FTSE 100 edged lower in early trades through there was little firm direction as markets digested the latest from Ukraine and the rate rises in the UK and US. The blue-chip index shed 12 to 7,372.
Global infrastructure funds have reportedly approached Vodafone to invest in its US$16bn company Vantage Towers. However, the telecoms giant is believed to prefer an industry merger.
Ted Baker, the fashion firm, is being sized up by Sycamore Partners Management as an acquisition target. The private equity group responded to recent press speculation by confirming it is in the early stages of considering making a possible cash offer.
Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos’ space exploration business, has postponed its flight originally set for next week until March 29. Pete Davidson, star of Saturday Night Live, will also no longer be a passenger on board, with the company giving no explanation for either change.
Burger King has said the operator of its Russian, which includes 800 stores, has refused to close them. The President of Restaurant Brand International, the parent company of Burger King, said it has attempted to withdraw following the invasion but has been unsuccessful in doing so.
Cenkos said it has made a strong start to the current year as it unveiled 2021 results that showed robust growth across all its key financial metrics. Operationally geared, the independent institutional stockbroker posted a 47% increase in underlying profits to £5.9mln on revenues up 18% year-on-year.
BATM announced a strategic partnership for its Edgility virtual networking and edge compute solution with NEXCOM. Under the agreement, Edgility will be pre-installed on NEXCOM's 5G network appliance.