US stocks saw mixed movements on Monday, while the UK’s FTSE 100 (^FTSE) dipped, as investors looked ahead to the US Federal Reserve’s last interest rate decision of the year.
The Fed is widely expected to announce a quarter-point rate cut on Wednesday, lowering the federal funds target range to 3.5% to 3.75%.
Data released on Friday showed the Fed’s preferred measure of inflation cooled slightly, adding to bets of a rate cut. The core September personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index reading, which was delayed due to the US government shutdown, showed 2.8% growth on an annual basis, which was slightly lower than 2.9% in August.
Investors will be listening closely to comments from Fed chair Jerome Powell on Wednesday for any clues on the central bank’s rate cutting path for the year ahead.
Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “Anything other than a quarter-point cut to Fed Funds Rates on Wednesday will come as a big surprise but cast your eyes forward 12 months and the waters become much muddier.”
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“Markets see two further quarter point cuts as the most likely outcome but the probability of a dovish third cut, or just a hawkish single cut isn’t that far behind,” he said. “It’s commentary for 2026 and beyond that’s likely to be the key focus for markets.”
In addition to the Fed’s interest rate decision, investors will also be keeping an eye on UK economic growth data for October, due out on Friday.
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London’s premier index, the FTSE 100 (^FTSE) edged 0.2% lower to 9,645 points at the time of writing on Monday.
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Germany’s DAX (^GDAXI) gained 0.2%.
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In France, the CAC 40 (^FCHI) declined 0.2%.
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The pan-European STOXX 600 (^STOXX) dipped 0.2%.
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The pound was little changed against the dollar (GBPUSD=X), trading at $1.3326 at the time of writing.
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Over in the US, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) was little changed shortly after the open, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) rose roughly 0.3%. Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell 0.3% above the flatline.
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Paramount launches $108bn offer for Warner Bros. Discovery
Paramount Skydance (PSKY) launched a $108bn offer to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), rivalling Netflix’s (NFLX) $72bn deal for the storied studio.
Shares in Paramount popped 4% on Monday, after the company said it was making an all-cash offer for Warner Bros. Discovery of $30 per share, equating to an enterprise value of $108.4bn.
Paramount said that its offer provided a “superior alternative” to Netflix’s transaction.
David Ellison, CEO of Paramount, said: “WBD shareholders deserve an opportunity to consider our superior all-cash offer for their shares in the entire company.
“Our public offer, which is on the same terms we provided to the Warner Bros. Discovery Board of Directors in private, provides superior value, and a more certain and quicker path to completion.”
Warner Bros. Discovery shares jumped 6% following the news, while Netflix shares declined 4%.
Spokespeople for Netflix and Warner Bros. Discovery had not responded to Yahoo Finance UK‘s request for comment at the time of writing.
The main S&P 500 (^GSPC) was little changed shortly after the opening bell in New York on Monday, while the tech-focused Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) edged 0.1% higher and the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) dipped 0.1%.
Find out more on Wall Street movements from our US colleagues here.
Tech company IBM (IBM) has entered into an agreement to buy data streaming firm Confluent (CFLT), according to an announcement on Monday.
The deal will see IBM buy all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Confluent for $31 per share, representing an enterprise value of $11bn.
The companies expect the deal to close by the middle of 2026, subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals.
Arvind Krishna, CEO of IBM, said: “IBM and Confluent together will enable enterprises to deploy generative and agentic AI [artificial intelligence] better and faster by providing trusted communication and data flow between environments, applications and APIs [application programming interface]. Data is spread across public and private clouds, datacenters and countless technology providers.”
“With the acquisition of Confluent, IBM will provide the smart data platform for enterprise IT, purpose-built for AI,” he said.
IBM shares were little changed in pre-market trading on Monday shortly before the open in New York, while Confluent shares soared 29%.
The UK’s financial watchdog unveiled measures on Monday to encourage a stronger investment culture.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said that its new proposed rules for investment product information were aimed at helping support firms to innovate and make investing more engaging for consumers.
The regulator said that it is setting a clearer boundary between retail and professional investors, but that the threshold to qualify as a professional investor would remain high.
Simon Walls, executive director of markets at the FCA, said: “Today’s measures support investment risk culture right along the spectrum. They ensure that firms can compete to give retail customers material that informs and engages them.
“They also draw a brighter line for professional markets, defined by contracting parties, informed consent, and regulation that is proportionate to that.”
Average two and five-year fixed mortgage rates have fallen to their lowest levels since the start of September 2022, before the Liz Truss government’s “mini-budget”.
The latest Moneyfacts UK Mortgage Trends Treasury report showed that average rates on two-year fixed deals fell to 4.86% and 4.91% on five-year fixed deals.
Overall product choice rose month-on-month to top 7,000 options, though activity led to a fall in the average shelf-life of a mortgage to 18 days.
