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Shares in Boohoo Group (DEBS) leapt by a quarter this morning, after the fast fashion retailer said one of its key sales metrics had returned to growth in the first quarter ending 31 May.

The Aim-traded company said that its group gross merchandise value (GMV) ā€“ an industry performance measure which Boohoo interprets as the total value of all products before cancellations and returns ā€“ increased by 0.5 per cent year on year, marking the first positive quarter in several years. 

Boohoo is currently working through a turnaround strategy that will see it transition towards an online-only marketplace model. The company will announce its FY26 results this month, in which GMV is expected to come in 5 per cent down for the year to February.

A judge has levied a Ā£1.85mn fine on Pennon (PNN) subsidiary South West Water over the 2024 cryptosporidium outbreak, flagging its record of ā€œconsistent and repeated pattern of regulatory non-compliance over a prolonged periodā€. 

The Brixham outbreak was caused by a faulty valve on a farm, while South West Water also said the ā€œillegal cross-connectionsā€ at Hillhead Farm could have introduced the pathogen into the water supply through manure. 

District judge Stuart Smith levied the fine on the basis that it would not be added to customer bills, instead coming from dividend payments. He noted that hundreds of people had become sick from the water, and that South West had told people it was still safe to drink as of 14 May 2024, after the UK Health Security Agency had reported a cluster of illness, given testing had come back negative for contamination. A day later, the cryptosporidium was identified at the Hillhead reservoir, and South West told residents to boil water before drinking. 

ā€œIt is very clear we must learn lessons from this incident and work hard to rebuild trust with the customers and communities we serve, both in Brixham and beyond,ā€ said Pennon chief executive Keith Haslett.

Currys (CURY) has appointed Fredrik TĆønnesen as its new chief executive, following the resignation of veteran boss Alex Baldock in March.

TĆønnesen is an internal hire and has worked within the electronics retailer for over two decades, most recently as the chief executive of Currysā€™ Nordics business since 2023. Baldock will stay on until 31 August to ensure an orderly handover. 

ā€œIā€™m incredibly proud to be leading Currys, a company that I joined 20 years ago on the shop floor and know extremely well,ā€ said TĆønnesen. Shares were broadly flat this morning as the market digested the news.

Israel gas producer Energean (ENOG) has told investors its Angola acquisition, announced in March, may be blocked by another buyer using its pre-emption rights.

The $510mn (Ā£379mn) deal with Chevron (US:CVX) was for an operating interest of 31 per cent at one offshore block and a non-operating stake of another. Half of the price would be handed over on completion and the other half payable depending on performance over 10 years. 

Energean said on Wednesday that Chevron had received notice from existing Block 14 and 14K shareholder Etu Energias that would take the stakes as per its rights. Energean said the Angolan company would have to accept the same terms and show it is a ā€œproven deepwater oil and gas operatorā€. Etu spent $310mn on its initial stakes in the two blocks held by BP (BP.) and Eni (IT:ENI) joint venture Azule Energy. Energean shares dropped 3 per cent on the news.

Howden Joinery (HWDN) has opened its chequebook to acquire DIY Kitchens for Ā£390mn. The FTSE 100 kitchen and joinery supplier will pay Ā£293mn in cash and Ā£98mn in shares for the company, which sells kitchens to consumers online.

Howden said the acquisition would complement its existing trade-focused kitchens business, although the initial plan is for DIY Kitchens to operate as a standalone business.

The Ā£390mn price tag implies an enterprise value (equity plus net debt) of 8.5 times DIY Kitchensā€™ trailing earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation. DIY Kitchens reported an operating profit of Ā£37mn on revenues of Ā£136mn in 2025.

Howderns has guided that the acquisition will be immediately accretive to its revenues, operating profits, and earnings per share.

Chief executive Andrew Livingston said: ā€œ[We] have great respect for the innovative business model they have built, and we look forward to supporting the businessā€™s continued growth and investing behind its next phase of development.ā€

Separately, Howdens this morning launched the first Ā£50mn tranche of a Ā£100mn share buyback, equivalent to a 1.2 per cent yield. Howdens had previously signalled its intention to carry this out at full-year results in March.