FTSE 100 closes down 54 points
Wall Street shares firmly lower
Fed increases rates; Carnival shares sink over 10%
FTSE 100 joined global markets to trend lower on Thursday as the Fed's move to raise rates sent shivers through markets.
The UK blue-chip benchmark index finished down around 54 points at 6,711.
FTSE 250 shed over 157 points at 17,446.
The German and French markets were also lower on the day, with the German DAX tanking 1.44%.
On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is down over 426 points at the time of writing.
The tech heavy Nasdaq is off over 139.
David Madden, analyst at CMC Markets, noted: "The tightening of monetary policy, and the projection of further tightening to come from the Federal Reserve yesterday has hurt investor sentiment.
"The US central hiked rates by 0.25% - meeting forecasts, and they cautioned about lower growth and inflation, while at the same time, suggesting two more hikes are in the pipeline for 2019.
"Traders are worried the US central will press ahead with monetary tightening plans against a softer economic backdrop."
Cruise ship operator Carnival (LON:CCL) was top laggard on Footsie, sinking 10.83% to 3,877p. after it posted mixed fourth-quarter earnings and weak guidance.
Carnival said it expected first-quarter earnings of between 40 cents to 44 cents a share, while analysts had been looking for EPS (earnings per share) of 45 cents
3.00pm: US markets open lower; Carnival weighs down Footsie
The Footsie’s rally has stalled, not helped by a negative reception to results from cruises operator Carnival PLC (LON:CCL).
Carnival was the biggest faller, shedding 8.1% at 3,996p after it said revenue in the first quarter of the current year was expected to be flat year-on-year.
The FTSE 100 was down 30 at 6,736.
It has been a bad month for the giants of AIM; earlier in December, ASOS was mullered after issuing a profit warning, wiping about a billion quid from its stock market value and today it was the turn of £3.2bn company Hutchison China MediTech Limited (LON:HCM) to get the treatment, albeit not so severely.
The shares fell 7.7% after HCM revealed an amendment to its licensing and collaboration agreement with US pharmaceuticals giant, Eli Lilly, over the development and commercialisation of the cancer treatment, fruquintinib.
The amendment prompted HCM to alter its guidance to facto in a US$12mln increased in expected full year innovation platform research & development.
Further down the AIM food chain, Chaarat Gold Holdings Limited (LON:CGH) was wanted after the independent members of the board waived the company’s right to require any shareholder with a stake of more than 20% to make an offer for the entire company should they wish to increase their stake.
Following the decision, a concert party, including Labro Investments Limited, non-executive director Martin-Wiwen Nilsson and Willem De Geer of investment vehicle Deer Invest AB, upped their stake in the company to collectively hold a 37.9% stake.
Chaarat shares soared by almost a third on the news.
1.40pm: Footsie claws back early losses
US stock futures were fractionally firmer Thursday as the market digested yesterday’s smoke signals from the Federal Reserve.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained almost 0.4% to trade at 23,408 while the S&P 500 contract also added 0.4%, to trade at 2,514.
Initial jobless claims for last week came in a much as xpected at 214,000, up from 206,000 the week before.
US Initial Jobless Claims (W/W) 15-Dec: 214K (est 215K; prev 206K)
- Continuing Claims (W/W) 8-Dec: 1688K (est 1663K; prev 1661K)
— LiveSquawk (@LiveSquawk) December 20, 2018
The FTSE 100 perked up a bit, reducing its decline to 16 points at 6,750.
It’s been a nasty year all over, with the FTSE 100 spending December at 28 month lows. But who were THE biggest losers of the wider FTSE 350 in 2018? https://t.co/RCj0UDMfFk #FTSE #FTSE100 #FTSE350 $TCG $SDRY pic.twitter.com/StK22YDOiS
— Spreadex (@Spreadexfins) December 20, 2018
Meanwhile, analysis of the Bank of England’s (BoE) policy-making committee’s unanimous decision to leave interest rates unchanged is still rolling in.
Howard Archer, the chief economic advisor to the EY ITEM Club, said there no festive surprises from the bank.
“The December minutes point to the MPC firmly in ‘wait and see’ mode ahead of the UK’s exit from the EU at the end of March. Indeed, the MPC considered that Brexit uncertainties had ‘intensified considerably’.
