London pre-open: Slightly higher open expected

Stocks are set for a slightly higher start to trading despite following a bruising day of trading in FX markets on the previous session.

The Footsie is being called to start the day 25 points higher from Thursday's closing level of 6,136.89.

Industrial and manufacturing output figures for the month of February in the UK will be in focus, together with a speech from US New York Fed President William Dudley in the afternoon.

Front month Brent crude futures were up by 1.45% to $40.02 per barrel on the ICE.

The Shanghai Stock Exchange's Composite Index was down by 1.42% to 2,964.65.

ABF goes on shopping spree

Associated British Foods announced on Friday morning that it had reached agreement with the Board of Illovo Sugar to acquire the 48.65% interest in Illovo that it did not already own. The FTSE 100 firm acquired a majority shareholding in Illovo in 2006, and flagged the acquisition of the remainder on 8 February and 18 March this year. ABF’s board said the agreed offer price per share was ZAR 25, representing a total consideration of ZAR 5.6bn (£262m) to be settled in cash. Illovo remains the largest sugar producer in Africa, and is listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. It has leading market positions in South Africa, Malawi, Zambia and Swaziland and a strong presence in Mozambique and Tanzania.

Pharmaceuticals company AstraZeneca and Eli Lilly have decided to continue a pivotal clinical trial for a potential treatment for early Alzheimer’s disease. AstraZeneca said on Friday that Amaranth, a phase II/III study of AZD3293, an oral beta secretase cleaving enzyme (BACE) inhibitor currently in development as a potential treatment, will continue into phase III of the phase II/III seamless trial.