Energean to sell Edison E&P North Sea assets, LondonMetric sells office and warehouse

London open

The FTSE 100 was called to open three points higher at 7,250.

Stocks to watch

Ferrexpo said it would “take any actions that are needed” in the interests of shareholders and the company over allegations surrounding chief executive and majority shareholder Kostyantin Zhevago.

Ukrainian investigators last week started a process to add Zhevago to an international wanted list after he did not appear for questioning about his former banking business last month.

“Meanwhile, the board has been informed that Mr Zhevago has not been served with any legal notice and Mr Zhevago strongly denies any allegations of wrongdoing,” Ferrexpo said in a statement.

Mediterranean-focused Energean Oil and Gas said it was selling Edison Exploration & Production's UK and Norwegian subsidiaries to Neptune Energy Group for $250m in cash.

The sale is contingent on Energean completing its acquisition of Edison E&P, the company said on Monday, adding that it would pay up to $30m extra if production targets are met from the Glengorm discovery in the North Sea.

LondonMetric has sold an office and a distribution warehouse for a combined £11.6m, with both sales representing material premiums to the properties' book value.

The 21,000 square foot office in Leicester has been sold for £5.7m at a net initial yield of 6.0%, while the 84,000 square foot Doncaster distribution warehouse has been sold for £5.9m at a NIY of 7.0%.

Newspaper round-up

The number of shoppers heading to UK high streets, retail parks and shopping centres has fallen by 10% in the last seven years, the latest research shows. The trend was echoed in September, when retailers came under renewed pressure after heavy rainfall and Brexit worries kept consumers away, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and the Springboard data company. Retail footfall dropped 1.7% last month compared with the same month last year, and 1.6% on a three-month basis. – Guardian

Global authorities gathering in Washington this week must stand ready to address emerging risks including a global economic downturn and Brexit, the leading body for global financial stability has warned. The Financial Stability Board – which was formed after the 2008 banking crisis that brought the financial system to its knees – said that while much has been achieved in the past decade, its job was “far from complete”. It also warned of new dangers, including higher levels of corporate debt, weaker lending standards, and cyber-attacks. – Guardian

The executive upon whom FirstGroup has pinned its turnaround hopes will fly to New York for a Hallowe'en showdown with warring US shareholders. David Martin, the former Arriva chief who replaced ousted Wolfhart Hauser, is to meet investors at the end of a whistle-stop tour of the US on Oct 31, The Daily Telegraph understands. In his first meeting with them since taking office in August, Mr Martin will be hoping to convince investors that he has the right team and strategy in place to reinvigorate the company’s fortunes after months of disquiet. – Telegraph

Bosses are more worried about weak demand than at any point in the past five years, amid fears of falling revenues and dwindling profit margins. While the impact of Brexit continues to loom large as the biggest risk facing businesses, domestic economic conditions also are weighing heavily on the minds of Britain’s biggest companies. According to the quarterly Deloitte survey of chief financial officers, businesses are responding by stepping up the pace of controlling costs, with 58 per cent of those surveyed citing costs as a strong priority for the next 12 months, the highest level for a decade. – The Times

US close

US stocks closed sharply higher on Friday after Donald Trump said the US and China had reached the first phase of a trade deal that would delay tariff hikes set to kick in next week.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.21% at 26,816.59, while the S&P 500 was ahead 1.09% at 2,970.27 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.34% firmer to reach 8,057.04.