Proactive Investors -
- FTSE 100 hit day's low of 7,556.81
- US stocks called higher as CPI, Fed eyed
- UK to avoid recession says CBI and KPMG
Epstein's long shadow
JPMorgan Chase & Co (NYSE:JPM) has agreed in principle to settle a class action lawsuit with a victim of Jeffrey Epstein, the bank said in a statement on Monday, Reuters reported.
The settlement resolves one claim against the largest US bank in a proposed class action by women who say Epstein abused them, and by the government of the US Virgin Islands, where Epstein owned two neighboring islands and allegedly abused victims in his mansion.
Litigation is still pending between the US Virgin Islands and JPMorgan Chase, as are JPMorgan Chase’s claims against former executive Jes Staley, the bank said.
Epstein was a JPMorgan client from 1998 until he was dismissed in 2013. JPMorgan kept him aboard even after his 2006 arrest on prostitution-related charges and a related guilty plea two years later.
Epstein died in August 2019 at age 66 in a Manhattan jail cell while awaiting trial for sex trafficking
Soros passes the baton
Billionaire philanthropist and donor George Soros has passed control of his $25 billion foundation to his son, Alex.
Soros confirmed he had made 37-year-old Alex, a history graduate, chairman of his Open Society Foundation in December, telling the Wall Street Journal “he’s earned it,” in an interview on Sunday. He had been deputy chair of the foundation since 2017.
He is also in charge of his father’s “super PAC", a US mechanism to direct funds to political parties, the BBC reported.
Now aged 92, George Soros gained notoriety in the UK in 1992 after he made $1 billion by betting against the pound.
A glance at some fallers and risers
Risers
- Futura (LON:FUM) - up 21% to 52p: Shares jumped following the news that its topical erectile dysfunction (ED) gel, MED3000, received over-the-counter (OTC) marketing approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
- Ocean Wilsons (LON:OCN) - up 11% to 915p: Ocean Wilsons shares rose on Monday after it confirmed that it is undertaking a strategic review involving the company's 57%-owned marine services subsidiary, Wilson Sons S.A.
- SDX Energy (LON:SDX) - up 10% to 6.2p: SDX jumped after the oil junior confirmed that it has received multiple offers in regard to the sale of its Egyptian assets.
- Quadrise (LON:QED) - up 20% to 1.5p: Shares soared after the AIM-listed firm announced a site licence and supply agreement with Valkor for its carbon-reducing technology.
Fallers
- Cizzle Biotechnology (LON:CIZ)- down 5% to 2.2p: Shares dropped after the UK diagnostics developer announced a conditional fundraising of £350,000 by issuing new shares at 2.1p each. The funds will bolster working capital and further the development of early-detection tests for lung cancer.
- Ovoca Bio (LON:OVB) - down 13% to 6.7p: The company, which specialises in women's health, saw its shares drop following a delay in the results of its phase II study on Orenetide, a treatment for women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder. The setback is attributed to staffing issues at the Australian contract research organisation managing the study, which pushed the expected completion from June to August.
- Triad (LON:TRD) - down 9.3% to 145p The consulting firm's shares fell after it reported a decline in revenue and profit for the year ended 31 March 2023, while maintaining its dividend. The group recorded revenue of £14.9mln, down from £17.0mln in the previous year, while profit before tax dropped to just £9,000, down from £1.1mln, resulting in a loss after tax of £44,000 compared to a profit of £1.2mln in the previous year.
US futures point to firm restart on Wall Street
The main US stock indexes are expected to start higher on Monday, extending last week's gains as investors look ahead to the latest inflation data and the key Federal Reserve policy decision due this week.
In pre-market trading, Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) futures were up 0.1%, while those for the S&P 500 added 0.3%, and contracts for the Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.5%.
Investors are coming off a positive week for markets, with the S&P 500 posting its fourth straight week of gains, and brushing its highest point since August. On Friday, the broader market index added 0.1%, while the DJIA also rose 0.1%, and the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.2%.
With little on the corporate or economic agenda on Monday, investors will be eyeing Tuesday’s consumer price index (CPI) report for signs of easing inflation which could encourage the Fed to pause its recent string of interest rate hikes.
The latest two-day Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting will then conclude on Wednesday. According to the CME FedWatch Tool, the likelihood that the Fed will pause rate hikes at its June meeting currently stands at about 70%.
TickMill Group’s market analyst Patrick Munnelly commented: "Recent US data has presented a mixed picture, with monthly payroll data indicating a tight employment market, but other indicators suggesting a softening economy as previous interest rate hikes take effect.
As a result, it is anticipated that the Fed will likely take a pause and maintain rates at the range of 5.00-5.25%."