Gilts

Gilts rallied in anticipation of next week’s Bank of England minutes, ending a volatile week on a high. Although trade was thin, gilt futures recovered from profit-taking on Thursday, boosted by expectations that demand will outweigh supply over the next week with the Bank expected to buy up to £1.7 billion of bonds.

Rumour of the day

The protracted appointment of administrators to Moorgate Taverns could be announced next week, with rumours circulating that Pubs ‘n’ Bars, its parent company, could also be at risk. AIM-listed Pubs ‘n’ Bars said in early September that it would appoint administrators to Moorgate, which has ten pubs. Pubs ‘n’ Bars closed up 0.12p at 4.88p.

Deal of the day

BSkyB, up 1½p at 541p, has signed a five-year deal to take over the advertising sales for Viacom’s channels in Britain and Ireland, including MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon. The deal, thought to be worth over £350 million, follows Sky’s deal with Discovery and further consolidates the UK TV ad sales market.

Bet of the day

Burberry has grown despite the recession and with the world attempting to haul itself out of the gloom, perhaps further sales growth is on the cards when it reports full-year results Tuesday. Shares have been on a roll since May, when they stood at 360p, closing at 598½p, down 1½p. Cantor offers a December based contract spread of 592.6-594.0

Tiddler to watch

Shares in Imaginatik, the AIM-listed software and processes company, surged 1¼p, or 18 per cent, to 8¼p after it announced a contract win with a global financial services company. Details of the deal were not revealed but the company said it was seeing a renewed appetite for innovation in the financial services industry.

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