Source: Sharecast
STOCKS TO WATCH
Energy firm Centrica will take a 15% stake in Britain's Sizewell C nuclear project, according to the Financial Times, following years of delays and extensive negotiations. A final investment decision on the project was being targeted for before parliament's recess on 21 July.
Consumer goods business Unilever will pay $1.5bn for men's personal care brand Dr Squatch from private-equity firm Summit Partners, according to the Financial Times. The deal was announced earlier in the week without financial details.
NEWSPAPER ROUND-UP
The police criminal inquiry into the Post Office Horizon IT scandal is investigating more than 45 individuals, with seven formally identified as main suspects. The investigation, which the police described as unprecedented in size and scale, is the first to examine potential offences of perjury and perverting the course of justice by those who made "key decisions" on Post Office investigations and supporting prosecutions of branch-owner operators. – Guardian
Local bus services in England have continued to decline despite attempts by successive governments to bolster investment in services, according to a National Audit Office report. The spending watchdog found that efforts to revive routes and attract more passengers had so far failed, with a 15% fall in the total miles operated by buses outside London since 2019 and passenger numbers still 9% below pre-Covid levels. - Guardian
Donald Trump has extracted tax breaks for US companies after threatening to impose a "revenge" levy on foreign businesses that moved money out of the US. G7 countries are to abandon plans to make US companies pay a minimum level of corporation tax in return for Mr Trump dropping the threat of "revenge tax". Scott Bessent, the US Treasury secretary, said that he has asked both houses of the US Congress to remove a Trump's tax proposal, known as Section 899, from the budget bill after an agreement with the other G7 countries. – Telegraph
British vehicle production fell by almost a third last month to its lowest level for May since 1949, as President Trump's tariffs on American imports deepened the challenges besetting the industry. Fewer than 50,000 cars, vans and lorries rolled off UK assembly lines and output fell for the fifth consecutive month, according to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, the industry body. – The Times
US CLOSE
Wall Street stocks jumped on Thursday, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq finishing just below their record highs despite some mixed economic data.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.94% higher at 43,386.84, while the S&P 500 had advanced 0.80% to 6,141.02 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.97% firmer at 20,167.91
Reporting by Iain Gilbert at Sharecast.com