(Adds futures, company news items)
Aug 1 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 .FTSE index is seen opening 38 points higher at 7,410.3 on Tuesday, according to financial spreadbetters, with futures FFIc1 up 0.45 pct ahead of the cash market open.
* FRESNILLO: Precious metals miner Fresnillo Plc FRES.L said profit for its first half almost doubled due to higher silver production from its San Julian and Fresnillo mines. CENTRICA: British energy supplier Centrica CNA.L is on track to achieve its group targets for the year after cutting net debt by 22 percent, it said in its interim results on Tuesday. GOCOMPARE: Price comparison website Gocompare.Com Group Plc GOCO.L said its operating profit rose 21.5 percent in the first half of the year, helped by higher marketing margins. MEGGITT: British auto and aircraft parts maker Meggitt MGGT.L reiterated its annual guidance for a 2 to 4 percent rise in organic revenue after it reported first-half results helped by currency moves and civil aerospace demand. DIRECT LINE: Direct Line Insurance Group DLGD.L , Britain's largest motor insurer, reported a 9.5 percent rise in first-half profit on higher insurance. WORLDPAY: British payments firms Worldpay WPG.L said on Tuesday that its U.S. suitor Vantiv VNTV.N has been granted a week-long extension to Aug. 8 to make a firm takeover bid or walk away for six months. BP: BP BP.L beat expectations with a second-quarter net profit of $684 million on Tuesday although the result more than halved from the first quarter after a large charge for unsuccessful exploration in Angola. ROLLS-ROYCE: Rolls-Royce RR.L reported a better-than-expected rise in first-half underlying pretax profit on Tuesday as it delivered a 27 percent increase in large civil aerospace engines and said it had manufactured them more efficiently. MAN GROUP: British hedge fund firm Man Group EMG.L said on Tuesday that its assets under management rose 19 percent in the first half of 2017, boosted by new investment and the acquisition of real estate fund Aalto, which added $1.8 billion. ACACIA: The Tanzanian government and Barrick Gold ABX.TO have started talks to resolve a tax dispute involving the Canadian company's subsidiary Acacia Mining ACAA.L , the president's office said on Monday. BHP: BHP Billiton BHP.AX BLT.L on Tuesday denied commentary in a Brazilian newspaper that it has agreed to sell its stake in the Samarco iron ore mine to its partner Vale. GOLD: Gold prices held steady near seven-week highs early Tuesday, after registering their biggest monthly gain in five in July, supported by a slump in the U.S. dollar and political uncertainty. Spot gold XAU= was nearly flat at $1,269.30 per ounce at 0358 GMT. It rose 2.2 percent last month, its biggest monthly gain since February. COPPER: Copper has finally emerged from its extended winter hibernation, breaking out of an eight-month trading range to hit two-year highs. London Metal Exchange three-month copper CMCU3 broke through the top of that range at $6,200 last Tuesday and hasn't looked back since. This morning it touched $6,430 per tonne, a level not seen since May 2015. UK ECONOMY - British businesses are their least optimistic about the economy in six months and their overall confidence levels remain slightly below average, a survey showed on Monday, adding to a lacklustre outlook for the economy. Strong results from heavyweight bank HSBC helped British blue-chips hold on to gains on Monday, putting the index ahead for the month of July, though tobacco stocks tumbled further following a new U.S. regulatory clamp down. The FTSE 100 .FTSE rose 0.1 percent, and ended July 0.8 percent higher, outperforming European benchmarks which finished the month in the red. For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on: cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets
TODAY'S UK PAPERS
> Financial Times
PRESS/FT
> Other business headlines
PRESS/GB Multimedia versions of Reuters Top News are now available for:
* 3000 Xtra
: visit http://topnews.session.rservices.com
* For Top News : http://topnews.reuters.com