11.09am: Oil ticks up as all eyes on Syria and Assad regime collapse
Oil prices edged upwards on Monday morning in the wake of Bashar al-Assad’s ousting as Syrian president over the weekend.
Benchmark Brent crude climbed just under 1% to US$71.84 a barrel over the course of the morning as eyes were fixed on the Middle East and another wave of uncertainty there.
A swift offensive culminated in Syrian rebels announcing on Sunday that they had overthrown Bashar al-Assad’s regime, ending a 50-year family dynasty.
“With everyone awaiting clarity over who and how the country will be run, we have seen a great degree of uncertainty as this pivotal region falls into new hands,” Scope Markets analyst Joshua Mahony commented.
“Crucially, the strategic geographical importance of the country means that we could see significant knock-on implications for the Iranian transport of weapons to Hezbollah, and Russian military presence in the region.
“Everyone will be watching closely for signs over whether this development will improve or worsen the ongoing conflicts in the region.”
Also buoying oil was commentary coming from China over fresh stimulus measures to boost its flagging economy next year.
FTSE 100 heavyweights BP PLC (LSE:NYSE:BP (LON:BP).) and Shell PLC (LSE:LON:SHEL, NYSE:SHEL) both gained on the back of oil’s rise, climbing by 2.2% and 1.1% respectively.
Overall, the index gained 20 points to reach 8,329.
10.46am: Frasers at two-year low as Boohoo spat weighs
Frasers Group PLC (LSE:FRAS) hit a two-year low on Monday as the Sports Direct (LON:FRAS) owner’s bid to bag seats on Boohoo Group PLC (AIM:BOO)’s board took yet another turn.
Boohoo earlier in the day unveiled backing from proxy advisor Institutional Shareholder Services in urging shareholders to reject Frasers’ advance.
Frasers boss Mike Ashley subsequently lashed out at Boohoo in response, accusing its board in an open letter of “gross mismanagement”.
He wrote to Boohoo investors: “What has the board been doing to create such a catastrophic mess of your company, driving the share price down by 90% in five years?”... Read more
Frasers shares dipped 2.2% to 624p on Monday and to their lowest since late 2022.
9.55am: Domino's slides as Budget hit clouds franchise spat resolution
Domino's Pizza Group (LON:DOM) PLC sat among the biggest fallers on London’s main market after news a spat with franchise owners had been resolved was clouded by guidance around its Budget-related costs.
The pizza chain unveiled an agreement with franchise owners in a trading update on Monday following complaints that they were not receiving enough... Read more
It also noted higher labour costs in the wake of Budget tax increases would push up costs by an estimated £3 million annually from next year.
Shares fell 3.1% on the back of the update, placing Domino’s among the FTSE All-share’s biggest losers.
9.27am: Facebook (NASDAQ:META) cut 700 UK staff last year
Facebook shed over 700 employees in the UK as parent company Meta Platforms Inc (NASDAQ:META, ETR:FB2A, SWX:FB) carried out its first round of redundancies ever, accounts showed on Monday.
Staff were laid off at a cost of £79 million, with the cuts coming as 11,000 jobs were axed in a reversal of investments made during a pandemic-fuelled jump in demand.
Some 10% of Facebook’s UK staff were cut as a result, taking its total headcount in the country to 6,338, with sales support, administration and marketing teams most affected.
9.05am: Miners boosted on fresh China stimulus hopes
Miners helped to buoy the FTSE 100 early on Monday on speculation around fresh stimulus measures by China to boost its flagging economy.
An official readout from a key policy meeting showed China pledging “more proactive” fiscal measures and “moderately” looser monetary policy for next year.
Hopes for further measures to tackle issues within the world’s second-largest economy, including its property sector, follow a string of packages announced earlier in the year.
Antofagasta PLC (LSE:LON:ANTO) led risers in London on Monday as a result, followed by Glencore PLC (LSE:LON:GLEN), Rio Tinto (LON:RIO) PLC and Anglo American PLC (LSE:LON:AAL).
Asia-focussed insurer Prudential PLC (LSE:LON:PRU) also sat among the day’s winners on the news.
Overall, the FTSE 100 ticked up 22 points to 8,331.