“Supporting the view that interest rates are unlikely to change for some time, the MPC downgraded its expectation for GDP growth in the fourth quarter to 0.2% quarter-on-quarter from 0.3% quarter-on-quarter, citing heightened Brexit uncertainties and slowing global economic activity,” Archer noted.
“Furthermore, the MPC acknowledged that inflation was likely to be significantly less than expected in the near term due to the sharp falling back in global oil prices. Inflation averaged 2.35% in October/November, below the 2.5% forecast for the fourth quarter in the November Inflation Report. Furthermore, the MPC now believes that inflation is likely to fall as low as around 1.75% in January and then remain below its 2% target for the subsequent few months.
“Supporting the case for higher interest rates further out, the MPC considered that the fiscal loosening enacted in the late-October budget was likely to add 0.3 percentage point to GDP growth over the Bank of England’s forecast horizon. The MPC considered this ‘would be expected to boost inflation slightly during the second half of that period. The near-term inflation news from Budget 2018 was slightly to the downside, however, reflecting the freezing or part-freezing of some duties’.
“Additionally, the MPC noted that recent pay growth had been higher than expected. Specifically, annual growth in both total and regular (which excludes bonus payments) earnings growth picked up to a decade-high of 3.3% in the three months to October. In the November Quarterly Inflation Report, the Bank of England forecast that earnings growth would pick up relatively gradually from 2.75% in 2018 to 3.25% in 2019 and 3.50% in 2020,” Archer reported.
Nancy Curtin, the chief investment officer at Close Brothers Asset Management, said BoE governor Mark Carney continues to be cautious in the face of uncertainty.
“The economic outlook is gloomy. While wage growth is improving there are concerns that consumer spending may be slowing. Recent shocks from retail sales figures, notably Asos, suggest that uncertainty may be affecting consumers beyond just the high street. With growth in 2019 set to be the weakest since the 2009 recession and the looming uncertainty of Brexit showing little sign of shifting, Carney’s progress on the path to normalisation is likely to be put on hold until the mood shifts,” she opined.
As the Bank of England leaves rates on hold, @SmithEconomics brings you three scenarios for the Bank's next stepshttps://t.co/bZQVKfP4cA
— ING Economics (@ING_Economics) December 20, 2018
1.00pm: Bank of England leaves interest rates unchanged
In what will in no way be interpreted as a shock decision, the Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Committee left its interest rates unchanged.
The FTSE 100 was down 22 at 6,744.
“Having updated forecasts last month and still finding themselves having to deal with the significant uncertainties of Brexit, the Bank of England’s non-committal tone today is no surprise,” said Tim Graf, head of macro strategy for Europe, Middle East and Africa at State Street Global Markets.
“The path of future policy rates is contingent on outcomes that are still in the process of determination. We don’t see sterling or UK rates moving much on data or central bank commentary alone, until some clarity over the nature of the UK’s working relationship with the EU emerges,” he added.
The Bank of England warned of growing Brexit risk in financial markets as officials voted unanimously to hold rates steady. https://t.co/8npjmLs1a4 via @WSJ
— Paul Hannon (@PaulHannon29) December 20, 2018
The Bank cut its forecast for UK growth and, in another move that would in now way be interpreted as a shock decision, warned that lack of clarity over Brexit is weighing on sentiment.
If you got the word "Brexit" in the Bank of England Minutes drinking game then I wish you well in your descent into an alcoholic stupor ????
— Shaun Richards (@notayesmansecon) December 20, 2018
Significant company news was thin on the ground in the morning session. Bus and trains group Stagecoach Group PLC (LON:SGC) defied the trend, rising 1.3% to 139.6p, after it announced the sale of its North American division for US$271.4mln.
In broker news, RBC gave the once-over to the UK banking sector, raising its target prices for emerging markets-focused operators Standard Chartered PLC (LON:STAN) and HSBC PLC (LON:HSBA), while trimming its price target for UK-focused Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LON:LLOY).
The new price target for Standard Chartered is 610p, up from 550p previously; the shares currently trade at 595.5p, up 0.3%.
HSBC’s price target is now 600p, up from 570p previously but still below the current mid-market price of 650p (down 0.4%).
Lloyds was down 2.3% at 51.06p after RBC cut its price target to 80p from 90p.
There was some halfway welcome news for the retail sector in the form of the latest retail sales figures but for clothes flogger Next PLC (LON:NXT), down 2.2% at 4,150p, that was overshadowed by JPMorgan cutting its price target to 4,700p from 5,240p.
