The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) and European stocks advanced on Thursday despite the eurozone unemployment rate rising from 6.2% in July to 6.3% in August.

According to the latest data from Eurostat, the EU’s statistical office, while the number of unemployed people was 11,000 higher than in July, it was 15,000 lower than in August last year, and 136,000 lower than in June.

Elsewhere, UK financial services activity steadied after a sharp fall. According to the latest CBI financial services survey, business volumes declined with a weighted balance of -36%, down from -24% in June.

Despite the deterioration in activity, sentiment was broadly flat, rising to +3 after a sharp fall of 52% in the previous quarter.

Firms expect conditions to improve next quarter, with volumes growth forecast at 37%. Profitability fell at a slower rate in the third quarter, coming in at -13% compared with -24% in June, however, it is expected to jump in Q4 (+26%).

Read more: Trending tickers: Tesla, Reddit, Alibaba, Fermi and Tesco

Headcount slipped 24%, but firms see the pace of reduction slowing to -7%. The survey also revealed that firms plan to increase IT investment over the next year, with uncertainty about demand cited as the biggest factor limiting investment. The share of firms highlighting this rose to 69%, the highest since 2012.

  • London’s benchmark index (^FTSE) was hovering over the flatline lower in early afternoon trade.

  • Germany’s DAX (^GDAXI) rose 1.3% and the CAC (^FCHI) in Paris likewise headed 1.3% into the green.

  • The pan-European STOXX 600 (^STOXX) was up 0.8%.

  • Wall Street is set for a positive start as S&P 500 futures (ES=F), Dow futures (YM=F) and Nasdaq futures (NQ=F) were all in the green.

  • The pound was flat against the US dollar (GBPUSD=X) at 1.3478.

FTSE Index – Delayed Quote • USD

As of 13:53:09 BST. Market open.

Follow along for live updates throughout the day:

LIVE 15 updates

  • OpenAI Valuation Soars to $500 Billion, Topping Musk’s SpaceX

    OpenAI has completed a deal to help employees sell shares in the company at a $500 billion valuation, propelling the ChatGPT owner past Elon Musk’s SpaceX to become the world’s largest startup.

    Bloomberg has the details…

    Current and former OpenAI employees sold about $6.6 billion of stock to investors including Thrive Capital, SoftBank Group Corp., Dragoneer Investment Group, Abu Dhabi’s MGX and T. Rowe Price, a person familiar with the transaction said. That boosted the US company’s price tag well past its previous $300 billion level during a SoftBank-led financing round earlier this year.

    That rapid rise underscores the investment frenzy surrounding the leaders of a technology with the potential to transform industries and economies.

    Sam Altman’s OpenAI is one of several companies including Nvidia Corp. now leading a global push to build data centers and develop artificial intelligence services, an undertaking that’s expected to cost trillions of dollars.

    Though it has yet to turn a profit, the US startup is helping fuel that infrastructure boom by inking mega-sized deals with the likes of Oracle Corp. and SK Hynix Inc.

  • September sees highest number of homes listed this year

    The latest internal data from eXp UK has shown that September has delivered a notable surge in market activity, with the firm recording an average of 81 new properties listed every day over the course of the month – the highest daily level seen across each month so far in 2025.

    In fact, almost 2,431 homes were listed with eXp UK in September alone, marking a 19% increase versus the total seen in August.

    This follows the usual seasonal decline seen during the summer months, with total instructions having fallen by 6% between July and August.

    The daily average of 81 new listings marks a clear uplift not only on the quieter summer months, but also on every preceding month of the year, with the previous 2025 peak standing at 72 new instructions per day in May and June.

    Adam Day, Head of eXp UK and Europe, said:

  • UK firms’ hiring plans weakest since 2020

    UK companies’ hiring plans are currently at their weakest levels since 2020, according to a news Bank of England survey.

    In the three months to September, businesses expected to keep employment steady over the next year. It is the first time since the quarter to November 2020 that firms did not intend to take on more staff.

    Policymakers at the central bank hope that a weaker jobs market will bring down wage growth and help lower inflation, which it expects to hit 4% in September, double its target and up from 3.8% in August.

  • How to avoid the stamp duty tax on a holiday home

    In the last year, it’s got significantly more expensive to buy a holiday home in the UK. In last October’s budget, it was announced that the stamp duty paid on a second home (known as additional stamp duty) had increased from 3% to 5%. This rate only applies to UK properties, but even if your primary residence is abroad you will need to pay this higher rate on purchase.

