone storage sites and naval infrastructure along Iran’s coastline, in the second consecutive night of operations aimed at degrading Tehran’s ability to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran struck back against U.S.-allied Gulf states. Kuwait’s military said its air defenses were actively intercepting incoming drones and missiles. Bahrain’s Interior Ministry activated air raid sirens, urging residents to seek shelter.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard claimed attacks on both countries; Qatar was also reported as a target. There were no immediate damage reports from any of the three countries.

The escalation follows U.S. President Donald Trump’s declaration at the NATO summit in Ankara that the ceasefire reached with Iran last month was "over," after Tehran resumed attacks on commercial tankers in the strait.

Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump said Iran had subsequently reached out. "They want to make a deal so badly," he said, adding, "I just don’t know if they’re worthy of making a deal."