Pound rises on hopes Brexit deal can be reached after Brexit deal talks intensify - as it happened
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Renewed hopes that the government can reach a Brexit deal sent the pound soaring on Friday, adding to strong gains on Thursday.
The pound broke past $1.26 after EU Council president Donald Tusk said he had heard "optimistic messages" that a Brexit deal can be struck.
Markets rose across Europe are up this morning as Donald Trump prepares to meet Chinese officials for trade talks. The US president said that negotiations were going "very well".
The pound is trading at a two week high this morning after talks between the UK prime minister and Irish Taoiseach went unexpectedly well.
Renewed hopes of a trade deal between the US and China that would bring to an end more than a year of damaging tariff rises and rhetoric have also buoyed markets.
Having more female executives correlated with better performance
The shares of companies with more women managers deliver higher returns, while a greater number of women executives is also correlated with stronger revenue growth and higher profit margins, according to a new report.
For the first part of their study, researchers at Credit Suisse looked at more than 3,000 companies from 56 countries. An analysis of share prices showed that the stocks of firms where over 20 per cent of top managers are women rose more over the past decade than the shares of other companies.
Jet2 owner benefits from Thomas Cook's demise
(Press Association) Jet2 owner Dart Group has said demand for its flights and holidays has been boosted by Thomas Cook's collapse.
The travel firm saw its shares jump after it said it expects profits to be higher than previously forecast on the back of strong later season bookings.
The collapse of Thomas Cook last month, which resulted in thousands of redundancies, helped to drive customers to the Jet2 leisure travel business, it said.
The pound is maintaining its strong gains from yesterday afternoon, trading up 0.1 per cent against the dollar at $1.245 and up marginally against the euro, €1.132.
Oil price spikes after Iran tanker rocket attack
Oil prices have jumped following reports of a rocket attack on an Iraniain oil tanker in the Red Sea off the coast of Saudi Arabia.
Brent crude is up 2.4 per cent to $60.50 while West Texas Intermediat has risen 2.3 per cent to $54.77.
Two rockets have struck an Iranian oil tanker in the Red Sea off the coast of Saudi Arabia, causing a major explosion, according to officials in Tehran.
“Two missiles hit the Iran-owned ship near the Jeddah port city of Saudi Arabia,” state television reported.
The semi-official ISNA news agency said the blast had caused extensive damage.
“Experts believe it was a terrorist attack,” the agency reported, adding that oil was spilling out into the sea.
Renault ousts chief executive
Renault's board voted this morning to get rid of chief executive Thierry Bollore, according to Reuters, citing two sources familiar with the matter.
Its the latest twist in a turbulent twelve months for the French car maker. Former boss Carlos Ghosn has been at the centre of a pay scandal that led to his arrest in Tokyo last year. he denies wrongdoing.
Sales dive at fast-fashion chain Quiz
(Press Association) Fast-fashion retailer Quiz has stumbled to lower sales in the first half of the year on the back of "very challenging" high street conditions.
The retailer said its stores and concessions have suffered weaker-than-expected sales over the six months to September after a slump in footfall.
Quiz reported that total group revenues slipped 5 per cent to £63.3m during the period, as online growth failed to offset its high street decline.
Barnier comments could give further boost to sterling
Nish Parekh, managing director at Silicon Valley Bank says all eyes will be on Brussels this morning for any signs that progress is being made on Brexit.
"The pound shook off the negative effects of Merkel and Tusk earlier in the week following “very positive and very promising” talks between Johnson and Varadkar yesterday afternoon. The market repositioned itself and chased GBP higher on the news. "Investors will be keeping an eye on Brussels this morning to get Barnier’s view on recent developments – should they show signs of alignment with the Taoiseach, we could see it manifest itself in further sterling strength.”
Pound rises as Tusk talks of 'optimistic messages' on Brexit
EU Council president says he has revealed "optimistic messages" suggesting a Brexit deal can be reached, sending the pound up this morning.
Sterling broke past $1.25, adding to large gains yesterday. However, gains this morning were tempered by Tusk's cautious words.
The UK still hasn't presented a "workable, realistic proposal", he said. Still, that's at least been taken as a sign that substantive negotiations are underway, rather than the "sham" that Boris Johnson's advisor Dominic Cummings spoke of recently.
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