Market Pulse
ISIS fighters left out of pocket by bombing, slide in oil
Daesh followers were left out of pocket towards the end of 2015 after the terrorist group cut their salaries by up to half, according to leaked documents.
Thursday preview: No action expected on ECB policy
The European Central Bank on Thursday is widely expected to keep policy measures unchanged.
TfL ditches proposals to crack down on Uber
Uber, which currently has around 25,000 drivers in the capital, claimed a big victory on Wednesday as Transport for London abandoned proposals that would have seriously restricted the California-based taxi hailing app.
EU looking at plans to change asylum claim regulations
The European Union is drawing up plans to change rules on where refugees can claim asylum in an effort to spread their resettlement across the 28 nation bloc.
Nestle refuses to take a break in Kitkat trademark bid
Swiss food giant Nestlé will appeal a High Court ruling that blocked its attempt to trademark the shape of its four-bar KitKat in the UK.
FTSE 250 movers: JD Wetherspoon slumps on profit warning; WH Smith rallies
London’s FTSE 250 index was down 2. 3% to 15,741. 87 at 1430 GMT, tracking the broader market as worries about Chinese growth and sliding oil prices kept investors on edge.
Gavi signs $5bn Ebola vaccine deal
Gavi, the vaccine alliance, has signed a $5m (£3. 5m) deal to buy an Ebola vaccine developed by US pharmaceutical group Merck to protect against future outbreaks of the disease.
E.on gas price cut puts pressure on British Gas, SSE and others
E. On has promised to cut residential gas prices by 5% next month, the first of the UK's Big Six energy suppliers to trim prices since Centrica's British Gas did so last August.
NewRiver reports 'highly active' third quarter with strong Christmas performance
Real Estate Investment Trust NewRiver Retail said it had a “highly active” third quarter and post-period with transactions totalling £150m.
US inflation rises less than expected in December
The US consumer price index rose 0. 7% in the year to December, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Wednesday.
Stadium Group says full year trading in line with expectations
Integrated technology group Stadium said full-year trading was in line with expectations.
US housing starts unexpectedly drop in December
US housing starts fell in December, missing economists’ expectations, according to data released by the Commerce Department.
US pre-open: Shares drop amid mixed data on economy and prices
Stock futures were pointing to a sharply lower open on Wednesday amid reports of larger-than-estimated capital outflows from China and another slide in oil futures, amid mixed data on economic activity and prices.
Goldman Sachs fourth quarter earnings hit by settlement provisions
Fourth quarter earnings from Goldman Sachs fell short of expectations due to money set aside to pay a regulatory settlement for mortgage-backed securities it sold in the lead-up to the financial crisis.
Broker tips: JD Wetherspoon, WH Smith, Shawbrook
JD Wetherspoon was under pressure on Wednesday as Investec cut its target price to 760p from 800p after the pub operator guided full year profits lower.
Berenberg turns stock picking spotlight on defence sector
Highlighting the importance of stock selection in the defence sector, Berenberg shone a spotlight on increasing margin pressures in coming years and downgraded Qinetiq to 'sell', upgraded Ultra Electronics to 'buy' and reiterated a 'sell' on Cobham.
Credit Suisse picks favourites from UK challenger banks
Credit Suisse initiated coverage of Shawbrook at ‘outperform’ with a 410p price target, saying the model is attractive, given that it avoids commoditised lending and is diversified across both SME and consumer lending.
HK dollar under pressure amid China woes, capital flight, oil drop
The Footsie was on the brink of falling into 'bear market' territory come noon, weighed down by a constellation of worries, spanning from capital outflows from China and Hong Kong, another slide in crude oil quotes to speculation in some corners that Hong Kong was under pressure to free itself from its peg to the US dollar.
Europe midday: Resources and energy stocks pace the decline as oil slides
European stocks fell sharply on Wednesday, with resources and energy issues pacing the decline as oil prices resumed their slide.
Emerging markets see first capital outflows since 1988 in 2015, IIF says
Net capital outflows to emerging markets went into reverse in 2015 because of China.