11.40am: FTSE 100's losses slashed
At the rate the Footsie is recovering, stock market bulls might have an early Christmas present by the close of trading.
The FTSE 100 was down 26 at 6,740, almost 100 points above its low for the day, which was also a two-year low.
Some of the recovery can be put down to retail sales figures that were not as bad as feared.
“After the ASOS warning sent shock waves through retail stocks in London earlier this week, the bounce in UK retail sales will come as welcome, if perhaps only temporary, news but then, with practically every shop on the high street hopping on the discount bandwagon it is not surprising to see sales on the up,” said Chris Beauchamp, the chief market analyst at IG.
According to James Smith, ING’s economist covering developed markets,
“Away from the official data, the general sense from the British Retail Consortium and Visa is that Black Friday was relatively lacklustre this year; however, it’s worth remembering, Black Friday and Cyber Monday are still relatively new phenomena to the UK, making it a nightmare for statisticians to accurately seasonally adjust the data.
“Whatever the case, it’s seems clear that the Christmas trading period has been a particularly challenging one for retailers. Consumer confidence has fallen below the immediate post-referendum lows, perhaps suggesting that individuals are becoming more nervous about the potential risks of a ‘no deal’ Brexit. Importantly, unemployment expectations – which have remained relatively low since the 2016 vote – could begin to creep upwards if the volume of negative headlines continues to increase over coming weeks,” Smith said.
If retailers are breathing a sigh if relief this morning, another hard-pressed company, Kier Group PLC (LON:KIE) was under the cosh again after it released the results of its recent rights issue.
The shares shed 19p at 366p as the company revealed that just 38% of the heavily discounted shares in the recent share offer were taken up. The issue was underwritten, so the company will still get its money but a 38% response rate is hardly a ringing endorsement of the company’s prospects.
READ Kier Group shares drop as just 38% of rights issue shares were taken up
US markets are expected to open lower, with the Dow Jones tipped to drift down 80 points or so, it is worth treating the retail sales numbers with some caution.
10.00am: Market perks up a bit after retail sales data
UK shares have recovered a tad following the release of UK retail sales, which showed Black Friday was not the wash-out some had feared.
The FTSE 100 was down 63 at 6,703.
Retail sales in November rose 1.4% from October, with a strong monthly growth of 5.3% in household goods stores.
Retailers reported strong growth on the month due to Black Friday promotions in November, which continues the shifting pattern in consumer spending to sales occurring earlier in the year; the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.
“Retail growth continued to slow in the three months to November with strong increases in household goods offset by falling spending in department stores and food shops,” commented Rhian Murphy, head of retail sales at the ONS.
Today’s retail sales figures show Black Friday boosted sales in November. Our Head of Retail Sales Rhian Murphy comments on the findings: https://t.co/YqtdHDspGZ pic.twitter.com/bp3z9msltR
— ONS (@ONS) December 20, 2018
“Black Friday boosted sales in November helped by internet promotions with online spending accounting for over 20% of total retail sales for the first time. Household goods, department stores and clothes shops all saw a particular boost in their online sales,” Murphy added.
Lee Lucas, the principal of the Fashion Retail Academy, said, “A combination of strong Black Friday sales and a sudden decline in the weather has delivered an early Christmas present for the retail sector.
“After a subdued couple of months, this uplift in sales for November will give a nice and timely boost to the high street,” Lucas suggested.
“A large proportion of our festive shopping increasingly takes place over the Black Friday weekend as sharp-elbowed shoppers fight – more figuratively than literally – over the best available deals.
“The radiant effect of this boost will likely also linger into December as Brits double down on Black Friday’s expanding discount window, which for many stores lasts for weeks, and look to pick up last minute bits for Christmas.
“This is good news for clothing sales, in particular, which felt an unexpected chill during an unseasonably mild Autumn,” he added.
All that being said, although the number of Footsie stocks in positive territory has risen to 15, none of them are retailers.
Defensive stocks such as Shire, Severn Trent, BT, BATS, National Grid, United Utilities and Centrica form the main body of the minority of Footsie stocks in the blue but somehow airline companies International Consolidated Airlines (LON:IAG) – the owner of British Airways – and easyJet PLC (LON:EZJ) have squeezed their way into the group, with rises of 0.1%, as the price of Brent crude continues to slide; Brent crude for February delivery was US$1.76 cheaper (3.1%) at US$46.47 a barrel.
