Morgan Stanley reported a drop in quarterly profit Thursday, hit by lower market activity amid global trade tensions and expectations for U.S. interest rate cuts.

Currency traders who were wary of positioning outright for a hard Brexit outcome may finally be throwing in the towel: heavy selling has hit sterling this month and metrics such as derivatives and positioning suggest no respite ahead.

Activist investor Edward Bramson is resigning from the board of Electra to focus on other commitments after leading a four-year transformation of the British private equity firm.

Activist investor Elliott has disclosed a stake in Saga Plc less than a month after the specialist tourism and insurance firm warned discounting was hurting its tours business.

Rothschild has agreed to buy a minority stake in British equity research and financial services firm Redburn for an undisclosed amount of money, as regulatory pressures push smaller companies to consolidate with larger players.

After months of relative calm in cryptocurrency markets, bitcoin exploded back into life in April with its sharpest price jump in over a year - but few people could convincingly explain why.

The European Union's markets watchdog has published draft guidelines to harmonise how performance fees are calculated for EU-regulated retail investment funds.

Britain's major banks have seen a growing number of business customers delay decisions on investments and borrowing in recent weeks, as the probability of a disorderly exit from the European Union inches higher.

Climate activists found companies more receptive to steps like cutting emissions or buying clean power this year, a new tally of shareholder resolutions shows, a trend proponents said undercuts the case for proxy rule changes sought by business groups.

The Bank of England said on Thursday it would look at whether rules are needed to help investment funds to cope with multiple requests from customers to get their money back.

Joaquin Guzman, the Mexican drug lord known as "El Chapo," entered a Colorado prison known as "the Alcatraz of the Rockies" on Friday to begin a life sentence after being found guilty of a raft of crimes including conspiracy to commit murder.

The U.S. military said on Friday that unarmed surveillance aircraft were in international airspace, monitoring the Strait of Hormuz and had been in contact with U.S. ships in the area as Britain said Iran seized two oil tankers.

Iran said it had seized a British oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz on Friday but denied Washington's assertion that the U.S. Navy had downed an Iranian drone nearby this week, as tensions in the Gulf region grew again.

Oil tanker Mesdar, which had turned in the direction of Iran, was boarded by armed personnel at approximately 1630 GMT but they have now left and the vessel has resumed its voyage, its British operator said on Friday.

The British-operated oil tanker Mesdar, which had turned in the direction of Iran, changed course again on Friday to head back into the Gulf, Refinitiv tracking data showed.

Britain said Iran seized two oil tankers in the Gulf on Friday and told Tehran to return the vessels or face consequences in the latest confrontation to ratchet up tension along a vital international oil shipping route.

British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said London would respond in a considered but robust way to the seizure of a British tanker by Iranian guards, and warned that Tehran would be the biggest loser if freedom of navigation is restricted.

President Donald Trump renewed his criticism of four minority women lawmakers on Friday, saying that they had said horrible things about the United States, and defended himself from criticism over his comment that they should leave the United States if unhappy.

British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt said on Friday there would be consequences if Iran did not return control of ships seized in the Strait of Hormuz, Sky News reported.

Kosovo's prime minister said on Friday he was resigning because he had been called to a war crimes court in The Hague to answer prosecutors' questions related to Kosovo's violent independence struggle two decades ago.

Lenders in Britain said demand for mortgages rose significantly in the second quarter and is expected to hold steady in the third quarter, a Bank of England survey showed, adding to other signs that a housing market slowdown might be bottoming out.

House prices in London fell at the fastest pace in almost 10 years in May, according to official data that also showed inflation hitting the Bank of England's 2% target for a second month running in June.

The European Union's markets watchdog has published draft guidelines to harmonise how performance fees are calculated for EU-regulated retail investment funds.

British wages, excluding bonuses, rose at their fastest pace in nearly 11 years, official data showed on Tuesday, but there were potential signs of future weakness in jobs growth, the economy's silver lining since the Brexit referendum.

