Direct Line corrects Solvency II miscalculation, Evoke acquires Winner.ro

Stocks to watch

Direct Line Insurance Group said on Friday that it had identified a miscalculation in its 2023 Solvency II own funds related to the reinsurance arrangement, which did not affect IFRS figures. Correcting the error, the company said its year-end solvency capital ratio was revised from 197% to 188%, still above its risk appetite range. The group said it anticipated a solvency capital ratio of around 200% by June, thanks to strong capital generation, and had implemented measures to strengthen its control environment.

Evoke announced the acquisition of New Gambling Solutions (NGS), which operates Winner.ro, on Friday, making it the number four online betting and gaming operator in Romania by combining 888.ro with Winner. It said the deal involved a €10m cash consideration for a 51% stake in the enlarged Romania business, with an option to increase ownership to 100% after three years. The transaction aligned with Evoke's strategy to focus on high-growth, regulated markets, expected to enhance earnings and reduce leverage from 2025 onward, while positioning Romania as Evoke's fifth core market.

Newspaper round-up

Households will begin the run-up to winter with a sharp increase in their energy bills after the industry regulator increased its cap on energy prices by 9.5% from October. Under the new price cap, the average annual energy bill will rise to £1,717 a year for gas and electricity, up £149 from its current level of £1,568, which has been in place since July. The price cap is set every quarter by Ofgem, the energy regulator for Great Britain, and imposes a maximum on how much suppliers can charge their 29 million household customers per unit of gas and electricity. – Guardian

Travellers are being told to expect widespread disruption this bank holiday as delays and congestion are predicted across key roads and rail routes, and airports are expecting more than 2 million people through their doors. On what is expected to be the busiest weekend for travel this year, the transport analytics company Inrix said the heaviest road traffic was likely on Friday between 10am and 6pm, and Saturday between 10am and 1pm. – Guardian

Junior lawyers are being offered bonuses of $50,000 (£38,000) for referring their friends for jobs amid a war for talent. US law firms Paul Weiss and Kirkland & Ellis are paying tens of thousands of pounds to London-based workers as part of the firm’s global policies. The bonuses are on top of six-figure salaries paid to junior lawyers, which start at £180,000 at Paul Weiss and £164,000 at Kirkland & Ellis upon qualification. – Telegraph

Britain’s wide-ranging overhaul of the listing rules has made it more attractive to join the London stock market, a senior executive at the first company to take advantage of the reforms has said. Andy Hunter, deputy managing director of CK Infrastructure, which is based in Hong Kong and has a market capitalisation of almost £14 billion, told The Times that the new rules were “very welcome” and had made it “more straightforward” for the company to have its shares traded in London. – The Times

Aircraft deliveries took off in July this year in a boost for Britain, with 120 passenger jets delivered by the manufacturers Boeing and Airbus despite wider difficulties in the supply chain. According to ADS Group, the trade association for the aerospace, defence, security and space sectors in Britain, this represents the best July for aircraft deliveries on record, as well as the best month in the year to date. – The Times

US close

US stocks declined on Thursday as risk appetite was scaled back ahead of Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell's hotly anticipated speech at the Jackson Hole economic symposium in Wyoming.

The Dow fell 0.4%, the S&P 500 dropped 0.9% while the Nasdaq tanked 1.7%, with investors taking profits following an impressive rally on Wall Street over the past two weeks.

Stocks gained the previous session after minutes from the Federal Reserve's July policy meeting indicated that the "vast majority" of central bankers said its September meeting would "likely" be the right time to lower its benchmark interest rate.

Meanwhile, the Labor Department's annual revision to non-farm payrolls data on Wednesday also helped market sentiment after it showed that 818,000 fewer jobs were created than originally reported during the 12 months to 31 March, cementing expectations that a rate cut is imminent to ease the strain on the economy.

Market participants will now turn their attention to Powell's speech Friday, hoping to gain further insight into the future of US interest rate policy.