    The British government is not unusual in levying a property tax on second home purchases, and many European countries have similar policies in place.

    These tax changes have led to many holiday homeowners changing tactics and investing in properties they might not have considered before. We investigated the ways you can buy a holiday bolthole without having to pay a massive tax bill.

    Read the full article here

  • Eurozone unemployment rate rises to 6.3%

    The eurozone unemployment rate has risen from 6.2% in July to 6.3% in August, according to data from Eurostat, the EU’s statistical office.

    While the number of unemployed people was 11,000 higher than in July, it was 15,000 lower than in August last year, and 136,000 lower than in June.

    Bert Colijn, chief economist, Netherlands at ING, said:

  • Bitcoin price hits two-month high amid US shutdown

    Bitcoin (BTC-USD) climbed to its highest level in more than two months on Thursday as the US government officially shut down.

    The world’s largest digital asset by market capitalisation rose by around 3.5% in the past 24 hours, briefly touching $119,455 (£88,516) before pulling back to now change hands for around $118,500. This marks bitcoin’s (BTC-USD) strongest price since mid-August.

    Other major tokens, including ethereum (ETH-USD), XRP (XRP-USD) and solana (SOL-USD), gained by 5.5%, 4% and 6% respectively over the past day.

    The global cryptocurrency market cap today is $4.17tn, an increase of 4.0% in the last 24 hours. Bitcoin (BTC-USD) dominance is at 56.7% and ethereum (ETH-USD) dominance is now at 12.7%, showing that bitcoin is still the strongest asset in terms of investor appetite.

    Read more here

  • Thames Water creditors propose new rescue plan

    Thames Water’s lenders have proposed a new rescue plan with £5.4bn funding to prevent the UK’s largest water company from collapsing.

    A consortium of investors who hold much of the company’s debts, called London & Valley Water, have been locked in negotiations with the regulator Ofwat for months. The group said £12.5bn of debt will be written off, in what is expected to be the largest-ever loss on a UK infrastructure investment.

    Within this, class A investors will write off £4bn of their loans – a quarter of all class A debt – compared with £3.2bn offered in May.

    The creditors also said they would invest about £150m more in new equity capital than previously suggested, taking the total to £3.15bn.

    Mike McTighe, the proposed future chair of Thames Water under the terms of plan, said “from day one, we will inject billions in new investment”.

    He added that under a new company board, there would be a focus on “reducing pollution and rebuilding public trust so that by the end of this decade Thames Water can once again be a reliable, resilient, and responsible company”.

    Ofwat said it would review the latest plans.

  • Gold holds five-day rally amid Fed cut bets and US shutdown

    Gold prices steadied on Thursday, hovering around 0.1% higher after a five-day rally that saw it reach successive records. Bullion traded at $3,900 an ounce at the time of writing, about $20 below a peak set on Wednesday.

    The precious metal has pushed higher this week as the US government shutdown began, and as traders added to bets that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates following weak private payrolls data.

    Non-farm payroll numbers, which are due Friday, will now be delayed because of the shutdown, which also risks increasing pressure on the dollar and strengthening gold prices.

    Traders have added to bets the Fed will cut rates twice more this year to support a weakening labor market. Lower borrowing costs tend to boost non-yielding gold, which also becomes cheaper for most buyers when the greenback softens.

    The precious metal has rallied almost 50% this year, putting it on track for the biggest annual gain since 1979 — supported by central-bank buying and rising holdings in gold-backed exchange-traded funds.

    Monthly ETF inflows in September were the largest in three years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

    Silver also edged up on the day, after rallying to the highest in 14 years during the previous session, while platinum and palladium likewise rose.

  • Shein to open first permanent outlets in France

    Shein has chosen France as the location to open its first permanent physical outlets, occupying concessions in department stores in Paris, and then followed by five others in the cities of Dijon, Reims, Grenoble, Angers and Limoges.

    Shein told the BBC on Thursday that France’s “influential global fashion market” was a “natural choice” to test for physical stores.

    The company has previously opened temporary pop-up stores in cities such as London, Madrid and Paris, but has never operated a permanent physical shop.

    The new outlets are being opened through a partnership with retail property group Societe des Grands Magasins (SGM). The French company runs the BHV Marais and Galeries Lafayette department stores that will house what Shein calls “shop-in-shop” outlets.

    Shein said the outlets will create around 200 jobs in France, adding that the collaboration aimed to revitalise city centres and department stores in the country.

