Weekly review
London's FTSE 100 ended the week 112.2 points higher at 7,207.18.
Equity view
Daily Mail owner DMGT has agreed to sell its energy information business, Genscape, to US data analytics provider Verisk for $364m (£297m).
Tobacco companies Altria and Philip Morris International confirmed that they are in talks about a potential all-stock merger of equals.
Two US landlords have dropped challenges to restructuring plans at Philip Green's Arcadia group, the UK retailer said on Tuesday.
Embattled travel company Thomas Cook said on Wednesday that it has agreed the main terms of a £900m rescue deal but warned that it would "significantly" dilute shareholders' stakes and could lead to a de-listing.
OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma and its multi-billionaire owners have offered to settle more than 2,000 lawsuits from US states and cities overnight.
Shares of Imperial Brands and British American Tobacco were under pressure on Wednesday following news a day earlier that US tobacco rivals Philip Morris and Altria are in merger talks.
Fashion retailer Ted Baker said on Wednesday that it has signed a deal with Japan's Sojitz Infinity to sell its goods in Japanese department stores.
Gatwick Airport has formally launched the process to bring its standby runway into routine use, by submitting a notice to the Planning Inspectorate of its intention to apply for development permission.
Micro Focus said it would miss full year revenue forecasts and accelerate a company review due to weak sales and a “deteriorating” macro environment.
Recruiter Hays posted a rise in full-year net fees but a drop in pre-tax profit on Thursday as it highlighted tough conditions in the UK and Germany.
Guarantor loans provider Amigo Holdings posted a drop in first-quarter adjusted profits despite double-digit growth in revenues and customer numbers, as it warned that annual loan book growth will slow.
Uber and Lyft have threatened to invest a combined $90.0m in an attempt to stop a bill to defend gig worker’ rights known as AB5 that was set to pass in California, with other companies possibly set to join the effort.
Half year pre-tax profits at builders merchant Grafton rose 5% to £88.2m as the company said it was selling its Belgian business to an unnamed buyer.
Shares in Tesla were up after China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said that it would exempt 16 of the US car manufacturer's electric vehicle models from its purchase tax.
Shares of value footwear retailer Shoe Zone tanked on Friday as it warned over its full-year results amid difficult trading conditions and announced the immediate departure of chief executive Nick Davis.
Economic news
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that the likelihood of an exit deal was “touch and go” but said that country could easily cope with no-deal Brexit.
UK mortgage approvals hit their highest level in July since February 2017, according to figures released by UK Finance on Tuesday.
Sterling plunged as UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed he would suspend parliament and hold a Queen's Speech on October 14, just a few weeks before the October 31 Brexit deadline.
The UK car industry recorded its worst performance since 2001 in July with output falling at a year-on-year pace of over 10%.
Environmental activists are planning to fly drones around Heathrow airport with the aim of grounding flights from the UK's largest transportation hubs to protest against climate change and the contribution of air travel to the problem.
Annual house price growth across the UK remained below 1% for a ninth consecutive month in August as political and economic uncertainties weighed on potential buyers.
Britons' inflation expectations hit a six-year high in the likely run-up to the UK's exit from the European Union, the results of a widely-followed survey showed.
International events
The US president missed a key meeting on the climate crisis aimed at finding wayhs to deal with the Amazon fire and carbon emissions at the G7 in Biarritz on Monday.
Donald Trump also confirmed China has asked Washington to re-start trade talks hours after Beijing’s top negotiator publicly called for calm in the ongoing tensions.
Iranian President, Hassan Rouhani, reversed course on the possibility of holding talks with the US on a new nuclear deal until Washington lifts "all illegal, unjust and unfair sanctions imposed on Iran".
The Italian Five Star Party (M5S) and the Democratic Party (PD) have reached an impasse in their talks to craft a new coalition government over whether to choose Giuseppe Conte as Prime Minister once again.
Chinese spies have reportedly been using Linkedin to seek out recruits overseas, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.
China lodged a formal protest against the latest round of trade tariffs announced by the US but said that for the moment being it would refrain from a like-for-like response, although a meeting between trade officials from both sides in September had yet to be confirmed.
Chinese President Xi Jinping rejected Filipino claims to territory in the South China Sea in a bilateral meeting with President Rodrigo Duterte on Thursday.
Eurozone inflation was steady in August and well below the European Central Bank’s 2% target, while the unemployment rate for July was also stable, underpinning the case for stimulus from the ECB.