Shares in First Quantum Minerals, developer of a giant copper mine in Panama, jumped by more than 11 per cent on Friday on rumours it could be a takeover target.

The London Bullion Market Association has removed Michael Nowak, JPMorgan’s head of precious metals trading, from its board after he was indicted by the US Department of Justice for a “massive, multiyear scheme” to manipulate the precious metals markets.

New York City mayor Bill de Blasio has dropped out of the 2020 presidential race, ending a long-shot attempt to snare the Democratic nomination that failed to gain national traction and drew fierce criticism from the city he runs.

Swiss gold exports to the UK reached their highest levels in seven years last month, driven by strong investor demand for gold-backed exchange traded funds and a slowdown in demand for the metal in India and China.

Sanjeev Gupta’s first high-yield corporate bond has priced with an unusually steep double-digit coupon, after the UK metals magnate was forced to inject $150m of his own money as a concession to win over investors.

Shares in Trainline fell 6 per cent on Friday after investors including its biggest shareholder, private equity group KKR, cashed in on what was one of Europe’s most successful initial public offerings this year.

A rogue trader at Mitsubishi in Singapore has lost $320m through failed bets on the oil price in a case reminiscent of the scandal that brought down Barings Bank.

The pound rallied overnight after upbeat comments from European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker in which he indicated a Brexit deal remained within reach.

Rolls-Royce has warned of further disruption for airlines using its Trent 1000 engines, saying that aircraft will be grounded for longer than it had planned.

Investec has warned on its first-half profits due to “challenging market conditions”, Brexit uncertainty and costs related to its restructuring.

Alison Rose will become the first woman to lead one of the UK’s top banks in November, after being confirmed as the successor to the Royal Bank of Scotland chief executive Ross McEwan.

China’s central bank narrowly cut a key benchmark lending rate in another tentative sign of monetary easing as the world’s second-biggest economy grapples with a slowdown partly induced by a trade war with the US.

Heavy rainfall has paralysed much of Houston, Texas, with flooding that recalled the devastation of Hurricane Harvey two years ago. 

Australia’s banking regulator has failed in a legal challenge against IOOF Holdings, one of the country’s biggest wealth managers, and several of its directors, which it had accused of failing to act in the best interests of pension fund members. 

Japanese consumer price growth slipped to a two-year low in August, data showed on Friday, in a development that could complicate matters for the country’s central bank, which held off on unveiling any major new easing measures this week. 

US equities ended flat, with an afternoon slide leaving them worse off than their European and Asian counterparts as markets digested increasingly dovish signals from multiple rate-setting decisions by central banks across the globe.

Sterling climbed back over the $1.25 mark in a rally sparked by comments from European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker, who offered confidence the EU and UK can reach a Brexit agreement before the October deadline.

The Trump administration has issued visas to Iranian president Hassan Rouhani and the country’s foreign minister to attend the UN General Assembly next week in New York, as US officials debate how to respond to the alleged Iranian attack last weekend on oil facilities in Saudi Arabia.

Overstock.com founder Patrick Byrne has dumped all of his shares in the online retailer.

Ryanair investors have registered a big protest vote against pay after long-serving chief executive Michael O’Leary was granted a bonus that could be worth as much as €99m.

Walmart’s chief executive has been picked to head a group of leading US chief executives.

Donald Trump’s spat with the Federal Reserve may have taken on a new dimension, with his evolving call for zero or negative interest rates finally meeting some resistance from Jay Powell, the central bank’s chairman.

Impossible Foods, the company behind the plant-based burger, is looking to increase its reach among US consumers by making its first foray into the retail market on Friday (20th).

Poland’s development minister Jerzy Kwiecinski is to become the country’s new finance minister, a government spokesman said on Thursday.