The FTSE 100 was expected to open 29.8 points lower ahead of the bell on Friday, after wrapping up the previous session just 0.04% firmer at 9,760.06.
Precious metals miner Fresnillo has agreed to acquire Canadian exploration company Probe for approximately CAD $780m (£424m) in an all-cash deal. Fresnillo said on Friday that the acquisition marked a "strategic entry into Canada" and the "prolific Val d'Or Mining camp" in Quebec, which has a long-standing history of gold mining and continued production growth. It also stated that it had added "a large resource base" of 10m ounces of gold, including 8m ounces of gold at its flagship project, Novador.
Low-cost computing firm Raspberry Pi said chief financial officer Richard Boult would step down in the second half of 2026, after seven years in the job to "explore new challenges". A formal search process has been started, the company said on Friday.
Renewables infrastructure investment firm Octopus Renewables Infrastructure Trust has offloaded an 80% stake in the offshore wind development arm of investee company Simply Blue Group. ORIT said the sale, to Kansai Electric Power Company for an undisclosed sum, represented "the next step" in realising value from its investment.
NEWSPAPER ROUND-UP
Almost 2m energy bill payers could be owed a share of £240m from old accounts that were closed while still in credit, according to the regulator. The latest figures from Ofgem show that about 1.9m energy accounts were closed over the past five years, with outstanding credit balances totalling £240m left unclaimed. - Guardian
Apple reported its first quarterly earnings since the release of its new lineup of iPhones on Thursday, beating Wall Street analysts' expectations. The company showed steady financial growth and a strong bottom line despite slow progress on artificial intelligence. The report comes just days after the company hit a $4trn market value for the first time. "Today, Apple is very proud to report a September quarter revenue record of $102.5bn, including a September quarter revenue record for iPhone and an all-time revenue record for Services," Apple's CEO, Tim Cook, said in a statement. Despite high overall iPhone sales, the company's revenue in China from the smartphone came in below Wall Street estimates. - Guardian
Record-setting copper prices have sparked turmoil for wind and solar farm developers who face rising costs to build green energy projects. Commodity analysts have warned that the cost of manufacturing renewable technologies - which rely heavily on copper - will surge after the industrial metal hit a record high on the London Metal Exchange. - Telegraph
When the Malaysian owners of Battersea Power Station bought the site out of administration in 2012, London was on the up. International money was pouring into the city's property market, which was seen as a safe haven for global capital. It is a far cry from the situation in 2025. Rising taxes, red tape for developers, inflation and a stagnant economy mean the rich who once flocked to London are now more likely to leave than remain. - Telegraph
The flotation of Shawbrook Group, the biggest initial public offering in London this year, got off to an encouraging start as grey-market share dealings sent the price more than 7% above the issue price in the first hours of trading. Shares trading on a conditional basis rose to 397p, which was 7.3% up on the issue price of 370p. They closed up 25p, or 6.8%, at 395p, with 11.4m shares changing hands. - The Times
Getting a mobile signal in Britain's remoter regions could become easier after the owner of O2 struck a deal to use Elon Musk's Starlink satellites, in an effort to tackle gaps in coverage. O2 Satellite will allow VirginMedia O2's customers to benefit from Starlink's 650 "Direct to Cell" satellites to send text messages and access the internet in so-called "not spots", where there is no mobile phone service. - The Times
US CLOSE
Major indices closed lower on Thursday after Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell hinted that the central bank may not be looking to cut interest rates again at its December meeting.
At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.23% at 47,522.12, while the S&P 500 shed 0.99% 6,822.34 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 1.57% lower at 23,581.14.