Market Pulse
FX Roundup: Dollar sees mixed session after Chicago PMI data
The dollar saw mixed trading against a basket of global currencies on Monday, after the Chicago Purchasing Managers’ Index fell into negative territory.
US close: Stocks begin week in the red, post marginal gains for November
US equity markets began the week on a downbeat note, trimming their gains for November as Wall Street resumed proceedings after Thanksgiving and Black Friday.
John Lewis sales soar on record Black Friday
John Lewis enjoyed its largest ever single day's sales as it joined the sector-wide Black Friday promotions.
Sector movers: Blue chips falter as resource stocks see mixed fortunes
Midcap and blue chip indices saw contrasting fortunes, as natural resource stocks ended the session on a mixed patch.
Commodities: Oil, metal futures in recovery mode
Oil benchmarks were on a positive footing on Monday, while selected metal futures traded higher as Chinese copper miners announced production cuts over the weekend.
Bonds: Gilts drift lower despite dovish MPC remarks
These were the movements in the most widely-followed longer-term bond yields:.
IMF approves China's yuan for reserve currency status
China's yuan currency has been approved by the International Monetary Fund for addition to its exclusive basket of reserve currencies, which some analysts think will add a further pressure on commodities.
Mediclinic set to clinch deal with Al Noor as VPS drops out
South Africa’s Mediclinic looks set to clinch its deal with Emirates-based healthcare provider Al Noor Hospitals after Abu Dhabi-based VPS Healthcare said on Monday that it does not intend to make an offer for the company.
Jupiter Fund Management CFO Philip Johnson steps down
Jupiter Fund Management’s chief financial officer Philip Johnson will step down due to a narrowing of the role as the company makes several promotions to its executive committee.
UK consumer credit gains ground in October
British mortgage approvals rose in October, data released on Monday showed.
Berenberg hangs up on TalkTalk amid ongoing uncertainty
Berenberg downgraded TalkTalk to ‘sell’ from ‘hold’ and slashed the price target to 208p from 290p as it cut estimates materially.
Morrisons, G4S, Meggitt set for demotion in FTSE reshuffle
Morrisons, G4S and Meggitt look set to lose their spots in the FTSE 100 on Wednesday, with Worldpay, Provident Financial and DCC likely to replace them.
Europe close: Stocks edge higher as euro drifts lower
The majority of Europe's main equity benchmarks ended the session near their best levels of the day, as expectations built up ahead of Thursday's European Central Bank interest rate meeting, putting pressure on the euro.
Xchanging clinches Aon deal
Business technology and services provider Xchanging said on Monday it has clinched a deal with global insurance broke Aon.
London close: Aberdeen Asset Management leads FTSE lower
In contrast to its European peers, the FTSE 100 ended lower on Monday, closing 19. 06 points to 6,356. 09 as it was pulled down by Aberdeen Asset Management and BHP Billiton.
Bank of England extends Funding for Lending support for SMEs
The government and Bank of England have confirmed the extension to the Funding for Lending (FLS) scheme to ease the flow of credit via support for smaller businesses.
FTSE 250 movers: Telecom Plus follows market trend, Drax falls on warning from chief executive
The FTSE 250 started the week on a high, rising to 17,367. 86 points by mid-afternoon Monday, up 102. 76 points (0. 60%).
AB Dynamics directors take home pre-Christmas bonus
After a positive year for AB Dynamics, the company’s chairman and managing director have taken home a pre-Christmas bonus.
British American Tobacco suffers after BBC bribery accusations
British American Tobacco has been accused of bribing politicians and civil servants in a BBC television documentary, which could leave it open to prosecution and major fines.
Petra Diamonds lender group waives measurements of covenant tests
Petra Diamonds’ lender group has agreed to waive the measurements of the two covenant tests related to consolidated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation to and as at, 31 December.