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Thanks for joining me. The world’s richest man, Bernard Arnault, has appointed his sons to the board of LVMH as it revealed increasing sales.
Alexandre and Frederic will be named to the company’s board, where they will join two of their siblings, in a scene reminiscent of the HBO drama Succession.
5 things to start your day
1) FTSE bosses fear falling prey to foreign takeovers | City leaders say their undervalued companies are at a greater risk from overseas buyers
2) UAE stake in Vodafone is a threat to Britain, ministers find | Telecoms operator at risk of ‘material influence’ by the Gulf state, Government says
3) John Lewis plans to accelerate job cuts after slashing redundancy payouts | Staff lash out at changes, calling them a ‘loud and clear’ signal of redundancies
4) Christine Lagarde hits back at ‘irrelevant’ criticism of leadership | European Central Bank president rejects talk of widespread unhappiness among staff
5) Ambrose Evans-Pritchard: China’s economy looks more unstable than ever | The country is in even worse trouble now than it was 16 years ago
What happened overnight
A post-Brexit trade deal between Britain and Canada has collapsed after negotiations lasting more than two years were halted by a row over meat and cheese exports.
Asian shares were mostly lower despite upbeat news on the US economy, with Japan’s benchmark falling after the latest data showed inflation has been slowing faster than expected.
Tokyo stocks closed lower after rallying to near 34-year highs as losses of chip-linked shares weighed on the market.
The benchmark Nikkei 225 index lost 1.3pc, or 485.40 points, to end at 35,751.07, while the broader Topix index fell 1.4pc, or 34.27 points, to 2,497.65.
Weaker price increases relieve pressure on the Bank of Japan to tighten its ultra-lax monetary policy, which has pumped massive amounts of cash into markets. The central bank is targeting 2% inflation.
Chinese markets ended a winning streak following a spate of moves by the government to shore up share prices and the property sector.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng slipped 1pc to 16,052.41, while the Shanghai Composite lost 0.4pc to 2,895.14.
South Korea’s Kospi jumped 1pc to 2,493.73. Trading was closed in Australia for a national holiday.
Global shares rose on Thursday. In the US, the S&P 500 achieved its fifth consecutive record high closing. Wall Street investors were showing some relief that the American economy was holding up better than hoped. Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities in New York, said the numbers “bode well for a soft landing.”
The S&P 500 gained 0.53pc, reaching 4,894.16, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average of 30 leading American companies rose 0.64pc to 38,049.13. The Nasdaq Composite index gained 0.18pc to 15,510.50.
US Treasury yields fell as investors bid up prices after the data showing faster-than-expected economic growth, along with an inflation pace on track to meet the Fed’s 2pc target.
The yield on benchmark 10-year US Treasury bonds fell to 4.128pc compared with its close of 4.178pc on Wednesday.
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