Asking prices for British homes fell this month for the first time this year as buyers' confidence took a hit from the escalating uncertainty around Brexit, property website Rightmove said on Monday.

The cost of an annual comprehensive motor insurance policy in Britain rose 3.5% in the second quarter of 2019, lifted by a rise in the cost of claims, a survey on Monday showed.

The Bank of England should follow the lead of other central banks and say explicitly what it thinks it will do to interest rates in order to make itself more transparent, according to one of the British central bank's top officials.

The Bank of England could potentially need to cut interest rates to boost demand if Britain faces repeatedly extended Brexit deadlines and a slowing global economy, BoE policymaker Gertjan Vlieghe said on Friday.

The Bank of England might need to cut interest rates almost to zero after a no-deal Brexit, while repeated Brexit delays could also make a rate cut necessary, senior BoE official Gertjan Vlieghe said on Friday.

The Bank of England said on Thursday it would look at whether rules are needed to help investment funds to cope with multiple requests from customers to get their money back.

Saudi Arabia's King Salman approved hosting U.S. forces in the country to boost regional security and stability, the state news agency (SPA) reported on Friday.

Former Peruvian president Alejandro Toledo, facing extradition from the United States as part of a corruption investigation, was deemed a flight risk by a U.S. judge on Friday and ordered held in jail.

Joaquin Guzman, the Mexican drug lord known as "El Chapo," entered a Colorado prison known as "the Alcatraz of the Rockies" on Friday to begin a life sentence after being found guilty of a raft of crimes including conspiracy to commit murder.

A former National Security Agency contractor was sentenced in Maryland to nine years in prison on Friday for stealing huge amounts of classified material from U.S. intelligence agencies over two decades though officials never found proof he shared it with anyone.

The U.S. military said on Friday that unarmed surveillance aircraft were in international airspace, monitoring the Strait of Hormuz and had been in contact with U.S. ships in the area as Britain said Iran seized two oil tankers.

Iran said it had seized a British oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz on Friday but denied Washington's assertion that the U.S. Navy had downed an Iranian drone nearby this week, as tensions in the Gulf region grew again.

U.S. Democratic lawmakers on Friday called President Donald Trump's latest anti-immigration initiatives "unacceptable" and warned his administration against misappropriating funding authorized only for humanitarian use.

Oil tanker Mesdar, which had turned in the direction of Iran, was boarded by armed personnel at approximately 1630 GMT but they have now left and the vessel has resumed its voyage, its British operator said on Friday.

The British-operated oil tanker Mesdar, which had turned in the direction of Iran, changed course again on Friday to head back into the Gulf, Refinitiv tracking data showed.

Britain said Iran seized two oil tankers in the Gulf on Friday and told Tehran to return the vessels or face consequences in the latest confrontation to ratchet up tension along a vital international oil shipping route.

U.S. officials including Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow will host a meeting at the White House on Monday of semiconductor and software executives to discuss the U.S. ban on Huawei Technologies Co Ltd, two sources briefed on the meeting said on Friday.

Four Republican members of U.S. Congress, including House Armed Services Committee ranking member Mac Thornberry, sent a letter to President Donald Trump on Thursday urging him to move forward with a $10 billion cloud contract with the Defense Department.

Contractors who buy and install Hikvision and Dahua surveillance systems told U.S. officials on Friday that an ambiguous law that bans purchases from the two Chinese companies could harm their businesses.

U.S. President Donald Trump spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday and expressed concerns about the country's proposed digital services tax, the White House said.

A powerful committee of British lawmakers on Friday urged the next prime minister to decide quickly on the role China's Huawei will have in next-generation 5G telecommunications networks to avert more damage to Britain's international relations.

Cryptocurrencies are changing the U.S. currency system in ways that may facilitate illegal activity and instability in prices, St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard said on Friday.

