• Interim profits from Primark owner and foods group Associated British Foods came in bang in line with market expectations, with the sugar businesses sweetening the performance considerably (IC COMMENT).
• Shell Exploration and Production (Shell Bidco) has reached an agreement with AIM-listed oil and gas group Cove Energy on the terms of a recommended cash offer of 220p per Cove share, up from the proposed offer of 195p per share back in February.
• Smartphone chip designer ARM Holdings saw profits jump again in the first quarter as digital technology continues to spread.
• Outsourcing firm Capita has managed to get its placing of 40m new ordinary shares away at 685p per share.
• Mining giant Anglo American has completed the sale of Scaw Metals, with the disposal of the company's South African division for 440m dollars.
• Meggitt, the international aerospace, defence and electronics group, has added another Airbus contract to its portfolio.
• Support services firm Carillion has secured a massive contract with Oxfordshire County Council, designed to save the local authority over half a million pounds a year.
• Surgical Innovations Group, which designs and manufactures products for minimally invasive surgery, saw revenues and profits rise in 2011 in line with analysts' expectations (IC COMMENT).
• The move by floor coverings retailer Carpetright into selling beds has proved less than successful so far, and along with weakness in its European operations has prompted a profits warning.
• Talvivaara Mining Company, the Finland focused nickel and zinc miner, has invested over 13m euros in environmental technology after signing a contract with a Dutch company for the delivery of a reverse osmosis-based water treatment system.
• Filtrona, the FTSE 250 supplier of speciality plastic, fibre and foam products, remains one of the stars of the market after reporting growth across all its divisions in the three months to the end of March.
• BBA Aviation, the FTSE 250 aviation and support services provider, has admitted that it has experienced 'muted' activity in the first quarter and expects this not to change for the next few months.
• Smiths News, the largest UK newspaper and magazine wholesaler, saw flat profits in the first half but said it was on track for 2012.
• The first quarter of 2012 has been along much the same lines as 2011 at publishing group Reed Elsevier, prompting the group to reaffirm full year expectations of underlying revenue and profit growth.
• House builder Redrow said sales activity this year has been encouraging with its sales per site at the top end of the range for the sector, while like-for-like reservations are ahead of last year.
• Vectura, the pharma company specialising in treatments for respiratory diseases, says a trial of one of its development drugs has shown better results than the main competitor.
• Russia-focused precious metals producer Highland Gold Mining says bad weather and declining ore quality resulted in reduced production during 2011.
• Valiant Petroleum, the operator of the Tybalt appraisal well in the North Sea, has signed a 'farm-out' agreement with its current partner in the project, Agora Oil.
• The struggling glass fibre insulation firm, Superglass, has dropped sharply after reporting increased losses and tough market conditions.
• Online gaming company 888 Holdings says marketing initiatives have paid off after announcing a near doubling of active users for its casino and poker offerings.
• G4S, the international security solutions supplier, is to sell all of its Polish businesses.
