Fidelity Top Stories
Royal Mail, ContourGlobal, On The Beach promoted in FTSE reshuffle
Royal Mail has bounced straight back into the FTSE 100 after just three months out of the top flight index, while it was all-change as the FTSE 250 index welcomed demoted Hammerson and new names including Bakkavor, Charter Court and ContourGlobal plus retail stalwart Games Workshop.
Tesco's Booker takeover given go-ahead by shareholders
Tesco and Booker Group shareholders have both voted through the supermarket giant's contentious £3. 7bn takeover of the country's leading wholesaler.
Official China PMI surprises to the downside in February
The weak prints on two closely-followed surveys of activity in China's economy for February likely overstate the extent of the slowdown seen during the month of February, economists said, possibly as a result of the Lunar New Year holidays.
Collapse of Toys R Us, Maplin into administration rocks retail sector
Toys R Us went into administration on Wednesday after failing to secure a rescue deal, while electronics retailer Maplin collapsed as talks with a potential buyer broke down.
UK consumer confidence wanes in February - Gfk
UK consumer confidence slipped lower in February, according to a widely followed survey released on Wednesday.
ITV profits fall but World Cup and strong studio slate give confidence
ITV profits fell last year amid a squeeze on advertising sales, but new chief executive Carolyn McCall is very bullish about the year ahead and has begun a 'strategic refresh' of the group.
Fed's Powell commits to full employment and stable inflation mandates
In his first remarks as the new head of the US central bank, Jerome Powell appeared to strike a balance between pointing to continuity with his predecessors and a slightly less hawkish take on then current inflationary pressures and the Federal Reserve's policy bias.
EU to guarantee Irish soft-border in first divorce bill draft
The European Union will release the first complete draft of its Brexit divorce bill this week, where it will spell out that Northern Ireland will remain part of the single market and customs union to secure a soft-border if no other agreement is made.
Credit card changes to cost lenders up to £1.3bn a year
New rules for credit card lenders will be imposed this week that are designed to save distressed borrowers up to £1. 3bn a year in interest charges.
Comcast tables hostile bid for Sky, markets wait for Fox/Disney's reaction
US broadcasting giant Comcast has put in a rival $31bn (£22. 1bn) bid to buy Sky, in a direct challenge to Fox and Walt Disney, with markets seemingly expecting that Rupert Murdoch and Disney will be forced to come back to the table with their own revised offers.
Provident's Vanquis ordered to pay £171m in fines and compensation
Provident Financial's Vanquis Bank has been ordered by the financial regulator to pay a £2m fine and almost £170m in compensation to customers over misselling of 'repayment option plan' product.
Corbyn's U-turn on customs union could spell danger for May
Jeremy Corbyn's speech on Monday, where he was set to outline his party's shadow Brexit policy, could see the Labour leader pave the way for a mutiny within Conservative ranks, led by a small number of pro-Europeans in Theresa May's cabinet, potentially derailing the PM's strategy if he was to echo sentiments made by his MP's and senior spokesmen of Labour lending their support to a post-Brexit customs union with the EU.
Businesses erring on side of caution when borrowing, UK Finance says
Businesses continue to keep a tight control on their purse strings, erring on the side of caution when it comes to borrowing, although overall sentiment is still upbeat, according to industry body UK Finance.
Trump announces 'largest-ever' set of sanctions on North Korea
The White House announced a brand new set of sanctions in its efforts to strip North Korea of its access to smuggling routes used by the regime to evade a United Nations embargo and fund its nuclear weapons programme.
BoE's Ramsden sounds positive, but cautious, note on productivity outlook
Productivity growth picked up in the back half of last year, yet whether that improvement will stick remains to be seen, although it's not all bad news in terms of the outlook for further improvement, a top Bank of England official argued.
RBS reports first profit in a decade but higher costs loom
Royal Bank of Scotland clambered back into the black in 2017 for the first time in a decade, though though the taxpayer-owned bank took a late hit from legacy charges and warned of higher restructuring charges in 2018.
Bonds: Weaker GDP buoys Gilts, US Treasuries retrace losses
These were the movements in some of the most widely-followed 10-year sovereign bond yields: US: 2. 92% (-3bp) UK: 1. 55% (-1bp) Germany: 0. 71% (-2bp) France: 0. 98% (-1bp) Italy: 2. 08% (+3bp) Spain: 1. 52% (+1bp) Portugal: 2. 03% (+3bp) Greece: 4. 37% (-7bp) Japan: 0. 06% (+0bp).
US corporate investment may be coming out of the doldrums, Fed's Quarles says
Corporate investment may finally be coming out of the doldrums, a top US central bank official said, sticking to the monetary authority's mantra that policy should continue to be gradually "normalised" given job market strength and the "likely only temporary" softness of inflation.
UK GDP growth trimmed as UK veers into G7 slow lane
UK gross domestic product growth for 2017 was revised down in Office for National Statistics' second estimate on Thursday, meaning last year was the economy's worst performance since 2012.
May to ask EU for extended Brexit implementation phase
The UK wants to extend the Brexit transition period to the European Union, according to reports on Wednesday.