8.51am: Brave Bison (AIM:BBSN) unveils £10.6mln sports marketing tie-up
Brave Bison (AIM:BBSN) Group PLC has announced a £10.6 million deal to buy sports marketing firm Engage Digital Partners Ltd.
Engage will help expand Brave Bison (AIM:BBSN) sports and entertainment division to generate £16 million in pro-former turnover, the digital advertising company said on Monday.
“Engage boast an enviable client roster including Formula 1, ICC and Real Madrid, and deep expertise in sports media and digital content strategy,” Brave Bison (AIM:BBSN) chair Oliver Green said.
“This combination comes at a time when rights holders and sports federations are looking to maximise their IP, boost fan engagement and really drive commercial performance using a more data-driven approach”... Read more
8.25am: FTSE 100 gains early on
London’s blue-chip index started the week off in positive fashion, gaining 22 points to reach 8,331 in early trading.
WPP PLC (LSE:LON:WPP) led risers early on following reports sector peers Omnicom and Weber Shandwick were negotiating a $30 billion mega merger.
Miners also sat among gainers as trading got underway, while Frasers Group PLC (LSE:FRAS) topped the fallers in the wake of Boohoo Group PLC (AIM:BOO)’s latest plea to shareholders to reject its leadership challenge.
8.15am: Job vacancies drop at sharpest rate since pandemic
Demand for jobs waned as business confidence dropped last month, sending vacancies down by the sharpest rate since the pandemic.
KPMG and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation on Monday highlighted a “sharp and accelerated” drop in demand for staff through November.
Their permanent placement index, measuring whether businesses expanded or trimmed headcount, fell from 44.1 to 40.7 last month.
Vacancies faced the steepest drop since August 2020 as a result, as November also brought the 13th successive monthly decline for staff demand.
Accountancy BDO separately reported business confidence had fallen to its lowest level since January 2023 in November, while its output index entered contraction territory.
“Businesses are having to weigh up the prospect of increasing employee costs following the Budget, which has led to an accelerated slowdown in hiring activity across the board,” KPMG chief executive Jon Holt said.
He added the prospect of further rate cuts and government investment pledges could boost business confidence and help to stabilise the job market in the months ahead.
7.51am: Boohoo urges shareholders to reject Mike Ashley's leadership challenge again
Boohoo Group PLC (AIM:BOO) has urged shareholders to reject efforts by Mike Ashley’s Frasers Group PLC (LSE:FRAS) to secure seats on its board once again.
Having previously accused Ashley of an “ulterior motive”, Boohoo on Monday highlighted a recommendation from proxy advisor Institutional Shareholder Services that investors oppose Frasers’ move.
“ISS states that Frasers has offered a superficial view of performance and no specific plans for change,” Boohoo pointed out in a statement.
Boohoo added ISS had noted “the two Frasers candidates, Mike Ashley and Mike Lennon, have real conflicts of interest”.
Boohoo has been locked in a spat with its largest shareholder, Frasers, since launching a review earlier this year, which prompted speculation over a split of the business which includes Debenhams and PrettyLittleThings... Read more
7.20am: Stocks seen higher
Futures had the FTSE 100 just edging higher on Monday, by 2 points to 8,322.
London’s blue chips had racked up a 21-point gain over the course of last week, but ended Friday in losing fashion ahead of a busy week on the macroeconomic front.
Both UK gross domestic product and US inflation figures are due over the coming days as markets look to interest rate decisions by both the Federal Reserve and Bank of England later in the month.
Overnight, Asian markets were largely in the red, with South Korea’s Kospi down 2.8% on continued political uncertainty in the wake of last week’s brief martial law declaration.
5.00am: Monday's schedule
Monday is set to bring a quieter day on the reporting front, before US inflation and UK gross domestic product mark highlights in a busy week.
Announcements due:
US earnings: MongoDB (NASDAQ:MDB) Inc, Oracle Corporation (NYSE:ORCL)
AGMs: Hemogenyx Pharmaceuticals PLC, International Biotechnology Trust PLC, Marwyn Value Investors, Plexus Holdings PLC (LON:PLEX), Softcat (LON:SCTS) PLC
Economic announcements: Wholesales Inventories (US)