GVC said to have trumped 888 in bid for Bwin

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City sources expect the index to start the day 93 points lower from Thursday's close of 6,194.10.
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Sportingbet owner GVC is said to have beaten rival 888 Holdings in the £1bn bidding war for online gambling group Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment.evening to decide between the two suitors. The board is said to have decided to switch its recommendation to GVC, which has made an offer that values Bwin at about £1.1bn or 130p-a-share based on Thursday’s closing share price.

AstraZeneca has won an extension to US regulatory approval for its star blood thinning drug Brilinta to allow it to be given to patients for more than one year after a first heart attack. The new 60mg tablet, which has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for this use, is expected to be available in pharmacies by the end of September 2015.

Poluys gold chief Pavel Grachev believes it is in the company's interest to remain publicly traded, opting not to comment on a possible buyout offer by the firm's largest stakeholder, according to reports.

In the press

GVC is understood to have trumped rival 888 in the £1bn bidding war for online gambling company Bwin.Party. The board of Bwin, which recommended a takeover by 888 in July, is believed to have met on Thursday to decide between its two suitors. The Telegraph understands that on Thursday night the board decided to switch its recommendation to Sportingbet-owner GVC, which has made an offer that values Bwin at about £1.1bn, or 130p-a-share based on Thursday’s stock market closing price. - Telegraph

The proposed Hinkley Point nuclear power station has been delayed and will not start generating power in 2023 as planned, developer EDF has admitted. Jean-Bernard Levy, EDF chief executive, insisted he had "full confidence in the success of the Hinkley Point project" but gave no date for when the £24.5 billion power station might now start generating electricity. - Telegraph

David Cameron bowed on Thursday to mounting pressure over Europe’s refugee crisis, raising the prospect of Britain giving shelter to more people fleeing the war in Syria. Mr Cameron was heavily criticised at home and abroad after appearing on Wednesday to close the door. “I don’t think there is an answer that can be achieved simply by taking more and more refugees,” he said. But, less than 24 hours later, the prime minister changed his tune, saying the policy was “under review” and that Britain would play its part as a “a moral nation”. – Financial Times

US Close

Wall Street finished on a mixed note ahead of the release of the all-important August non-farm payrolls report on the following day, despite better than expected economic data and the dovish note struck by ECB president Mario Draghi at his press conference.

The ECB laid the groundwork for further monetary stimulus should the situation require it. One analyst said the central bank chief had set a very low bar for augmenting its programme of asset purchases.

Overnight, the International Monetary Fund had warned G-20 central banks to be very wary as regards the potential for 'real' interest rates to rise as prices move unexpectedly to the downside.