Technology stocks led the advance for the broader US market as investors kept an eye on the strained geopolitics of the Gulf.

Fourteen EU countries have agreed to share the burden of receiving migrants rescued while attempting to reach Europe by crossing the Mediterranean, although only eight nations are “active” participants, French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday night.

Continental, Europe’s largest publicly listed auto technology supplier, cut its 2019 guidance and its forecast for production across the automotive sector, underscoring industry-wide difficulties.

Carl Icahn renewed his attack on Occidental Petroleum and its chief executive Vicki Hollub on Monday, saying the investor Warren Buffett “figuratively took her [Hollub] to the cleaners” after he pumped billions of dollars into Occidental to fund its $55bn takeover of rival Anadarko Petroleum.

Software maker Microsoft on Monday agreed to pay more than $25m to resolve US government charges into alleged violations of US anti-corruption law.

Odey Asset Management intends to accept Barrick Gold’s increased offer for Acacia Mining, ending its opposition to the £950m deal.

Bayer has agreed to sell its Dr Scholl’s foot care business to private equity group Yellow Wood Partners for $585m, the latest in a series of disposals aimed at sharpening the German group’s focus in the wake of its troubled Monsanto takeover.

Halliburton’s quarterly results added further proof to the divergence in the global oil industry as the oilfield services group was fuelled by overseas growth while its North American business lagged behind.

US agricultural trader Bunge and UK energy major BP and have agreed to form a sugar cane ethanol joint venture in Brazil, the companies announced on Monday.

Neil Woodford is among the investors to have ploughed another £50m into Atom Bank, as the first of Britain’s mobile-focused challenger lenders steps up its investment in an increasingly competitive market.

Julius Baer reported growth in its funds under management in the first half of the year, as a rebound in global markets helped the Swiss private bank.

Amerisur Resources, a UK oil and gas company whose assets are based in Colombia, is the latest London-listed small cap producer to receive a takeover offer this year after it received an approach from Paris-based rival Maurel & Prom.

French retailer Casino said on Monday that it has agreed its sell its subsidiary Vindémia, a retailer in the Indian Ocean, for €219m to GBH.

The French finance ministry said on Monday that it has fined retailer E.Leclerc a record €117.3m for “abusive commercial practices” that involved using its Belgian purchasing centre to put pressure on its suppliers.

Thailand’s exports shrank by less than forecast, while imports fell sharply, taking the country’s trade balance deeper into surplus.

Japanese brewer Asahi lost more than $2bn of its market value on Monday as investors fretted about its debt load following an $11.3bn deal to buy Anheuser-Busch InBev’s Australian operations.

The weeks-long race to succeed Theresa May is coming to a close with a new prime minister set to enter Downing Street amid continued uncertainty over Brexit.

Oil prices jumped late Friday after Iran seized two tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, stoking fears of rising tensions in the Middle East.

Wall Street ended the day in the red as investors weighed up an escalation in geopolitical tensions, earnings and prospects for a Federal Reserve rate cut.

India’s largest airline IndiGo posted its highest quarterly profit after tax on Friday, as it worked to assuage fears that a founder spat would impact operations.

London investor Pallinghurst Group has pledged C$200m in financing to Nemaska Lithium, a Canadian miner backed by Japan’s SoftBank, that hopes to develop a lithium project in Quebec.

Donald Trump took aim at the “faulty thought process” at the Federal Reserve, weighing into a controversy over a speech from the New York Fed president that sent markets reeling.

Sirius Minerals has launched a high-yield bond offering, a crucial part of the funding package for the giant fertiliser mine it is building under the North York Moors.

Shares in JC Penney tumbled more than 15 per cent in premarket trade on Friday following a media report the struggling US department store operator had hired advisers to explore debt restructuring options.