BAE Systems lifted by increased security spend
BAE Systems jumped in early morning trading, after the defence and aerospace group was boosted by increased security spending.
The British group's revenue rose 3.46 per cent to £8,28bn in the six months ended 30 June, up from £8bn in the same period a year earlier.
Read more: Defence giant Lockheed Martin says UK could be more attractive to invest post-Brexit vote
BAE Systems' underlying earnings per share swelled two per cent to 17.4 p, compared to 17.1p last year. The group also reiterated its previous guidance for underlying earnings per share for this year to rise as much as 10 per cent.
Its shares rose as much as 1.48 per cent to 547.5p per share in early morning trading, before settling down to 544p.
Ian King, the group's chief executive, said: "Despite economic and political uncertainties, governments in our major markets continue to prioritise national security, with strong demand for our capabilities."
Read more: BAE Systems has won an $118m government contract
"In the US, we are seeing encouraging signs of a return to growth in defence budgets and improved prospects for our core franchises. In the UK, the result of the EU referendum will lead to a period of uncertainty, but we do not anticipate any material near-term trading impact on our business."
"Our business benefits from a large order backlog, with established positions on long-term programmes in the US, UK, Saudi Arabia and Australia. We are well placed to maximise opportunities, deal with the challenges and continue to generate attractive shareholder returns."