Another heavy oil user, Carnival PLC (LON:CCL), was, perversely, one of the worst performers, down 4.2%, ahead of its trading update this afternoon.
9.15am: Footsie follows the US lower after the Fed plays Scrooge
Well, so much for quietly running down into the Christmas festivities …
The FTSE 100 was down 97 (1.4%) at 6,669, after the US central bank served up a large bar of humbug.
The Grinch (Fed Chairman Jerome Powell) stole Christmas from a lot of folks with his interest rate increase. Anyone notice how it was announced just 5 days prior to Christmas for maximum damage to President Trump and our economy? pic.twitter.com/pLQ14PzRee
— Build That Wall (@BigBluetn65) December 20, 2018
“The markets were stuck in the first act of A Christmas Carol on Thursday, with Ebenezer Powell and the Federal Reserve ruining any hopes of a pre-Xmas turnaround,” said Connor Campbell at Spreadex.
“Raising interest rates for a fourth time this year as expected, the wording of Jerome Powell’s statement suggested the central bank was on track for two more hikes in 2019, down from the previously hinted at 3 increases; however, that was still two too many for investors, with the maintenance of the ‘gradual’ rate rise phrasing sending the Dow Jones doolally, especially since the Fed also cut its growth outlook for next year to 2.3%, a steep drop off from 2018’s estimated 3%,” he added.
READ US stocks in the red by the closing bell after Fed raises rates
Mining stocks were among the Footsie stocks hit hardest, with gold miner Randgold Resources PLC (LON:RRS) down 4.6%, copper miner Antofagasta PLC (LON:ANTO) off 3.7% while the two giants of the mining sector, BHP PLC (LON:BHP) and Rio Tinto PLC (LON:RIO) were 3.1% and 2.5% lower respectively.
Just three Footsie stocks were on the up, and all three were defensive favourites: drugs firm Shire Plc (LON:SHP), up 3%; fags maker British American Tobacco plc (LON:BATS), up 0.4% and utility company Severn Trent PLC (LON:SVT), which was up 0.1%.
Proactive news headlines:
Shares in Oracle Power PLC (LON:ORCP) surged on Thursday after Chinese energy giant Beijing Jingneng Power Company (BJPC) took a majority stake in its key project. Along with its other joint venture partner, PowerChina, Oracle is developing a 700Mw coal-fired electricity plant in Pakistan’s Thar province.
A “leading global pharmaceutical corporation” has signed a deal with Midatech Pharma Plc (LON:MTPH) that will see it evaluate the latter’s Q-Sphera drug delivery platform.
Block Energy Plc (LON:BLOE), the oil & gas explorer company focused on the Republic of Georgia, is confident it has the right assets. In a statement released ahead of the company’s annual general meeting (AGM) today, Paul Haywood said the company’s assets comprise a set of producing or previously producing licences in business-friendly Georgia, while it has a “first class team both here in London and on-site”.
Europa Metals Ltd (LON:EUZ) said phase two drilling at its Toral lead, zinc and silver project in Spain has shown “promising results”.
Eden Research PLC (LON:EDEN) has said its commercial partner, Sipcam Oxon SpA will be appointed exclusive distributor of its grape fungicide product, known as Mevalone, in the USA, Brazil, Mexico, China, Argentina, Chile, Japan, and South Africa.
Real Good Food PLC (LON:RGD) has sold R&W Scott Limited to the jam and preserves maker’s management team for £3.95mln.
Up-for-sale healthcare companies backer NetScientific PLC (LON:NSCI) has yet to receive any firm offers for any of the companies in its portfolio.
Greencoat UK Wind PLC (LON:UKW) has further expanded its portfolio with the acquisition of the unbuilt Douglas West wind farm near Lanark in Scotland. Construction is scheduled to start next year with a planned capacity of 45Mw when finished.
88 Energy Limited (LON:88E) now expects to finalise a farm-out agreement for its Icewine project in Alaska in the first quarter of next year after agreeing to a request to extend the deadline for bids.
Metal Tiger PLC (LON:MTR) has reported positive results from the first phase of drilling and preliminary conceptual mining study at the A4 Dome in Botswana.
