Weekly review
By Duncan Ferris
Date: Friday 05 Jul 2019
(Sharecast News) - London's FTSE 100 index ended the week 127.51 points higher at 7,553.14.
Equity view
Footwear chain Office, owned by Truworths International, is set to close 100 stores in the UK and hired advisers to draw up plans for a voluntary arrangement for restructuring.
Shares in Apple could rise by as much as $25 if talks to end the bitter trade war between the US and China prove successful, Wedbush Securities believes.
Chip-making equipment supplier Applied Materials has agreed to buy Japan's Kokusai Electric from investment firm KKR for $2.2bn in cash.
Saudi Aramco, the world's most profitable oil company, is once again considering a possible flotation, just months after its previous plans were shelved.
Pork processor Karro Food Group has agreed to buy Young's Seafood for an undisclosed sum.
Neil Woodford's £3.7bn flagship equity income fund is set to remain closed until the next review deadline on 29 July.
Brewing giant Anheuser-Busch InBev is looking to raise nearly $10bn by floating a minority stake in its Asia-Pacific business, in what would be the world's largest initial public offering so far this year.
Shares in Funding Circle tanked on Tuesday as it slashed full-year revenue growth expectations, warning that an increasingly uncertain economic outlook has reduced demand for loans.
Sainsbury's reported a drop in first quarter sales on Wednesday, with its general merchandise and clothing categories continuing to experience challenging market conditions.
US real estate company CBRE Group has agreed to buy Telford Homes in a deal that values the UK property group at £267.4m.
Speciality chemicals company Synthomer has agreed to acquire Omnova Solutions as part of a $473m deal aimed at strengthening its global footprint.
Student accommodation provider Unite has agreed to buy Liberty Living from the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) in a £1.4bn cash and share deal.
Mediterranean-focussed oil and gas producer Energean has entered into a conditional sale and purchase agreement to acquire Edison Exploration & Production from Edison S. p. A. , it announced on Thursday, for $750m.
Persimmon said on Thursday that it has maintained a "strong" financial performance even as it reported a drop in overall interim revenue following a decrease in the number of completed new homes.
The competition watchdog is investigating Amazon's investment in Deliveroo - a move that marked the online giant's renewed interest in the UK food delivery market.
Jaguar Land Rover will build range of new electrified cars at its Castle Bromwich plant in Birmingham, starting with the next-generation all-electric Jaguar XJ, the company confirmed on Friday.
British Airways and Iberian parent International Consolidated Airlines Group reiterated on Friday that it is no longer interested in buying Norwegian Air.
Economic news
The UK manufacturing sector slumped in June, weighed down by a slowing global economy and Brexit uncertainty.
Jeremy Hunt on Tuesday told an audience of Conservative Party members in Belfast that the Northern Irish backstop "has to change or has to go".
The UK Treasury has ordered that Britain's leading companies, investment funds and pension schemes, must be able to show by 2022 how climate change and measures such as a ban on plastics might impact their finances.
UK construction output plunged to a 10-year low in June, data published on Tuesday revealed, as deepening political and economic uncertainty halted investment.
The UK's financial markets regulator said it planned to ban the sale of derivatives based on crypto-assets to retail consumers.
There was more bad news for the UK economy on Wednesday as a survey showed that activity in the services sector pretty much ground to a halt in June.
Data released on Thursday showed that total new car sales declined for the fourth month in a row in June, while alternatively fuelled vehicle demand dropped for the first time in 26 months.
An independent review of inheritance tax has recommended reducing the qualifying period for gifts before death as part of a broader push to simplify the tax.
International events
EU leaders suspended a summit on Monday until the next morning after they failed to agree on their new picks for the bloc's top jobs despite 20 hours of negotiations.
Iran's enriched uranium stockpile has exceeded the 300 kilogram limit permitted under its nuclear deal, according to a report from the nation's semi-official Fars news agency on Monday which cited an "informed source".
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies are to extend their production curbs, as they look to shore up the price of oil.
The US decided to add more goods from the European Union to a list of imports that could be hit with retaliatory tariffs as part of its long-running dispute with Airbus over alleged government subsidies.
Iran's Intelligence Minister said the Middle Eastern nation will only engage in talks with the United States if sanctions are lifted and the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei gives his approval, according to reports from Iranian state media on Thursday.
Washington will have to remove its existing tariffs if it wants to close a trade deal with Beijing, a top Chinese official said.
Leading Chinese steel firms have banded together to investigate whether or not "non-market factors" were driving recent record iron ore prices as they called on the government to maintain stability across the market.
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