Market Pulse
US close: Oil prices undo positive sentiment from Chinese data
After a strong start to the day, US stocks closed relatively flat after another drop in oil prices undid any positive sentiment from hopes of further stimulus measures in China.
STM Group CEO steps down
STM Group chief executive officer Colin Porter has stepped down, according to a corporate statement issued on Tuesday.
XLMedia full year performance to exceed expectations
Digital marketing services provider XLMedia expects its full year trading performance to exceed market expectations.
Sector movers: Housebuilders recover, gold miners plummet
Gold miners tumbled while housebuilders recovered on Tuesday, over a largely positive trading session in London.
London close: Homebuilders lead bounce after Carney's remarks
Equities bounced back on Tuesday as a slowdown in Chinese economic growth fuelled stimulus hopes in Asia's largest economy and following 'dovish' remarks from the Governor of the Bank of England.
Commodities: Brent claws back premium to WTI, IEA flags glut concerns
Oil futures remained at historic lows on Tuesday, with US benchmark WTI losing its premium to Brent, as an International Energy Agency report noted that prospects for the market balancing out in 2016 appear to be grim.
Market overview: Homebuilders lead bounce after Carney's remarks
1630:Close The Footsie finished higher, led by Glencore and shares of homebuilders. The latter got a boost from dovish remarks from Carney. His words sent the pound promptly lower and lit a fire under the shares of housebuilders. After the close of trading RBS pushed back its forecast for the date of the first interest rate hike from August 2016 to February 2017. In parallel, Barclays would trim its own projections for CPI in 2016 and 2017. Unfortunately, the IMF also marked down its projections for global GDP growth this year (although estimates for the UK were left unchanged).
Europe close: Stocks bounce back, but Italian banks thrashed
European stocks closed higher on Tuesday, taking their cue from gains in Asia as soft Chinese data prompted hopes of more stimulus from Beijing and the governor of the Bank of England struck a somewhat dovish note on the timing of the first interest rate hike.
FX Roundup: Pound hits another low on Carney's comments
The dollar endured mixed fortunes on Tuesday, while the pound fell to a fresh five-and-half year low on Bank of England Governor Mark Carney’s comments that there was little need to raise UK interest rates at the moment.
S&P ups view on HSBC Bank's capital, but sees offsetting risks
HSBC Bank's capital position was set to strengthen as the lender moved to top up its capital cushions, but that improvement would be offset by the greater risks for its investment banking arm should global economic and geopolitical crystalise, Standard&Poor's said.
S&P says RBS may be on path to sustained improvement, raises outlook
RBS may be on the path to a sustained improvement in its credit strength, even allowing for "probable" large conduct and litigation charges during 2016, Standard&Poor's said.
Broadcaster buys control of Onion humour website
Control of satirical news website The Onion has been snapped up by broadcaster Univision Communications Inc for an undisclosed fee.
Upstream oil and gas M&A activity lacklustre in 2015, report says
Upstream oil and gas mergers and acquisitions levels were decidedly lacklustre over 2015, according to a report by 1Derrick.
US housebuilder sentiment steady in January
Sentiment among US housebuilders remained steady in January, but analysts still expected the sector to pick in coming months.
Wilmington buys JMH Publishing
Wilmington on Tuesday announced it was buying JMH Publishing, which provides online education for the health care industry.
Johnston Press to sell titles as digital focus intensifies
As well as confirming profits in line with forecasts, local newspaper publisher Johnston Press said it may sell several of its non-core titles in order to focus on digital growth.
Berkeley Group non-exec picks up first shares
First Derivatives non-executive director David Anderson offloaded 5,000 shares in the software and consulting firm at 1,541p each.
Barclays said to attract interest for Iberian credit card business
Barclays has reportedly attracted the interest of Spain’s Santander and US private equity group Apollo, as it looks to offload its credit card operations in Spain and Portugal.
FTSE 250 movers: Ocado leads market after Amazon bid rumours
The FTSE 250 was firmly in the black on Tuesday, rising 152. 56 points (0. 96%) to 16,111. 37 by mid-afternoon.
Wednesday preview: UK jobs data, US inflation figures
UK labour market data on Wednesday will be closely scrutinised as the Bank of England weighs the best timing for an interest rate hike.