THE DAILY BRIEFING

BANKING SQUEEZE

Investment banks wrongly favour large clients and manipulate league tables when helping companies list on the stock market, the City watchdog has said. The Financial Conduct Authority is seeking to crack down on these practices which reduce competition and squeeze smaller players out of the market.

FLOP BANANA

Upmarket fashion chain Banana Republic is closing all its shops in the UK. The clothing retailer said it is shutting all eight of its Banana Republic stores in the country by early 2017, but shoppers will still be able to order items from its regional website.

PROFITS HIT

Budget airline Ryanair has warned its profits will be lower than expected because of the fall in the pound. The Irish business reports earnings in euros but makes 26pc of its money in sterling, meaning it will take a hit from the currency’s fall to €1.12 since the Brexit vote.

Boss Michael O’Leary said profits would be up 7pc rather than 12pc this year at around £1.2bn.

JOBS AXED

A German-owned rail freight firm is set to axe 900 UK jobs amid falling demand for coal and steel. DB Cargo, which is based in Doncaster, blamed Britain’s declining manufacturing base for the move.

IRAN DEAL

Vodafone has become the latest big Western company to announce a deal with Iran since sanctions were lifted in January.

The telecoms giant will assist Iranian firm HiWEB in rolling out and modernising its network and IT infrastructure. Shares in Vodafone closed up 0.8pc, or 1.7p at 226.15p.

PROTEIN PUNCH

A sports nutrition company used by former British Olympic cyclist Sir Chris Hoy has revealed plans to expand into the US. Science In Sport has appointed Tonya Wearner as its US country manager, in a bid to take its range of protein powders to new markets.

Shares were flat at 66.5p.

ENERGY CHECK

A new technology which allows businesses to use a mobile phone to keep tabs on how much energy they use is driving sales at Utilitywise.

The AIM-listed energy consultancy launched its app WiseLife in July. Shares rose 2.2pc, or 2.75p to 130.5p.

TUNNEL VISION

A number of Eurostar services are set to be cut as the company reviews its operations, the cross-Channel rail operator said.

In March, Eurostar said its underlying operating profit plunged by 38pc over 12 months, due in part to terrorist attacks in both Paris and Brussels.

BARREL BOOST

Oil and gas group Hurricane Energy said its second field in the North Sea achieved a flow rate of 14,500 barrels of oil a day. Shares fell 2.5pc, or 1p to 38.75p.