Market Pulse
US close: Dow closes 250 points higher on positive rumours out of Beijing
Wall Street stocks closed higher for a third straight session on Tuesday as optimism surrounding the latest round of talks between the US and China boosted sentiment.
FX round-up: Sterling sees profit-taking as investors wait for Trump speech, Commons vote
Sterling was on the back foot on Tuesday, as traders took profits following recent weakness in the US dollar, ahead of an eagerly awaited speech from the US President and a potentially key vote in Parliament on the Prime Minister's Brexit plans.
Commodities: Brent extends gains, China reports rise in official gold holdings
Commodity prices continued to advance on Tuesday amid generally 'risk-on' trading, although traders were carefully scanning the headlines out of the second round of US-China trade talks in Beijing.
UK offshore oil workers accept third pay offer
Members of the UK’s largest trade union on Tuesday accepted a new pay offer from North Sea contractors, avoiding the threat of the largest strike in the area’s oil producing history.
Europe close: Stocks end higher, but off their best levels
Somewhat positive news around the ongoing US-China trade talks buoyed shares on Tuesday, helping investors to brush-off the release of very weak readings on German industrial production and euro area business confidence.
FTSE 100 movers: Morrisons slumps; Melrose boosted by broker note
London's FTSE 100 was up 1. 1% to 6,882. 80 in afternoon trade on Tuesday, buoyed by optimism over Sino-US trade talks.
Wednesday preview: Fedspeak, Barratt Developments, Taylor Wimpey in focus
The market spotlight will continue to be on any potentially market-moving headlines out of the ongoing trade talks between Beijing and Washington which are set to continue for a third (and unscheduled) session.
Sector movers: Exporters gain on trade optimism, telecoms dip
Automobiles and parts, general industrials, retailers, construction and media sectors were the diverse driving forces in London on Tuesday, while telecoms and healthcare and pharma sectors were not acting as much of a brake.
Broker tips: Electrocomponents, Ryanair, Ashtead, Vodafone
Electrocomponents surged on Tuesday as Jefferies upped the stock to 'buy' from 'hold' and UBS pushed it up to 'buy' from 'neutral'.
Director dealings: Eagle Eye directors up stake
Eagle Eye Solutions non-executive directors Terry Leahy and Bill Currie both purchased 150,000 ordinary shares in the AIM-listed software-as-a-service outfit on Tuesday.
Oracle founder confirms $1bn stake in Tesla
Oracle founder Larry Ellison announced on Tuesday that he holds a $1bn stake in the electric car maker Tesla.
US open: Positive open on the Street despite sombre jobs report
US stock opened higher on Tuesday as investors grew hopeful that the latest round of talks between the US and China would ease trade tensions.
Sika makes takeover offer for Parex
Swedish chemicals group Sika has made an offer to acquire French rival Parex for 2. 5bn Swiss francs (£2bn) from current owner CVC Capital Partners.
Carr's says trading in line as it calls for more clarity on Brexit
Agriculture and engineering group Carr's said on Tuesday that it was trading in line with the board's expectations for the year, as it urged more clarity over the UK's future trading relationship with the EU.
Accrol profits wiped out by macro factors
Toilet paper supplier Accrol has seen its profitability "considerably" impacted after it remained sensitive to external macro-economic variables and increasing paper costs in the first half of its trading year.
Ilika joins wireless sensor demonstration project
Solid-state battery technology company Ilika has entered into a demonstration project to deploy its ‘Stereaxâ M250’ batteries to power an autonomous wireless sensor for environmental sensing and asset tracking, it announced on Tuesday.
BoA Merrill Lynch ups Rotork and Vesuvius, downgrades Smiths
Rotork and Vesuvius rallied on Tuesday as Bank of America Merrill Lynch upgraded both stocks as part of a broader note on capital goods.
ITV deal with Sky could be near, Liberum suggests
A tie-up between broadcaster ITV and Sky was looking more likely after the Disney-owned company signed a deal with STV at the start of the week, broker Liberum said on Tuesday.
Independent Oil & Gas expands core project in Southern North Sea
Independent Oil and Gas updated the market on its core development project in the UK Southern North Sea (SNS) on Tuesday, reporting that the two-phase project had been expanded to include the 108 BCF of 2C contingent resources assigned to the Goddard discovery by ERC Equipoise.
US and China narrow differences on trade, reports say
American and Chinese negotiators have reportedly made progress in talks, including on purchases of US goods and services, but the two sides are still not ready to finalise a deal.