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Shawbrook receives 330p buyout approach from Pollen Street, BC
Shawbrook Group revealed three minutes before the close on Friday that its private equity backer Pollen Street and BC Partners had teamed up to propose taking the challenger bank private less than two year after bringing it to market.
Tanzania bans exports of gold and copper concentrate, sends Acacia Mining lower
News that Tanzania had banned exports of gold/copper concentrate has hit the shares of London-listed Acacia Mining, which is the east African country's largest gold miner.
US close: Stocks edge higher as Fed's Yellen flags March rate hike
Wall Street finished the last session of the week with slight gains even as Fed chair Janet Yellen and other top US central bank officials flagged the likelihood of another interest rate hike on 15 March, when the country´s rate-setters were next due to meet.
Bonds: Yellen flags March rate hike, French political risk unwinds further
These were the movements in some of the most widely-followed 10-year bond yields:.
Macron pulls ahead of Le Pen in first round vote, one poll says
French presidential candidate Emmanuel Macron pulled ahead of his far-right rival Marine Le Pen for the first time in a poll of voters' intentions for the first round of the elections.
Sector movers: Upbeat brokers push Oil Equipment & Services to the fore
Positive broker commentary on AMEC and Hunting pushed Oil Equipment & Services stocks to the fore.
Directors dealings: Spouse of Travis Perkins's finance chief buys in too
The spouse of Travis Perkins's newly-arrived finance chief, Alan Williams, picked up some shares in the builders' merchant.
March US interest rate hike likely appropriate, Fed's Yellen says
The head of the US central bank flagged an interest rate hike was likely in the pipeline when monetary policymakers next met to decide on policy, on 14 and 15 March.
Europe close: Stocks tread water ahead of Fed's Yellen
European stocks were a mixed bag on Friday as investors awaited speeches from several US Federal Reserve officials, including chair Janet Yellen, while the euro gained amid a hodge-podge of global economic data.
FTSE 100 movers: Insurers and banks pace gains, RSA boosted by upgrade
Shares in life insurers and financials paced gains at the end of the week, with the likes of Old Mutual, Standard Life and Pruential all trading near the top of the leaderboard.
FX round-up: Up hill, down dale for sterling after UK services data, ahead of Yellen
It was a case of up hill and down dale for sterling on key pairs come early Friday evening, with the currency having suffered on worse than expected services-sector data earlier in the session.
International Consolidated Airlines lifts group traffic in February
International Consolidated Airlines said group traffic in February, as measured in revenue passenger kilometres, was up 2. 9% on the year.
London close: FTSE 100 ends week lower behind WPP as attentions turn to Yellen
Shares in London ended the week on a negative note with a hefty fall in WPP advertising investors' displeasure with the out-looking statement accompanying the company's full-year results.
Week ahead: China, Spring budget, ECB and US jobs report in focus
The coming week will kick-off early as China's National People's Congress begins, with premier Li Keqiang set to deliver the opening speech in which he is expected to set out the 2017 growth target for the Asian giant's economy, alongside a detailed policy blueprint.
Music streaming service Spotify reaches 50 million subscribers
Spotify has firmly established itself as the market leader of music streaming apps after the company surpassed 50m subscribers on Friday.
FTSE 250 movers: Berendsen and gold miners lead retreat
London's mid cap shares were mostly lower as the weekend closed in, as a mixture of softer UK macroeconomic data, individual company troubles and a softer gold price all weighed.
Commodities: Gold under pressure ahead of Yellen, Fed officials' speeches
Gold prices were under pressure on Friday afternoon as traders look ahead to commentary from several US Federal Reserve officials for any clues on a possible rate hike in March.
EU votes to introduce mandatory visas for US citizens
US citizens will no longer be able to travel to the European Union without a visa, after the EU's civil liberties committee voted to block free access to to its member states in response to the failure of the US to agree to a similar agreement with five European countries.
US open: stocks retreat as investors await Yellen speech, dollar falls
US equity markets retreated on Friday as investors awaited a key speech by Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen and a slew of comments by other central bank officials, while the dollar fell.