Aviva to exit Indonesian market, AstraZeneca updates on bladder cancer treatment

London open

The FTSE 100 was called to open 124 points lower at 6,581.

Stocks to watch

Aviva said it was exiting the Indonesian market and selling up to its joint venture partner Astra International for an undisclosed sum.

The transaction is expected to complete in the fourth quarter of 2020 and is subject to regulatory approval and the completion of Bangkok Bank's acquisition of Permata Bank, Aviva Indonesia's bancassurance partner.

AstraZeneca said its Imfinzi bladder cancer treatment did not meet primary endpoints in a phase three trial against standard-of-care chemotherapy.

Newspaper round-up

A powerful committee of MPs has criticised Andrew Bailey, the incoming governor of the Bank of England, for his management of the UK’s main financial watchdog, saying it had “serious concerns about the culture and operations” of the organisation, including during Bailey’s time as its chief executive. The Treasury select committee said that it backed Bailey to become the new governor, saying they were satisfied he had “the professional competence and personal independence to be appointed”. - Guardian

Almost a million Virgin Media customers had their personal details stored on a marketing database that had been left unsecured since last April, the company has admitted. Records show that the database has been accessed by at least one person from outside the company, Virgin Media said, although it does not yet have any evidence that the information has been used illegally. – Guardian

The Italian government is to call for an emergency suspension of the EU’s Stability Pact to counter the COVID-19 crisis and clear the way for a blitz of fiscal relief, presenting Brussels with a political hot potato as the crisis escalates dramatically. Laura Castelli, the deputy finance minister, said Rome is exploring a request to EU authorities to waive the rigid limits on budget deficits until the storm has passed. This has never happened before - even during the Lehman crisis - and would amount to the nuclear option in EU crisis management. – Telegraph

US close

US stocks followed Europe's lead and headed south on Thursday as this week's wild ride for stocks continued.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 3.58% at 26,121.28, while the S&P 500 was 3.39% weaker at 3,023.94 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 3.10% softer at 8,738.60.