Rachel Springall, finance expert at Moneyfacts, said: “Mortgage rates continue on the downward trend and November was particularly fruitful for fixed rate cuts.
“The re-pricing by lenders led to the average five-year fixed rate dropping below 5% for the first time in over two years and sits at its lowest point since before the ‘mini-Budget’ in September 2022, alongside its two-year counterpart.”
Yahoo Finance UK’s Pedro Goncalves writes:
Gold prices were mixed on Monday morning but were back above the $4,200 level as expectations of a US interest rate cut weighed on the dollar ahead of this week’s Federal Reserve policy meeting.
Gold futures slipped 0.1% to $4,238.30 an ounce while spot gold rose 0.3% to $4,209.73 at the time of writing.
“Gold prices have recently returned to around $4,200 per ounce, underpinned by increased risk aversion and growing expectations of a 25bp rate cut by the Federal Reserve (Fed) at its 9-10 December meeting,” HSBC analysts wrote in a note.
“The recent weakness in the broad USD − reflected by the US Dollar Index falling below 99 − has further supported gold prices, given their typically inverse relationship.”
Read more on commodity and currency moves here.
Our US colleagues write:
US stock futures moved higher on Monday as Wall Street headed into a pivotal week dominated by the Federal Reserve’s final policy meeting of 2025.
Contracts on the S&P 500 (ES=F) edged up 0.2%, while those on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) rose roughly 0.3% on the heels of fourth day of gains for both. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) hovered above the flatline.
The modest moves followed on the heels of a back-to-back weeks of gains for the major gauges. The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.3% last week, with the Dow (^DJI) and Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) advancing 0.5% and 0.9% respectively. Markets were buoyed by a tame PCE consumer inflation reading for September that indicated a muted impact to “core” expenses.
The week ahead brings a raft of economic releases, chief of which is the meeting of Federal Reserve rate-setters on Tuesday. The public has been keenly eyeing the Fed ahead of Wednesday’s announcement and press conference from Chair Jerome Powell, with confidence in a rate-cut reaching optimistic highs.
Read more on US market moves here.
Yahoo Finance UK’s Pedro Goncalves writes:
In London, shares in Anglo American (AAL.L) slipped after the miner said it had withdrawn a proposal to alter executive directors bonus awards from a shareholder vote on its merger with Canada’s Teck Resources (TECK-B.TO), following investor concerns over the policy.
Anglo American said the merger remains conditional only on approval to issue new shares and not on any changes to executive pay. It added that the remuneration committee will consult investors further on an updated pay policy at the 2026 annual general meeting.
Anglo had proposed amending its long-term bonus schemes so that if the merger was completed various executives, including CEO Duncan Wanblad, would be guaranteed a minimum of 62.5% of the shares that can ultimately vest through the incentive plan.
The Times has calculated that at current share prices, that would mean a bonus worth about £8.5m for Wanblad.
Anglo American said: “Whilst Shareholders with whom we consulted strongly supported the objectives of Resolution 2 and appreciated the very specific context for the Proposals, they nonetheless raised a number of concerns when considering more general remuneration principles.
“Anglo American strongly believes that the proposed amendment represents the most practical way to support the Merger process and the principles and objectives set out in the Circular but, having reflected carefully on Shareholders’ concerns, has therefore decided to withdraw Resolution 2 from the agenda of the General Meeting.”
Read more on today’s trending tickers here.
The Magnum Ice Cream Company (MICC.AS) (TMICC) was up 1% at the time of writing on Monday morning, shortly after beginning trading on the Amsterdam stock exchange.
The company’s market debut comes after consumer goods giant Unilever (ULVR.L) completed the spin-out of the unit over the weekend.
Secondary listings of TMICC shares are also going ahead in London and New York.
Aarin Chiekrie, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “The separation makes TMICC the largest ice cream business in the world, with iconic brands like Magnum, Ben & Jerry’s, Wall’s and Cornetto in its portfolio.”
“It’s already scooped up a 21% share of global ice cream sales, nearly double that of its largest competitor, Froneri,” he said. “The global ice cream market is forecast to grow by 3-4% annually until at least 2029. TMICC is targeting growth slightly ahead of this pace, up to 5% annually, driven by increased marketing investment, improved distribution channels and market share gains.”
China’s trade surplus reached $1.08tn over the first 11 months of the year, which was 22.1% higher than the same period last year, according to data released on Monday.
Exports saw than a bigger-than-expected rebound in November, growing 5.9% year-on-year, versus -1.1% in October.
Lynn Song, chief economist for Greater China at ING, said: “By destination, exports to the US continued to slow in November, despite the trade truce.”
“November exports to the US were down -28.6% YoY, a three-month low, bringing the year-to-date growth to -18.9% YoY,” he said. “It’s likely that November exports have yet to fully reflect the tariff cut, which should feed through in the coming months.”
Hello from London. Vicky McKeever here, gearing up to bring you another day of markets and business news.
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