Hikma appoints new CEO, Unite bookings at 90pc for new academic year

London open

The FTSE 100 is expected to open flat on Monday, having closed up 0.57% on Tuesday at 7,785.72.

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Hikma Pharmaceuticals said Riad Mishlawi, president of the group's injectables business, has been appointed chief executive Officer, effective from September 1. Said Darwazah will step down as acting CEO and return to his role as executive chairman.

Student accommodation provider Unite said it had already sold 90% of its rooms for the 2023/24 academic year, reflecting strong demand as well as new nomination agreements with universities. “This is supportive of our guidance for full occupancy and rental growth of 6-7% for the 2023/24 academic year, compared with 99% and 3.5% in 2022/23,” the company said on Wednesday.

Newspaper round-up

EY has scrapped plans for a radical breakup of its global operations after internal disputes over the potential structure of the new businesses. The company started laying the groundwork for separating its audit and advisory businesses – under the codename Project Everest – last year, as the big four accounting firms faced mounting criticism about conflicts of interest between the two divisions. – Guardian

Ministers have been urged to ramp up spending on public transport in England and Wales to tackle the climate emergency, and to unlock a £50bn a year boost to the economy, in a report by the Trades Union Congress (TUC). The report released by the TUC, a federation representing 48 unions, argues for a radical increase in investment – calling for £18bn more a year to be spent on operating trains, trams and buses to help cut car use by 20%, improve quality of life and boost the UK economy. – Guardian

Tesla is in advanced talks to snap up part of a vast warehouse site in Milton Keynes as Elon Musk seeks to accelerate sales of its electric cars in Britain. The electric vehicle (EV) maker is preparing to sign a lease for a newly built logistics space in the city, property website React News reported. – Telegraph

The troubled investment group behind a failed bid for Audioboom, the podcast company, has launched legal proceedings against Robert Bonnier over a previously undisclosed loan it provided to the financier. All Active Asset Capital said it was suing Bonnier, one of its key associates, for his alleged failure to repay £1.3 million related to a “short-term secured loan” it had provided in March last year. – The Times

A judge in the United States has rejected a request by Jes Staley, the former JP Morgan executive, to sever the bank’s lawsuit accusing him of concealing what he knew about Jeffrey Epstein, the American sex offender and financier, from two related legal cases against the bank. The decision in New York is a defeat for Staley, who had said the trial for all three cases scheduled for October 23 left him too little time to defend himself against the bank’s “slanderous” accusations. – The Times

US close

Major indices delivered a mixed performance on Tuesday as traders looked ahead to tomorrow's consumer price index reading.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.29% at 33,684.79, while the S&P 500 was flat at 4,108.94 and the Nasdaq Composite saw out the session 0.43% weaker at 12,031.88.

The Dow closed 98.27 points higher on Tuesday, extending gains recorded in the previous session as market participants returned from the Easter Break in a more positive mood.

Investors seemed to be holding out for March's consumer and producer price indexes, due out on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, with both inflation metrics likely to provide markets with further insight into what the Federal Reserve may look to do with its rate-hiking campaign going forward.

On the macro front for Tuesday, the National Federation of Independent Business' small business optimism index edged to a three-month low of 90.1 in March, down from 90.9 in February to mark the 15th straight month the index has sat below its 49-year average of 98.