A single network entity controlled by Italy's former monopoly phone group Telecom Italia (TIM) would be a "backward step", the country's communication watchdog chief Angelo Cardani said on Friday.

Russian lawmakers want to make it a legal requirement for all smartphones, computers and smart TV sets sold in Russia to come pre-installed with certain Russian software in a bid to support domestic software producers, according to a draft bill.

Britain plans to publish the results of a long-awaited telecoms supply chain review next week without a decision on the use of equipment made by China's Huawei in future 5G networks, people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Microsoft Corp on Thursday beat analysts' estimates for fourth-quarter revenue and profit, driven by continued sales increases from its cloud business and sending its shares to all-time highs.

Swedish prosecutors on Friday extended American rapper A$AP Rocky's detention by six days amid their ongoing investigation into a street fight in Stockholm as U.S. President Donald Trump said he planned to call Sweden's prime minister about the case.

President Donald Trump said on Friday he would call Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven about the case of U.S. rapper A$AP Rocky, who has been detained in Sweden pending an investigation into a street fight in Stockholm.

The star-laden movie version of hit stage musical "Cats" released its first trailer on Thursday, but first impressions were far from cuddly.

Lebanon's traditional summer festivals harked back to the Arab world's musical past this year, highlighted by a performance by the great-granddaughter of the legendary 1930s diva Asmahan in a mountain palace.

"Top Gun" roared back on Thursday when Tom Cruise made a surprise appearance at Comic-Con to show the first trailer for the long-awaited sequel to his military action movie.

A Myanmar judge on Thursday charged filmmaker Min Htin Ko Ko Gyi for Facebook posts he made about the powerful military, meaning he will stand trial despite concern over his health and an outcry from human rights groups.

An Australian celebrity chef said on Thursday he had underpaid hundreds of his restaurant employees by nearly A$8 million (4.5 million pounds) over six years.

Netflix Inc said on Wednesday it would roll out a lower-priced mobile-only plan in India within the next three months to tap into a price-sensitive market at a time the streaming company is losing customers in its home turf.

Massachusetts prosecutors on Wednesday dropped a criminal case accusing former "House of Cards" star Kevin Spacey of sexually assaulting an 18-year-old man at a Nantucket bar in 2016 after the alleged victim refused to testify.

Paul McCartney is adding another string to his bow - writing his first musical.

Manny Pacquiao plans to teach WBA welterweight champion Keith Thurman a painful lesson when the two face off in Las Vegas on Saturday.

Algeria won the Africa Cup of Nations for the second time on Friday when a freak second-minute goal by Baghdad Bounedjah gave them a 1-0 win over gallant Senegal in the final.

Defending champion Geraint Thomas labelled Julian Alaphilippe the Tour de France favourite after the Frenchman extended his overall lead with a stunning victory in Friday's individual time trial.

France's Julian Alaphilippe continued to amaze as he claimed an impressive victory in the 13th stage of the Tour de France, a 27.2-km individual time trial, to extend his overall lead on Friday.

Losing is not something Adam Peaty does, or thinks about, very often but even if the Olympic breaststroke champion comes up short at the world swimming championships in South Korea it is unlikely to dent his confidence one little bit.

Quiet Australian achiever Cameron Smith was the lone bright spot on a poor day for a proud golf nation, sneaking within two strokes of halfway leaders Shane Lowry and J.B. Holmes at the British Open on Friday.

Hometown favourite Rory McIlroy missed the halfway cut by one stroke at the British Open on Friday, despite matching the best score of the championship with a six-under-par 65 in the second round at Royal Portrush.

Ireland's Shane Lowry proved master of the Dunluce links for the second successive day to move into a share of the halfway lead with American J.B. Holmes at the British Open on Friday.

French authorities deployed some 2,500 police staff in the streets of Paris on Friday to prevent possible clashes among football fans as Senegal faced Algeria in the Africa Cup of Nations final in Cairo.