W Resources PLC (LON:WRES) has fed the first mined ore into the new crusher at its flagship tungsten and tin La Parrilla mine in Spain ahead of schedule. Commissioning of the mined ore is now underway.
Curzon Energy Plc (LON:CZN) has suspended operations at its Coos Bay coal bed methane project in Oregon while it decides on an optimum plan to take the project forward.
Arc Minerals Limited (LON:ARCM) is making good progress with metallurgical testwork on oxide ore from the Kalaba copper and cobalt prospect in Zambia. Commissioning of a commercial scale demonstration plant starts this month with batch processing to commence early in the New Year.
Primary Health Properties PLC (LON:PHP) has raised €51mln from the private placement of an issue of new senior secured notes to help fund the company's strong future pipeline of acquisition opportunities both in the UK and Ireland.
Chaarat Gold Holdings Ltd (LON:CGH) said a group of investors has agreed to buy further ordinary shares in the company. A concert party, including Labro Investments Limited, non-executive director Martin-Wiwen Nilsson and Willem De Geer of investment vehicle Deer Invest AB, will collectively hold a 37.9% stake in Chaarat.
Vast Resources PLC (LON:VAST) has entered into a US$3.0mln bridge facility with the Bergen Global Opportunity Fund to finance further working capital including for the Baita Plai Polymetallic Mine and other leading projects.
i3 Energy PLC (LON:I3E) has said it continues to progress the necessary documentation with the UK's Oil & Gas Authority to achieve Field Development Plan approval in early 2019 for the company's 100%-owned and operated Liberator development in the North Sea.
HemoGenyx Pharmaceuticals PLC (LON:HEMO), the biopharmaceutical group developing new therapies and treatments designed to transform bone marrow transplantation for the treatment of blood diseases, announces that its former chairman Robin Campbell will step-down as a non-executive director and from the board, with effect from 5 January 2019.
Sunrise Resources Plc (LON:SRES), announced that its executive chairman Patrick Cheetham, purchased 5,000,000 ordinary shares on market on 19 December 2018, at a price of 0.099p each, purchased through his Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP). Following the transaction, the group said, Cheetham is now beneficially interested in 90,390,369 Ordinary Shares (including 5,500,000 Ordinary Shares held by his wife, Karen Cheetham) representing 3.7% of the company's issued share capital.
Range Resources Limited (LON:RRL) said it has signed an agreement with LandOcean Energy Services Co. Ltd. to pay the annual interest payment due under the convertible note of US$1.6mln by way of issuance new ordinary shares. The group said the interest payment is due for the 12-month period to the end of November 2018 as per terms of the existing US$20mln convertible note entered into on 30 October 2016. It added that the agreement to pay the interest in shares will allow the company to preserve its existing cash position.
6.40am: Batten down the hatches after the Fed upsets the applecart
The FTSE 100 index is expected to drop once more on Thursday, reversing Wednesday’s rally following sharp falls overnight by US and Asian markets after the Federal Reserve, as expected, hiked US interest rates and maintained most of its guidance for further rate rises next year, dashing hopes for a more dovish statement.
Spread betting firm IG expects the blue-chip index to open around 80 points lower at 6,685 having added 64.35 points on Wednesday to snap a four session losing streak.
Overnight on Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrials Average ended nearly 352 points or 1.5% lower at 23,323 spooked by the Fed which raised benchmark interest rates by another 25 basis points and said it expects to hike rates a further two times next year, a moderation from the three previously forecast but that was also as expected.
Jasper Lawler, head of research at London Capital Group, commented: “Whilst the Fed’s subtle tweaks to the statement, GDP and inflation outlook cast acknowledgment to the market’s concerns, the changes were by no means significant.
“The recent market chaos and tightening of financial conditions has not fundamentally altered the Fed’s outlook. Despite the Fed hanging onto its positive outlook, we do know that the Fed will only go forth and hike if data coming out of the US improves.”
The selling continued today in Asia, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 index dropping 3.2% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index shedding 1.5% as the Fed rate hike belligerence fuelled fears over a possible global growth slowdown in 2019.
Sterling cautious ahead of BoE decision
On currency markets, the pound found modest gains against a lower US dollar but stayed weak versus the euro on Brexit deal uncertainty and as traders awaited the latest UK monetary policy decision.
Although the Fed hiked US interest rates for a fourth time this year on Wednesday evening, no changes are expected when the last monetary policy decision of 2019 is announced by the Bank of England on Thursday.
