LONDON (Alliance News) - The following is a summary of top news stories Friday.
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COMPANIES
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GVC Holdings secured a recommendation for its takeover bid for Bwin.Party Digital Entertainment, leaving the agreement reached by 888 Holdings to merge with Bwin in tatters. GVC said the Bwin board has agreed to its takeover offer of 25 pence in cash and 0.231 GVC shares per Bwin share, valuing the gaming company at around GBP1.12 billion, or 129.64 pence per share. The offer will include a 'mix and match' facility, so that Bwin shareholders will be able to elect to vary the proportions of cash and new GVC shares they receive. Following completion, Bwin shareholders will own about 66.6% of the enlarged group. Bwin confirmed on Friday that it has terminated its agreement with 888.
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AstraZeneca said the US Food and Drug Administration has approved its Brilinta tablets at a new 60 miligram dose to be used in patients with a history of heart attacks beyond the first year of treatment. The drugmaker said that with the expanded indication Brilinta is now approved as a treatment for reducing the rate of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction and strokes in patients suffering with acute coronary syndrome of a history of heart attacks.
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The European Investment Bank said it is putting up GBP280 million in a loan over seven years to support the research and development of Rolls-Royce Holdings's aero engines. The loan is meant to support the development of the higher thrust version of the Trent XWB aero-engine. The EIB said the loan is one of the largest it has ever agreed with a UK company. It said it has provided more than GBP723 million for investment by Rolls-Royce in the UK in the last decade, as well as supporting the company's research and development elsewhere in Europe.
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MARKETS
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UK stocks trade lower as investors anticipate the release of key US jobs data at 1330 BST, which could signal the likelihood and timing of a US interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve.
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FTSE 100: down 1.6% at 6,096.38
FTSE 250: down 1.0% at 16,913.26
AIM ALL-SHARE: down 0.2% at 733.25
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GBP: down at USD1.5242
EUR: up at USD1.1141
GOLD: down at USD1124.96 per ounce
OIL (Brent): flat at USD50.55 a barrel
(changes since end of previous GMT day)
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ECONOMICS AND GENERAL
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The BDO High Street Sales Tracker survey for August showed the UK high street had its worst month since November 2008, with sales declining year-on-year as consumers decided to desert the high street in favour of taking holidays abroad. The survey, published by accountancy BDO, showed UK high street sales were down by 4.3% in August, the worst performance for the sector since the financial crisis in 2008 and the fourth consecutive month of like-for-like declines. It is the first time figures for May to September have been consistently negative since 2009, BDO said.
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Prime Minister David Cameron promised that Britain will accept thousands more Syrians from UN-sponsored refugee camps, but the initiative appeared unlikely to satisfy his critics. Britain will take "thousands more Syrian refugees" under UN programmes, Cameron said in Madrid, where he was scheduled to meet his Spanish and Portuguese counterparts. "We will continue our approach of taking them direct from Syrian refugee camps," he said, adding that the government would announce more details next week. Cameron did not mention Britain accepting any of the tens of thousands of refugees stranded in other EU nations.
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EDF has said the first of a new generation of UK reactors will be delayed, the Financial Times reported. According to the FT report, the French state-owned nuclear company's delay means that a planned GBP24.5 billion plant at Hinkley Point in Somerset won't be coming online until after 2023.
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Germany's factory orders declined at the fastest pace in six months in July, data from Destatis revealed. Factory orders dropped 1.4% in July from last year, which was the biggest fall since January when it slid 2.6%. Economists had forecast orders to grow at a slower pace of 0.6%. Orders had increased 1.8% in June and decreased 0.3% in May.
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Germany's construction activity expanded at the slowest pace in seven months in August, data from Markit showed. The seasonally adjusted Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 50.3 in August from 50.6 in July. This was the least marked increase in seven months. A reading above 50 indicates expansion.
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The EU said its parliamentary agriculture committee has rejected the Commission's draft law that would give member states the power to restrict or prohibit the use of EU-approved GM food or feed on their territory. The committee expressed fears that arbitrary national bans could distort competition on the EU's single market and jeopardize the Union's food production sectors which are heavily dependent on imports of GM feed.
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United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon hailed China's efforts to address climate change, both through its actions and policies, and called for Beijing's continued support for building momentum ahead of the Paris Climate Change Conference. Ban's appeal came in separate meetings with the President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Keqiang, Vice Premier Liu Yandong, and Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing, while attending commemorative events in the Chinese capital marking the 70th anniversary of the Second World War.
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US presidential candidate Donald Trump pledged his loyalty to the Republican Party in a bid to allay fears that he could run for president as a third-party candidate and hurt the chances of electing a Republican president. "It is my great honour to pledge my total support and loyalty to the Republican Party and the conservative principles for which it stands," Trump declared in remarks at Trump Plaza in New York as he held aloft a signed piece of paper. Trump signed the pledge after meeting with Republican Party Chairman Reince Preibus. The other candidates have all pledged to back the eventual nominee. Trump currently leads in polls and Republican Party leaders have feared that the outspoken real estate mogul could stage a third-party bid if he does not secure the party's nomination.
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By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com; @ArvindBhunjun
Copyright 2015 Alliance News Limited. All Rights Reserved.
2 Feb 2016 08:52
