THE DAILY BRIEFING

US JOBS Job creation in the US slowed in November. So-called nonfarm payrolls, a key measure of employment, rose by 155,000, down from an increase of 237,000 in October. US unemployment stayed at 3.7pc, its lowest rate since 1969.

CYCLING BLOW Sports Direct is likely to shut six Evans Cycles stores in the first wave of closures since it acquired the retailer.

LONDON SWOOP Property giant Landsec has snapped up a 1.6-acre site in central London for £87.1m, which it said has significant development potential.

HEADING OFF The chief marketing officer of Unilever, Keith Weed, is to leave in May after nearly four decades at the company.

DEAL DONE Online loan firm Funding Circle has signed a £1bn deal with investment company Waterfall Asset Management. Waterfall will lend this cash to businesses through Funding Circle’s website over two years.

TRADING CRACKDOWN Highrisk trading websites face a fresh crackdown from the Financial Conduct Authority. Firms will be banned from offering binary options which let punters guess if markets will rise or fall – and can trigger huge losses.

AIM LOSS Myanmar social networking business Mysquar is to be removed from London’s junior stock market AIM. ON BOARD Builder McCarthy & Stone has appointed two new chief operating officers – Nigel Turner and Mike Lloyd.

CHARITY BONANZA Broker TP Icap raised £4.5m from a charity day when celebrities including the Duchess of Cornwall, actor Michael Douglas and TV star Keith Lemon took over the trading floor.

BITCOIN SLUMP Online currency bitcoin has slumped to a 15month low, dropping below $3,500 for the first time since mid-2017.