Financial Services Roundup: Market Talk

The latest Market Talks covering Financial Services. Exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.

1223 ET – EasyJet shares fall close to 12% on a report the European Union is preparing a review of airline ownership rules, putting the airline’s proposed takeover at risk. The review will look to prevent foreign investors from gaining controlling stakes in European carriers, according to an unnamed EU official cited by Reuters. EasyJet approved a 5.7 billion pound offer from U.S. private-equity group Apollo Global Management earlier this month, after previously backing a lower bid from Apollo’s American peer Castlelake. Shares in the budget airline fell as much as 15% following the publication of the Reuters story, before paring losses slightly. The stock closed at 5.85 pounds, a steep discount to Apollo’s 7.15 pound a share offer. ([email protected])

1040 ET – Dubai leads most major Gulf exchanges lower, while Saudi Arabia rises. Saudi Arabia bucks the regional trend, supported by gains in banking shares following strong second-quarter profits from major lenders. Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index rises 0.7%. The Dubai Financial Market General Index falls 0.5%, Qatar’s QE Index drops 0.4% and Abu Dhabi’s benchmark index loses 0.1%. S&P Global Market Intelligence says that the U.S. and Iran appear to be entering a period of sustained confrontation, below the threshold of full-scale war, which increases risks to shipping and energy flows through the Strait of Hormuz. It says the recovery in Hormuz traffic has stalled and military exchanges remain a key driver of near-term economic and financial prospects. ([email protected])

1036 ET – Bitcoin is down 1.2% to $65,613, after climbing over $66,000 for the first time since early June yesterday. Inflows continue to be seen for bitcoin ETFs, according to data from CoinGlass — with $203.2 million in inflows in those ETFs yesterday. That makes it six straight days that bitcoin ETFs have seen net inflows, which is encouraging after weeks of net outflows. But the amount of money that’s come back to ETFs isn’t meaningfully changing the fundamental outlook for bitcoin, says Li Xing of Exness in a note. “The recovery remains modest in a broader context, with July’s inflows still well below the combined $6.9 billion of net outflows recorded during May and June,” says Xing. ([email protected])