Market Report
US pre-open: Stocks seen slightly lower amid government shutdown; M&A in focus
US futures pointed to a slightly weaker open on Wall Street on Monday as the government remained shut down.
London midday: Stocks stay flat as bookies drop; Ocado surges on international tie-up
London stocks stayed flat by midday on Monday as investors mulled the US government shutdown and sifted through a raft of corporate news, with bookmakers under the cosh amid speculation the government is planning a £2 maximum stake on betting machines.
BofA-ML forecasts peak oil demand for 2030
Rapid adoption of electric vehicles will see global demand for oil peak by 2030, analysts at Bank of America-Merrill Lynch forecast.
Theresa May repeats vow to clamp down on company pension abuse
Prime Minister Theresa May has repeated her warning that company bosses who fail to protect workers pension schemes will face huge fines.
Dekeloil increases production by a quarter at West African project
Palm oil producer Dekeloil issued an update on its Ayenouan project in Côte d'Ivoire on Monday in which it informed investors that it had successfully upgraded capacity at its crude palm oil extraction mill by 25%.
RBC Capital upgrades PageGroup, says it's 'best staffing play'
RBC Capital Markets upgraded PageGroup to 'outperform' from 'sector perform' and lifted its price target to 640p from 490p, saying it "looks the best staffing play at this point".
Bookmakers plunge on fixed-odds betting report
Suggestions in the weekend press that new Culture Minister Matt Hancock will slash the maximum stake on fixed-odds betting machines to £2 hit shares in bookmakers on Monday.
FCA may widen SME access to Financial Ombudsman Service
Financial services companies may face more disputes with SMEs after the UK financial regulator proposed widening access to the Financial Ombudsman Service to include business with up to 50 employees.
Michelmersh Brick expects significant revenue boost after Carlton acquisition
AIM-listed brick maker Michelmersh (MBH) expects revenue and profit to meet market expectations for the 2017 trading year after finalising the integration of recently acquired Carlton Brickworks.
Goals Soccer Centres sees FY profit at lower end of market expectations
Five-a-side football group Goals Soccer Centres said on Monday that 2017 profits are likely to be broadly in line with the lower end of market expectations, as it reported a drop in full-year like-for-like sales.
Lonmin full-year loss widens on impairment charge
Platinum miner Lonmin swung to a bigger loss in 2017 as it took a hit from a $1. 05bn impairment charge.
Richemont offers €38 a share to take over Yoox Net-a-Porter
Swiss luxury goods group Richemont has offered to buy the shares in Yoox Net-a-Porter it does not already own.
Gem Diamonds recovers 149 carat diamond from Letseng
Gem Diamonds has recovered an "exceptional quality" 149 carat, D colour Type IIa diamond, with "excellent" shape, from the Letseng mine in Lesotho.
Gulf Keystone lowers production guidance as focus switches to expansion
Oil and gas explorer Gulf Keystone Petroleum (GKP) shares slid as much as 11% on Monday morning after dropping its production guidance for its current trading year around 5,000 to 6,000 barrels per day.
Dixons Carphone narrows profit guidance, appoints Alex Baldock as CEO
Dixons Carphone narrowed its full-year profit guidance on Monday as it announced the appointment of Alex Baldock as its new chief executive.
NMC Health agrees two acquisitions and new O&M contract in Egypt
NMC Health has agreed to acquire a United Arab Emirates-based cosmetic surgery business, a medical centre in Saudi Arabia and agreed a new contract to operate and manage two Egyptian hospitals.
London open: Stocks flat amid US government shutdown; bookies drop
London stocks were flat in early trade on Monday as investors mulled the US government shutdown and sifted through a raft of corporate news, with bookmakers under pressure.
Peter Spencer leaves IMI, Phil Clifton to lead division in interim
IMI outlined a number of changes to its executive committee on Monday, with Peter Spencer - divisional managing director of IMI Hydronic Engineering and a member of the committee - leaving the group.
AVEVA makes solid progress as it closes 'significant' contract
Engineering data and design IT systems provider AVEVA Group updated the market on its trading for the nine months to 31 December on Monday, and detailed a recent significant contract.
Computacenter revenue rises across the board
Independent provider of IT infrastructure services Computacenter updated the market on its trading on Monday, based on preliminary unaudited financial information for the year to 31 December 2017.