News & Tips: Nautical Petroleum, Jubilee Platinum, Lonrho, JD Sports & more

The FTSE 100 was marginally up on yesterday's close, while overnight trading in Asia was cautious with market sentiment across the globe largely dominated by Europe's debt woes. Attention will begin to focus on upcoming Italian bond sales, and on this weekend's elections in Greece. It's difficult to know what the likely outcome will be as the results of opinion polls can't be published in the lead-up to the vote, but if the left wing coalition under Alexis Tsipras secures a mandate it could send global markets into a tailspin. Perhaps the most unnerving sign came yesterday when borrowing costs for the UK and Germany rose sharply as fear of contagion spread from the worsening crisis in Spain.

CAIRN BIDS FOR NAUTICAL:

There's been an offer for one of our long-term 'buy' tips. Cairn Energy ( CNE ) has tabled a £414m cash bid for North Sea-focussed Nautical Petroleum ( NPE ). The offer price of 450p a share represents a 51 per cent premium to Nautical's closing price on the day prior to the offer.

KEY STORIES:

Shares in Jubilee Platinum ( JLP ) traded higher this morning on news that it had been awarded rights to recover platinum group elements from chromite tailings from existing and future operations at the Dilokong Chromite Mine in the Eastern Bushveld of South Africa.

Lonrho ( LONR ) has sold its aviation business to Rubicon Diversified Investments ( RUBI ) so that the latter can create an Africa-focused low cost airline FastJet with easyJet ( EZJ ) founder Stelios Haji-Ioannou's easyGroup. Lonrho sold the business to Rubicon for $85.7m (£55m). As part of the deal, Stelios' easyGroup will own a 5 per cent in Rubicon.

J Sainsbury ( SBRY ) - Britain's third-largest supermarket group - has posted a 3.6 per cent rise in quarterly sales, as shoppers stocked up to celebrate Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee. The group said that it outperformed the industry and was gaining market share in its core general merchandise and clothing categories, while non-food continued to grow faster than food.

Sports fashion retailer JD Sports Fashion ( JD. ) has released an interim update detailing like-for-like sales growth. In the 19 weeks to June 9th sales were up 1.5 per cent on the corresponding period in 2011. As forecast, however, gross margins remain under pressure, although trading continues in line with expectations.

F1 STALLS IN SINGAPORE:

It's been reported that ongoing market turmoil has forced the owners of Formula One to delay the planned $3bn IPO in Singapore due later this month. A formal decision by F1's owners, led by private equity firm CVC is expected next week. The owners had been advised to delay the float until after the Greek elections this weekend, but it now seems likely that the offering will not take place before September.

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