THE DAILY BRIEFING

BLEAK HOUSE Estate agent Foxtons reported a 6.4pc slide in thirdquarter revenues to £35.1m after a slowdown in London. Revenues for the first nine months of the year were down 11.9pc to £93.7m.

ADVERT RULING The Advertising Standards Agency has upheld a complaint about Purplebricks, ruling its TV ads did not make it clear that a fee was payable even when a property has not been sold.

CANCER REVIEW Tablets made by AstraZeneca to treat breast cancer are to get a priority review by US food and drug regulators.

IRON SETBACK Global miner BHP Billiton reported a 4pc drop in quarterly iron ore output following a fire at its Mount whaleback mine in Australia in June, but still expects to hit its annual production target.

TALKS STUMBLE Trade talks between the US, Canada and Mexico have ended again without progress. US representative Robert Lighthizer said there was ‘no indication’ Canada and Mexico would give in to his country’s demands for changes to the North American Free Trade Agreement.

BUSY HALF-TERM More than 1.3m passengers are set to travel through Gatwick airport next week as the airport prepares for its busiest-ever october half-term. BELGIUM CALLING London Southend Airport has launched a new summer route to Belgium, with Stobart Air running four flights a week to Antwerp, from June.

SALES DIP Fashion retailer Zalando posted a slump in third-quarter profits after investing sharply in expanding its growth and market share. The German fashion retailer said earnings before interest and tax are expected to fall between a £4.5m loss and a £4.5m profit.

PACKAGE DEAL Packaging maker DS Smith has bought Romania-based rivals Ecopack and Ecopaper for £185m. SILVER RECORD Miner Hochschild hit record production over the third quarter and is on track to mine 37m silver ounces by the end of the year.

IRAQ CONTRACT Embattled oil services firm Petrofac has been hired by PetroChina to supervise the development of a gas plant and power plant in Iraq for five years, in a contract worth £22m.