Indivior to pay $145m for Opiant Pharmaceuticals, AstraZeneca gets three drugs recommended in EU

London open

The FTSE 100 is expected to open 11 points higher on Monday, having closed down 0.78% at 7,318.04 on Friday.

Stocks to watch

UK-based drug company Indivior said it would pay $145m for Opiant Pharmaceuticals which produces treatments to overcome opioid addiction. The price equates to $20 a share, with an extra $8 per share contingent on Opiant’s ability to gain approvals and revenue for an overdose-reversal medication in late-stage development.

AstraZeneca announced on Monday morning that three of its drugs had been recommended for approval in the European Union. The FTSE 100 pharmaceuticals giant said ‘Imfinzi’ plus chemotherapy had been recommended for approval as a first immunotherapy regimen for advanced biliary tract cancer, and ‘Enhertu’ had been recommended for patients with previously-treated HER2-positive advanced gastric cancer. ‘Lynparza’, in combination with abiraterone, was meanwhile recommended for approval as a first-line treatment for patients with metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.

Newspaper round-up

Britain’s foremost business lobby group has urged Jeremy Hunt to use this week’s autumn statement to shake up immigration rules to support companies struggling with chronic staff shortages and a looming recession. The head of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said urgent action was required from the chancellor on Thursday to bolster the economy, including “tough political choices” to allow more overseas workers in Britain as employers struggle with a desperate lack of staff. – Guardian

Bus services will not survive without sustained Treasury funding, campaigners and industry groups have warned the chancellor after the cutting of hundreds of routes in recent months. Transport charities and trade bodies have written to Jeremy Hunt asking for support before this week’s autumn statement urging him to guarantee short-term funding, give targeted help to local authorities, and bring in better long-term financial settlements. – Guardian

Embattled cryptocurrency exchange FTX has been rebuked by regulators in the Bahamas after it claimed local laws meant it had to allow customers in the Caribbean to make withdrawals even as others around the world were locked out. The Securities Commission of The Bahamas said it had "not directed, authorised or suggested" that Bahamian clients be given priority and allowed to withdraw their cash last week, as the company was teetering on the brink. – Telegraph

Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group is close to agreeing a deal to buy Gieves & Hawkes, an ailing Savile Row tailor. Frasers is in advanced talks to buy the brand after its Hong Kong-based owner collapsed into liquidation, according to Sky News. Mr Ashley’s group has been considering the acquisition of Gieves & Hawkes – which was put up for sale earlier this year – since September. – Telegraph

Twitter culled thousands of contractors at the weekend, according to reports, a week after halving its full-time workforce following Elon Musk’s $44 billion takeover. Some realised they no longer worked for the social media group when they struggled to log on to its computers. – The Times

US close

Wall Street stocks closed higher on Friday as investors continued to digest yesterday's cooler-than-expected CPI reading and mulled over a series of international headlines.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.10% at 33,747.86, while the S&P 500 advanced 0.92% to 3,992.93 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.88% stronger at 11,323.33.

The Dow closed 32.49 points higher on Friday, modestly extending gains recorded in previous session and helping major indices register a winning week.

Stocks delivered their biggest one-day rally since 2020 on Thursday following the revelation from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that consumer prices had risen softer than expected in October, giving traders some hope that inflation may be slowing down. Treasury yields dropped on the news, while tech stocks surged.

Underlining sentiment on Friday was news that Chinese stocks and the renminbi had pushed higher after the Politburo Standing Committee issued new guidance aimed at better implementing its Zero-Covid policy. China has shortened quarantine times for close contacts of coronavirus cases and for inbound travellers, and also scrapped a penalty on airlines that bring in infected passengers. Casino stocks rallied on the news.

Reporting by Sharecast.com staff and contributors.