James Fisher wins Royal Navy contract, AstraZeneca gets FDA nod for 'Farxiga'

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The FTSE 100 is expected to open 46 points lower on Friday, having closed up 0.23% at 5,879.45 on Thursday.

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James Fisher and Sons said its specialist technical business had won a multi-million-pound five-year Royal Navy contract to service life-support diving equipment. There were no specific figures on the contractual amount. The company said the deal builds on a 20-year relationship with the Royal Navy, reflecting JFD's breadth of expertise and commitment to capability development and safety improvements in military diving. Under the contract, the company will be responsible for maintaining the Royal Navy's life-support diving equipment, which includes its shadow rebreather system, a specialised underwater closed-circuit life support system.

AstraZeneca announced on Friday that ‘Farxiga’, or dapagliflozin, has been granted ‘Breakthrough Therapy Designation’ in the US, for patients with chronic kidney disease, with and without type-2 diabetes. The FTSE 100 pharmaceuticals giant said the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted the designation based on clinical evidence from the DAPA-CKD trial. It said the detailed results demonstrated that Farxiga on top of standard-of-care reduced the composite measure of worsening of renal function or risk of cardiovascular or renal death by 39% compared to placebo in patients with chronic kidney disease, while also significantly reducing death from any cause by 31% compared to placebo.

IAG said all the shares in its €2.74bn (£2.5bn) rights issue were taken up by investors after demand for additional shares exceeded supply. British Airways’ owner said shareholders took up 92.75% of new shares during the pre-emptive subscription period which ended on 26 September. The rest of the shares were allocated on a pro-rata basis after investors requested more than double the number of new shares remaining.

Newspaper round-up

Donald Trump has announced that he and the first lady, Melania Trump, have tested positive for coronavirus, after one of his closest advisers contracted the virus, throwing the 2020 US election into chaos. On Friday morning the US president tweeted: “Tonights, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19.” He wrote that they would begin quarantine immediately. - Guardian

Bankers, lawyers and accountants are set to share in £80 million in fees from Rolls-Royce after the engine-maker unveiled plans to tap shareholders for £2 billion to shore up its battered finances. Rolls is embarking on the deeply discounted rescue rights issue as part of a broader £5 billion financing package, which has been long awaited by investors. - The Times

The government’s £500m subsidy for restaurant and pub meals failed to improve the finances of the UK’s hospitality and catering industries in the third quarter, according to a business survey. The British Chambers of Commerce said 66% of respondents in hospitality and catering reported a fall in sales and bookings between June and the end of September. - Guardian

Marks & Spencer has started selling an independent eco-fashion brand on its website as part of a plan to reinvigorate its struggling clothing arm. The Nobody’s Child label bills itself as an antidote to a damaging fast-fashion industry and makes its £35 floaty minidresses and teadresses out of recycled polyester and sustainably sourced viscose. - Guardian

Ocado is being sued by a Norwegian robot maker which has accused the online grocer of infringing its patents. Autostore is seeking hundreds of millions of pounds in damages from Ocado in legal actions in London’s High Court and the International Trade Commission in the United States. - The Times

US close

Wall Street stocks closed higher on Thursday as the fourth quarter of 2020 got underway on a positive note for stocks amid a slew of data points.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.13% at 27,816.90, while the S&P 500 was 0.53% firmer at 3,380.80 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.42% stronger at 11,326.51.

The Dow Jones closed 35.20 points higher on Thursday, extending gains recorded in the previous session following a combative first debate between Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden.

Thursday's primary focus was comments from White House chief of staff Mark Meadows that indicated that the President had extended an offer for over $1.5trn in stimulus payments after the House of Representatives delayed a vote on a $2.2trn rescue package earlier in the evening.

Meadows, who also said any package valued at over $2.0trn would be a "real problem", also stated the most recent proposal included $20.0bn for airlines as part of an effort to provide them with a six-month extension to keep workers on their payrolls.