Hikma settles opioid claims with US states, Wizz Air passenger numbers rise

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The FTSE 100 is expected to open 55 points higher on Friday, having closed down 0.11% on Thursday at 7,622.16.

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Hikma Pharmaceuticals has reached an agreement in principle to settle opioid-related claims with US states, local communities and tribal nations, it announced on Friday. The settlement, covering cases related to prescription opioid medications, involves a payment of up to $115m in cash and $35m worth of naloxone donations, an opioid overdose-reversal medication. Hikma said the settlement was not an admission of wrongdoing, adding that it would continue to defend against any unresolved litigation.

Low-cost airline Wizz Air reported a 14.2% rise in January passenger numbers but load factor fell due to the conflict in Gaza and an increase in one-way traffic. The budget carrier on Friday said it carried 4.74 million passengers at a load factor of 82.0%, down 4.4 percentage points. Load factor measures the percentage of available seating capacity that has been filled with passengers. It reinstated flights between Aqaba (Jordan) and Abu Dhabi, starting from February 4 and announced it would restart operations into Tel Aviv in Israel, with routes from Budapest, Sofia, Bucharest, Krakow, London and Rome opening from the beginning of March.

Newspaper round-up

An oil and gas company owned by a major Tory donor, which has been fined for illegal flaring, has been awarded a licence to drill for fossil fuels by the government. This week, the government granted the right to drill for fossil fuels in 24 new licence areas across the North Sea. One of the licences was given to EnQuest Heather, a subsidiary of EnQuest. – Guardian

Water companies have been urged to invest their profits in cutting bills to “rebuild” trust in the tarnished industry, as suppliers in England and Wales announced costs would jump from April. Water UK, the industry trade body, said bills would increase by 6% or £2 a month on average next financial year – far more than the current 4% inflation rate. – Guardian

Ferrari has posted profits of more than €1bn (£850m) for the first time as wealthy drivers splash out on luxury SUVs. The Italian car manufacturer reported a record net profit of almost €1.3bn in 2023, marking an increase of more than a third on the previous year. Ferrari said sales had been driven by strong demand for its Purosangue SUV, which was in the “ramp up” phase in the second half of the year, meaning production is yet to hit full capacity. – Telegraph

Takeover talk surrounding Superdry has grown even louder after a new investor began stakebuilding in the embattled fashion brand in the belief that it could become a target. A Norwegian-based alternative investment fund has bought a 5.3 per cent stake in the Cheltenham-based retailer, according to regulatory filings. It is understood that First Seagull considers Superdry to be ripe for a bid after a series of profit warnings over the past year drove down its share price. Sycamore Partners, an American private equity company, and Authentic Brands Group, which owns Ted Baker and Forever 21, are said to have Superdry on their radars. – The Times

The owner of Facebook and Instagram has announced its first dividend after better-than-expected fourth-quarter ­results, sending its shares sharply higher. Meta Platforms, which also owns WhatsApp and Threads, a rival to Twitter/X, reported that revenues rose 25 per cent to $40.1 billion for the three months to the end of December. ­Analysts were expecting revenues of $39.2 billion. - The Times

US close

Wall Street equities experienced a notable rebound on Thursday, bouncing back from a significant sell-off in the previous session.

The resurgence in confidence came on the back of a less severe reading on a crucial gauge of wage pressures, after both the Federal Reserve and the Bank of England stood pat on interest rates this week.

At the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.97% at 38,519.84 points.

The broader S&P 500 climbed 1.25% to settle at 4,906.19 points, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite recorded a gain of 1.3%, closing at 15,361.64 points.

In currency markets, the dollar was last down 0.03% on sterling to trade at 78.45p, while it saw a similar small drop of 0.04% against the euro to 91.94 euro cents.