Shire Share News (SHP)

Sept 28 (Reuters) - Britain's FTSE 100 index is seen opening 8points higher at 7,553 on Friday, according to financial bookmakers. * SHIRE: Japan M&A volumes are set to break a 19-year-old record and stealthe spotlight in Asia this year from cooling Chinese deals, led by blockbustertakeovers such as Takeda Pharma's 4502.T $62 billion swoop on British drugmakerShire. * BP: The Trump administration on Thursday eased safety rules on offshoreoil and gas production put in place after the deadly 2010 BP PlcDeepwater Horizon disaster, as part of its effort to slash regulations and boostthe energy industry. * ROLLS-ROYCE: Rolls-Royce said on Thursday that turbine blades ofits problematic Trent 1000 engines were wearing out faster than expected,grounding additional Boeing Co 787 widebody jets for earlyrepairs. * RBS: Royal Bank of Scotland is planning to launch a new standaloneconsumer bank called Bo to fight industry challengers such as the British appbank Monzo and digital bank Revolut, Sky News reported. * OIL: Oil majors are set to gather in Rio de Janeiro on Friday to unveilbids for stakes in Brazil's high potential offshore areas ahead of electionsthat are casting a cloud of uncertainty over the industry. * PRECIOUS: Gold prices inched up on Friday but held near six-week lows hitin the previous session, as the dollar firmed after upbeat U.S. economic datasupported the Federal Reserve's resolve for steady interest rate hikes over thenext year. * The UK blue chip index closed 0.5 percent higher on Thursday, as the poundwas held back by strength in the dollar following a U.S. rate hike and investorsremained nervous on the outcome of Brexit talks. * For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on: cpurl://apps.cp./cms/?pageId=livemarkets * UK CORPORATE DIARY: TLA Worldwide Plc TLAT.L HY Earnings Release United Utilities Group Plc UU.L Trading Statement GAN Plc GAN.L HY Earnings Release Easyjey Plc EZJ.L Q4 Trading Statement TODAY'S UK PAPERS > Financial Times > Other business headlines (Reporting by Samantha Machado)