Brussels has confirmed that European banks and brokers will be able to continue trading on Swiss stock exchanges until June 2019, ending a threat to cut off market-access by the end of this year.

Google has said it will more than double its staff in New York over the next decade as the Silicon Valley search group announced plans for a major expansion in the city, where Amazon is also building its presence.

Russia’s gold and silver miner Polymetal has sold its Khakanja mine to a group of private Russian buyers for $30m, the company said Monday.

Bankia has agreed the sale of €3.07bn in ‘toxic’ real estate assets to the private equity firm Lone Star, the Spanish lender announced in a regulatory filing on Monday.

The Office for National Statistics said on Monday it would reform the way it accounts for student loans in the public finances in a move that will add over £12bn to the government’s annual deficit.

Shares in Asos tumbled more than 35 per cent on Monday morning after the online fashion retailer known for its fast growth warned on profits, adding to fears that the crucial Christmas trading period has been tough for UK retailers.

Access Bank is to acquire Diamond Bank to create Nigeria’s biggest financial institution by both deposits and assets.

Malaysian prosecutors have filed criminal charges against Goldman Sachs, alleging the Wall Street investment bank committed “gross violations” of securities laws in its dealings with the country’s scandal-wracked state investment fund 1MDB.

Shares in European retailers dropped across the board on Monday after online fashion shop Asos warned its trading “significantly” deteriorated during November.

Asos profit warning

Why are UK retailers in such trouble? For some time now, every news report has trotted out two reasons as gospel: the consumer slowdown caused by Brexit uncertainty, but, equally, shoppers choosing to buy everything online.

Denmark’s Saxo Bank has agreed to buy Dutch lender BinckBank for an equity value of €424m in order to better compete in light of growing competing in the online trading and investment sector, the companies announced on Monday.

Plans to merge two of the UK’s largest energy suppliers have been scrapped after SSE and Npower failed to reach a revised agreement to provide financial support to the new company.

Japan’s Hitachi is buying a 80 per cent stake in ABB’s power grids division for $6.4bn in its largest-ever overseas acquisition, as it seeks to become a global industrial powerhouse and its Swiss rival focuses on digital and robotics businesses.

Theresa May is coming under increasing pressure from senior members of her cabinet to end the deadlock over Brexit by testing different versions through a vote in parliament, as momentum for a second referendum on Britain’s membership of the EU appears to be growing. 

Shares in Vedanta Resources jumped on Monday after a court ruling paved the way for the restart of its copper smelter in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. 

The debate about immigration in the UK has been heightened ever since the Brexit referendum, with British citizens and politicians alike discussing the relative merits and problems associated with high levels of migrant inflows.

Equities movements were muted and foreign exchange markets were steady in early Asia-Pacific trading on Monday despite jitters on Wall Street late last week amid concern over the outlook for global growth.

Mexico does not plan to improve its latest offer to holders of $6bn in bonds issued to fund an airport that is now slated for cancellation, according to the finance ministry, despite a group claiming to represent 50 per cent of the bondholders having given it the thumbs down.

Canada’s ambassador to China was granted access to Michael Spavor on Sunday, one of two Canadians detained last week by Beijing for alleged “activities harmful to national security”.

Renault has urged Nissan’s board to call an extraordinary general meeting on Monday, a move that would allow the French carmaker to make key appointments at the Japanese company after the removal of its chairman Carlos Ghosn.

It’s all about the monetary policy, it’s all about the dum dum da dum. Investors tune in as central banks in the US, UK and Asia issue updates next week at a time of heightened market volatility.

Wall Street gave up the ghost on Friday as concerns about the global growth outlook triggered a fall of about 2 per cent across the broader market and saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average join other US benchmarks in correction territory.

A boardroom battle at Telecom Italia has escalated after the board of Italy’s former telco monopoly said it has received a request from shareholder Vivendi to call an extraordinary shareholders meeting to revoke five board members appointed by rival shareholder US hedge fund Elliott Advisors.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average joined Wall Street’s other main gauges in correction territory as declines topped 2 per cent in afternoon trade on Friday.