LSE picks Euronext Borsa Italiana bid for exclusive talks

London Stock Exchange said on Friday it had entered into exclusive talks to sell Borsa Italian to France’s Euronext after reviewing a group of competing bids for the Milan stock exchange.

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German coalition agrees €10bn extension of Covid-19 relief

German coalition parties agreed on Tuesday to extend measures to cushion the effects of the coronavirus crisis on Europe’s biggest economy at a cost of up to €10bn, including prolonging a short-time work scheme and freezing insolvency rules.

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UK government debt tops £2tn for the first time

The UK’s public debt went above £2tn for the first time in July as the government ramped up public spending to cope with the coronavirus pandemic and tax revenues fell, official data showed on Friday.

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Alan Joyce-headed Qantas posts €1.2bn loss

Australia’s Qantas Airways says state border closures were severely hampering a recovery in the domestic aviation market, which, alongside its lack of international flying, would lead to a significant loss this financial year.

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M&S to cut 7,000 jobs following ‘material shift’ in trade - Irish workers not impacted

Marks & Spencer said that its plans to cut 7,000 jobs comes after seeing a “material shift” in trade.

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Japan’s record economic plunge wipes out Abe era gains

Japan was hit by its biggest economic slump on record in the second quarter as the coronavirus pandemic emptied shopping malls and crushed demand for cars and other exports, bolstering the case for bolder policy action to prevent a deeper recession.

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Eurozone government bonds sell off for fourth consecutive day

Euro zone government bond yields rose on Friday, after three consecutive days of selling-off, with the benchmark German 10-year Bund yield having briefly touched a six-week high in early London trading.

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Airbus shares hit by US tariffs measures

Shares in European planemaker Airbus fell on Thursday after the United States government said it would maintain 15pc tariffs on the company’s aircraft and 25pc tariffs on other European goods.

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Sterling edges lower as no-deal Brexit reports emerge

The pound drifted away from the one-and-a-half month high on Wednesday, amid worries around the Brexit transition period ending without any deal between Britain and the European Union.

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Shares gain as investors cheer EU stimulus deal, bet on vaccines

Asian shares hit a five-month high and European equity market futures extended gains on Tuesday after European Union leaders agreed on a massive stimulus plan for their coronavirus-blighted economies.

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Swedish earnings, Daimler support European stocks ahead of EU summit

European shares edged higher this morning as focus turned to Brussels where European Union leaders are expected to hammer out details of a €750bn recovery fund, with positive earnings updates from Ericsson, Daimler and other firms also supporting gains.

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DixonsCarphone sees profits more than halve as lockdown hits performance

Electricals retailer DixonsCarphone has seen annual underlying profits more than halve after a hit from lockdown store closures and worse-than-expected sales in its mobile arm.

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European stocks gain, spurred on by cyclical rally

European shares rose on Monday, with cyclical sectors leading gains as investors hoped the upcoming earnings season will feed into signs of an economic recovery from the coronavirus-induced downturn.

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German industrial output rebounds in May but not as much as forecast

Germany's industrial production rebounded in May, rising by 7.8pc on the month after falling by a revised 17.5pc in April, the Statistics Office said on Tuesday, in the latest sign that Europe's largest economy is recovering after lockdown.

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Wirecard files for insolvency

German payments company Wirecard said on Thursday it was filing to open insolvency proceedings after disclosing a €1.6bn financial hole in its accounts.

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EasyJet raises €463m to bolster Covid-hit finances

Budget airline EasyJet has raised about £419m (€463) through a share placing to help bolster its finances after the Covid-19 pandemic devastated the travel industry.

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Lufthansa shares soar after major shareholder backs bailout plan

Lufthansa shares jumped more than 27pc in early trade on Thursday after billionaire investor Heinz Hermann Thiele endorsed a €9bn government bailout to rescue the carrier hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic.

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Gold shines as coronavirus surge unnerves investors

Gold prices surged to their highest in nearly eight years on Wednesday, while global shares cooled as signs of an acceleration in coronavirus cases kept investors on edge.

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Former Wirecard CEO detained

Former Wirecard Chief Executive Markus Braun has been detained on accusations of inflating the company’s balance sheet and revenues to make it appear stronger and more attractive for investors and customers, prosecutors said in a statement on Tuesday.

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UK shopping centre owner Intu puts administrators on standby

Trafford Centre owner Intu Properties has warned its shopping centres across the UK may close if it is forced to call in administrators as it remains locked in crunch talks with lenders.

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Bank, oil shares weigh on Europe as new virus wave fears grip investors

European shares slipped on Monday as signs of a resurgence in coronavirus cases in Germany and elsewhere unnerved investors who were hoping for a swift economic recovery from the crisis.

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Wirecard says missing €1.9bn likely did not exist; withdraws forecasts

Scandal-hit German payments firm Wirecard on Monday said a quarter of its assets totalling €1.9bn that auditor EY has been unable to account for likely did not exist in the first place.

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B&Q owner reports surge in sales during lockdown

B&Q owner Kingfisher has revealed a surge in sales during lockdown as shoppers took to its website in record numbers and saw long queues when stores reopened with new social-distancing measures in place.

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Danish fund manager CIP aims for world's largest renewable infrastructure fund

Fund management firm Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) said on Tuesday it had started what it expects to be the world's largest fund for renewable energy infrastructure as it targets investments worth 100bn crowns (€13bn).

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Looney-headed BP to take up to €15.5bn writedown, lowers oil outlook

BP will take a writedown of up to $17.5bn (€15.5bn) in its second-quarter earnings after sharply lowering its long-term oil and gas price outlook as it now expects a faster transition away from fossil fuels.

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Stocks, oil fall as second wave fears cloud recovery prospects

Asian shares and Wall Street futures fell on Monday as growing fears of a second wave of coronavirus infections revived economic worries, while underwhelming data from China also weighed on investor sentiment.

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Monsoon and Accessorize bought out of administration by founder

British fashion retailers Monsoon and Accessorize have been bought out of administration by founder Peter Simon, said buyout vehicle Adena Brands on Wednesday.

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Zara owner Inditex books first-ever quarterly loss as sales tumble

Zara owner Inditex booked its first-ever quarterly loss on Wednesday as it reported results for the period February to April that spanned the coronavirus outbreak and the ensuing shuttering of thousands of its stores around the world.

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France unveils €15bn support plan for aerospace industry

France on Tuesday unveiled what it described as a €15bn support package for its aerospace industry, saying huge numbers of jobs were at stake amid a slump in air travel demand due to the coronavirus crisis.

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German exports collapse in April as coronavirus hits

German exports and imports slumped in April, posting their biggest declines since 1990 as the coronavirus crisis slashed demand, adding to a gloomy outlook for Europe's biggest economy, data showed on Tuesday.