  • Unite: Tesco making huge profits as workers and families struggle

    Responding to Tesco’s (TSCO.L) half-year results, Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said:

  • Tesco raises profit outlook

    Tesco (TSCO.L) has raised its profit outlook after sales were boosted by an unusually hot summer.

    Britain’s biggest retailer saw like-for-like sales rise 4.9% in the first half of the year, while across the group like-for-like sales (at outlets open at least a year) climbed by 4.3%.

    Overall revenues rose by 5.1% to £33.1bn but profit before tax fell by 6.3% to £1.3bn.

    Tesco said it had won market share from its rivals, but highlighted rising competition and “continued pressure on household budgets”. It said it had reduced prices on 6,500 products, with an average reduction of 9%.

    The grocer now expects to make an adjusted operating profit of between £2.9bn and £3.1bn this year, up from between £2.7bn and £3bn previously.

    Ken Murphy, the chief executive, said:

  • Shawbrook to weigh London IPO filing

    Shawbrook Group, the British bank backed by BC Partners and Pollen Street, is considering announcing plans for a potential initial public offering in London as soon as the coming days, according to people familiar with the matter.

    Bloomberg has the details:

    No final decisions have been made and the plans could still change, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. A spokesperson for Pollen Street didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. Representatives for BC Partners and Shawbrook declined to comment.

    The bank could seek a valuation of about £2bn ($2.7bn), Bloomberg News reported in July. Shawbrook’s listing would be a welcome boost for London’s IPO market, after the UK dropped out of the top 20 global venues for first-time share sales last quarter.

    The Essex-based lender offers specialist loans to UK businesses and had £15.8bn in loans on its balance sheet at the end of June, according to its interim financial report. Its statutory profit after tax reached £119.5m in the first half of the year, up from £94m for the same period in 2024, according to the filing.

    Shawbrook previously went public in London in 2015 and traded there until BC Partners and Pollen Street led a consortium that acquired the bank in 2017.

    The potential IPO would be a boost — and a test — for the London Stock Exchange, which has overhauled its listing rules in an effort to reinvigorate its public markets.

  • Financial services activity steadies after sharp fall

    UK financial services activity steadied after a sharp fall, according to the latest CBI financial services survey overnight. Business volumes declined with a weighted balance of -36%, down from -24% in June.

    Despite the deterioration in activity, sentiment was broadly flat, rising to +3 after a sharp fall of 52% in the previous quarter.

    Firms expect conditions to improve next quarter, with volumes growth forecast at 37%. Profitability fell at a slower rate in the third quarter, coming in at -13% compared with -24% in June, however, it is expected to jump in Q4 (+26%).

    Headcount slipped 24%, but firms see the pace of reduction slowing to -7%. The survey also revealed that firms plan to increase IT investment over the next year, with uncertainty about demand cited as the biggest factor limiting investment. The share of firms highlighting this rose to 69%, the highest since 2012.

    Louise Hellem, CBI chief economist, said:

  • Asia and US overnight

    Stocks in Asia advanced overnight, with the Nikkei (^N225) rising 0.9% on the day in Japan, supported by robust performance in local mining stocks, while the Hang Seng (^HSI) jumped 1.8% in Hong Kong after resuming trading post holiday. The Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) remained closed.

    In South Korea, the Kospi (^KS11) added 2.7% on the day, standing out as the top performer, reaching a record high.

    It came after consumer inflation in the country accelerated in September, rising 2.1% year-on-year. This slightly exceeded the 2.0% forecast, and recovered from a nine-month low of 1.7% recorded the previous month.

    Across the pond on Wall Street, the S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose 0.3%, reaching another record high despite the shutdown noise and an ADP report showing a contraction in private payrolls.

    At the same time, fresh fears over the US labour market saw Treasury yields decline sharply as investors priced in more rate cuts.

    The tech-heavy Nasdaq (^IXIC) was 0.4% higher and the Dow Jones (^DJI) also gained 0.1%.

    Jim Reid at Deutsche Bank said:

    KSE – Delayed Quote • USD

  • Coming up

    Good morning, and welcome back to our markets live blog. As usual we will be taking a deep dive into what’s moving markets and happening across the global economy.

    To the day ahead we have central bank speakers including the Fed’s Logan, ECB Vice President de Guindos, the ECB’s Makhlouf and Villeroy, and BoJ Deputy Governor Uchida.

    Here’s a snapshot of what’s on the agenda:

    • 7am: Trading updates: Tesco, SSE

    • 10am: Eurozone unemployment rate for August

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