Recent weak economic data, a general malaise on Brexit and the febrile political environment is now likely to lead to UK policymakers to take more of a ‘wait and see’ approach on interest rates going forward based on the various possible outcomes around the UK’s exit from the EU.
Retail sales looking grim
On the data front, although Tuesday’s UK inflation showed a fall to a 20 month low in November, as a recent retreat in petrol prices countered the impact of sterling weakness on Brexit worries, the latest UK retail sales data on Thursday will still likely make for grim reading.
October’s UK retail sales figures were pretty disappointing, falling by 0.4% month-on-month, and investors must be braced for another tough set of November figures – given ‘Black Friday’ comparatives - which will give key indicators for Christmas sales, the most important month for any retailer.
No smooth sailing for Carnival
The only scheduled blue-chip news of the week is expected on Thursday from dual UK-US listed cruises operator Carnival PLC (LON:CCL), which issues a fourth-quarter trading update in the afternoon.
Carnival’s shares have struggled a bit this year, particularly in the second half, although that has been true of most stock markets more generally.
The combination of higher fuel costs and a stronger dollar prompted Carnival to cut its full-year earnings per share (EPS) guidance for the full-year to US$4.15 and US$4.25 with its third-quarter update, although that would still beat last year’s outcome of US$3.61
Significant events expected on Thursday December 20:
Bank of England rate decision
Trading update: Carnival PLC (Q4) (LON:CCL)
AGMs: Block Energy Plc (LON:BLOE), Mosman Oil &Gas Limited (LON:MOS)
Ex-dividends to clip 0.57 points off FTSE 100 index: Berkeley Group PLC (LON:BKG), Burberry Group PLC (LON:BRBY), United Utilities PLC (LON:UU.)
Economic data: UK retail sales; US weekly jobless claims; US existing home sales
Around the markets:
- Sterling: US$1.2640, up 0.3%
- Gold: US$1,245.90, an ounce, up 0.2%
- Brent crude: US$56.49 a barrel, down 1.3%
City Headlines:
- The Daily Telegraph: US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell said that the American economy is “very healthy” and needs more interest rate rises, defying pressure from President Donald Trump to hold rates down.
- Financial Times: UK’s financial regulator has fined Santander £32.8mln after the lender failed to pass on £183mln to the beneficiaries of customers who had died.
- Financial Times: Citigroup is tightening its currency fund rules after taking a US$180mln hit when one obscure Asian client’s emerging-markets bets soured.
- The Daily Telegraph: The Treasury select committee will launch fresh scrutiny of the much-maligned business rates system in the new year.
- Financial Times: Private equity group TPG is to invest up to £500mln into one of a new breed of so-called superfunds aiming to shake up the UK pensions industry.
- The Times: Softbank’s mobile phone division lost 15% of its value after its debut on the Tokyo stock exchange.
- Daily Mail: Interserve shares plunged after the struggling government contractor merged its citizen services arm with its support services division.
- The Times: Patisserie Valerie has appointed RSM as its new auditor as the troubled café chain contends with a Serious Fraud Office investigation into a £40 million black hole in its accounts.
- The Guardian: A new investigation has revealed that Facebook gave Netflix and Spotify the ability to read and even delete users’ private messages.
- The Daily Telegraph: Begbies Traynor, Britain’s top insolvency specialist, expects more corporate failures next year as uncertainty around Brexit and woe on the high street take their toll.
- The Guardian: Elon Musk’s SpaceX has cancelled the long-delayed launch of a navigation satellite for the US military due to a technical glitch.
- The Daily Telegraph: Caffè Nero has not incurred any corporation tax on annual sales of £334 million last year as hefty interest payments wiped out its profits.
- Financial Times: Estonian prosecutors arrested 10 former employees of Danske Bank on suspicion of knowingly enabling money laundering over the largest dirty money scandal yet uncovered.
- The Guardian: An Alstom director has been convicted of conspiracy to corrupt at Blackfriars crown court following a prosecution by the Serious Fraud Office.
- The Times: A post-Brexit free trade agreement with the US faces staunch opposition in Congress until Britain lifts a ban on chlorinated chicken.
- The Times: The US is to lift sanctions on Oleg Deripaska’s energy and aluminium groups after the Russian oligarch relinquished stakes in the companies.