Johnson & Johnson began a voluntary recall of a single lot of baby powder in the US after a Food and Drug Administration test found traces of asbestos in a sample from that batch.

Schlumberger took a $12.7bn impairment, mostly related to its 2010 takeover of drilling equipment maker Smith International, driving the world’s biggest oilfields services group to a reported net loss in a third quarter characterised by increased market uncertainty.

Coca-Cola has lifted guidance for annual revenues and profits after demand for its eponymous drinks brand and new products boosted quarterly results.

Shares in Danone fell as much as 8 per cent on Friday morning, their biggest single-day decline in a decade, after the French food group lowered its full-year sales outlook. 

Renault shares fell sharply after cutting sales and profit guidance for the year, in one of the first acts by its interim chief executive Clotilde Delbos to try to restore order to the crisis-riddled French carmaker.

Logistics group Wincanton became the latest potential suitor for Eddie Stobart when it approached the Woodford-backed haulage group over a possible merger.

Hong Kong protests have caused regional revenues at InterContinental Hotels Group to drop my more than a third, while trading conditions are also tough in the US and mainland China, the company said on Friday.

The London Stock Exchange Group has begun the search for a new chief financial officer after it said David Warren will retire once he has helped to complete the planned $27bn purchase of Refinitiv, the data and trading group.

Japan’s consumer price growth fell to a near two-and-a-half-year low in September, data showed on Friday, which could increase pressure on the central bank to further ease monetary policy.

Stocks on both sides of the Atlantic pushed higher as investors welcomed an agreement on the UK’s Brexit deal with the EU and Wall Street got an additional boost from upbeat earnings in the US.

Juul Labs will cease US online sales of its fruity-flavoured e-cigarette pods as it battles a “lack of trust” and pressure from regulators over the health effects of vaping.

United Group, a private equity-owned cable company, is in exclusive talks to buy Vivacom, Bulgaria’s largest telecoms group, according to people familiar with the situation.

BHP touted its green credentials on Thursday, even as nearly a quarter of its UK shareholders supported an investor resolution calling on the world’s largest miner to end its membership of lobbying groups for the industry.

Industrial production in the US declined sharply in September, driven by weakness in mining, as lower global oil prices hit America’s oil patch, and automobile production, after a strike at General Motors.

Dubai’s biggest lender is to launch a rights issue planning to raise 6.45bn UAE dirhams ($1.76bn) as it seeks capital to fund its expansion.

The German government has revised down its forecast for economic growth next year from 1.5 per cent to 1 per cent, in a further sign of the slowdown that is clouding the prospects for the eurozone’s largest economy.

Investment in European food and agritech start-ups is expected to more than double this year as corporate and generalist venture capital groups increased funding in what has been regarded as a niche market.

Russia has said that a solution to the crisis in Syria must involve the transfer of control over the Turkish-Syrian border to Damascus.

UK retail sales stagnated in September after falling the previous month, adding to concerns about the resilience of consumer spending.

Domino’s Pizza Group is pulling out of four European markets as it continues its search for a new chief executive and chairman.

Unilever delivered weaker-than-expected third-quarter sales as slowdowns hit in India and China and a hoped-for recovery in Latin America failed to materialise.

UK retailer WH Smith plans to double its international travel business and strengthen its presence in the $3bn US airport market with a deal to buy Marshall Retail Group.

Nestlé, the world’s biggest food and drinks maker, pledged to return SFr20bn ($20.2bn) to shareholders over the next three years after completing the sale of its skin health business. 

Mining company BHP will decide whether to go ahead with a giant Canadian potash project in 2021 after it has spent a further $345m on final preparation work.