Weekly review

The FTSE 100 finished the week down 157.27 points at 6,550.74.

Equity view

Miner Glencore confirmed it has completed the sale of the Tampakan copper project in the Philippines.

Vodafone and Three have bought a sizeable piece of UK mobile phone spectrum in an auction of L-band frequency by US-based Qualcomm.

Recruitment consultancy group Michael Page International posted a higher interim pre-tax profit on the back of an increase in revenue and gross profit.

Anglo-German travel giant Tui Group grew revenues and underlying operating profits impressively in the third quarter, also tightening its full year operating profit growth guidance to 12.5-15%.

Bottling firm Coca-Cola HBC posted a 31.7% rise in first-half net profits to €125.2m, although sales fell by 1% to €3.15bn due to an adverse impact from currencies.

Credit Suisse lowered its rating for Dairy Crest to ‘neutral’ from ‘outperform’ following a strong run in the company’s share price.

Tesco shares have been hit by the prospect the grocer will have to sell its Dunnhumby data analysis arm for less than half it had hoped, and might have to resort to a rights issue.

Marks & Spencer's well-regarded head of womenswear, Frances Russell, has reportedly been pushed out of the embattled department, weeks after the sudden departure of merchandise chief John Dixon.

Balfour Beatty has scrapped its interim dividend as pre-tax losses widened in the first half of 2015.

Gold miner Centamin hiked its interim dividend by 11% after reporting an increase in pre-tax profit in the first six months of the year.

Thanks to solid growth from emerging markets, outsourcing group G4S increased first-half revenue from continuing operations 2.8%, though UK sales were down.

Construction company Galliford Try said its facilities management business has been appointed to the government's new Crown Commercial Services Facilities Management Framework.

Tullow Oil said gas exports from its Jubilee field in Ghana have resumed following the completion of works on a gas compressor and oil production has now returned to previous rates.

Irish budget airline Ryanair is said to be in talks about providing traffic to IAG, Virigin Atlantic Airways, Portugal's TAP and Norway's Air Shuttle.

Insurer Prudential rallied after posting a better-than-expected 17% rise in first-half operating profit and lifting its interim dividend on the back of strong performances in all of its business units.

A first-half trading update from Card Factory revealed the retailer enjoyed better than expected like-for-like sales growth of 2.7% as it confirmed a return of surplus cash will be made later in the year.

Mining logistics firm Hargreaves Services lifted its dividend as it expressed optimism about UK coal markets despite posting a 52.2% fall in full year profit before tax.

UK regulators have decided not to fine the Co-operative Bank over its past failings.

AstraZeneca has entered into an agreement to buy the rights to an experimental cancer drug from Inovio Pharmaceuticals for up to $700m.

IG Group chief financial officer Chris Hill has resigned to move to Hargreaves Lansdown.

Engineering group Meggitt has agreed to acquire the advanced composites business of Cobham for $200m in cash financed from existing resources, in a deal that is expected to be immediately earnings-enhancing.

Economic news

Construction output in Britain grew less than expected in June, data released on Friday showed.

British house prices climbed at their fastest pace in a year in July, official figures released on Thursday showed.

The number of unemployed people in Britain rose by 25,000 quarter-on-quarter between April and June to 1.85m, 221,000 less than a year ago, official figures released on Wednesday showed.

Bank of England (BoE) Governor Mark Carney on Tuesday said the central bank recognises that tight banking regulation might impact economic growth.

The number of home owners choosing to change their mortgage deals surged 30% month-on-month in June, figures released on Tuesday showed.

A decline in food sales led to a slowing in UK retail sales growth in July, although the BRC-KPMG retail sales monitor increased more than was predicted.

Economic growth is showing stronger signs in the eurozone overall, but there are signs of easing in the US and UK, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said.

International events

Consumer prices in the Eurozone fell 0.6% on the month in July, according to figures released by Eurostat.

The Eurozone economy grew at a slower-than-expected pace in the second quarter, data released on Friday showed.

Greek parliament has approved a draft third bailout of about €85bn (£61bn) after a marathon all-night session, with the government aided by votes from opposition parties and likely to call a confidence vote due to internal divisions.

US business inventories rose by a seasonally-adjusted 0.8% in June, marking their biggest increase since January 2013, according to data released by the Commerce Department.

US retail sales rose 0.6% in July from May, according to data released by the US Commerce Department, beating expectations of a 0.5% increase.

The number of Americans who claimed unemployment benefits for the first time rose slightly more than expected last week, official data showed.

In the minutes of the July rate meeting, members of the European Central Bank’s Governing Council expressed concern that financial developments in China could have a larger-than-expected adverse impact, given the country’s prominent role in global trade.

Greek banks will reportedly have restricted access to bailout funds until European Central Bank approves a fresh injection of equity to recapitalise them several months from now.

Applications for US home mortgages edged slightly higher last week, data released on Wednesday showed.

China devalued its currency, the renminbi, by the largest amount on record to try and boost its slowing economy, with new reforms announced that will allow the currency rate more freedom to be moved by the market.