Ireland's Shane Lowry grabbed a share of the lead at the British Open after carding a second consecutive round of 67 giving himself a chance of redeeming his 2016 meltdown at the U.S. Open.

Jul 19 (OPTA) - Scoreboard at close of play of between Essex and Surrey on Friday at Chelmsford, England Essex Eagles win by 52 runs Essex 1st innings Cameron Delport c Aaron Finch b Jade Dernbach 129 Varun Chopra c Gareth Batty b Sam Curran 7 Tom Westley c Aaron Finch b Gareth Batty 9 […]

Jul 19 (OPTA) - Scoreboard at close of play of between Durham and Northamptonshire on Friday at Chester-le-Street, England Durham Jets win by 7 runs Durham 1st innings D'Arcy Short c Matt Coles b Graeme White 46 Scott Steel c Matt Coles b Graeme White 37 Graham Clark c Charlie Thurston b Ben Sanderson 17 […]

Jul 19 (OPTA) - Scoreboard at close of play of between Hampshire and Sussex on Friday at Southampton, England Match abandoned without a ball bowled ........................... Umpire Graham Lloyd Umpire David Millns Video Neil Mallender Home Scorer Kevin Baker Away Scorer Mike Charman

Jul 19 (OPTA) - Scoreboard at close of play of between Leicestershire and Lancashire on Friday at Leicester, England Match abandoned without a ball bowled .............................. Umpire Michael Burns Umpire Benjamin Debenham Home Scorer Paul Rogers Away Scorer Chris Rimmer

Jul 19 (OPTA) - Scoreboard at close of play of between Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire on Friday at Leeds, England Match abandoned without a ball bowled ..................... Umpire Ian Blackwell Umpire Peter Hartley

Jul 19 (OPTA) - Scoreboard at close of play of between Worcestershire and Warwickshire on Friday at Worcester, England Match abandoned without a ball bowled ....................... Umpire Robert Robinson Umpire Billy Taylor

Bangladesh captain Mashrafe Mortaza has been ruled out of their one-day international series against Sri Lanka due to a hamstring injury, the country's cricket board (BCB) said on Friday.

Jul 19 (OPTA) - Scoreboard at close of play of between Gloucestershire and Glamorgan on Friday at Cheltenham, England No Result Glamorgan 1st innings David Lloyd c David Payne b Benny Howell 21 Jeremy Lawlor c Andrew Tye b David Payne 0 Colin Ingram c Tom Smith b Andrew Tye 17 Billy Root lbw Benny […]

After ripping the heart out of New Zealand's bleary-eyed cricket fans on Sunday with a man-of-the-match performance in the Cricket World Cup final, England all-rounder Ben Stokes has now been nominated for the New Zealander of the Year award.

Men's and women's teams across all formats of international and first class cricket will be allowed to replace concussed players during matches following a two-year trial in the domestic game, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has said.

Jul 19 (OPTA) - results from the Super League matches on Friday Hull Kingston Rovers (6) 12 Huddersfield (6) 18 Sunday, July 21 fixtures (GMT) Leeds v Hull (13:00) London Broncos v St Helens (13:00) Salford v Catalans (13:00) Castleford v Warrington (13:30)

Jul 19 (OPTA) - summaries from the Super League matches on Friday Hull Kingston Rovers (6) 12 Tries: Linnett (6), Hall (73) Goals: Hall (7,74) Huddersfield (6) 18 Tries: English (11), Mellor (46), McGillvary (77) Goals: McIntosh (12,50,59) Referee: Ben Thaler Ground: KCOM Craven Park ......................................................................... Sunday, July 21 fixtures (GMT) L

Australia believe Tom Banks is the player to fill the gaping hole left in the number 15 jersey by the sacking of Israel Folau, and the Brumbies fullback is set for a baptism of fire in the cauldron of Ellis Park on Saturday.

Nigel Owens, who refereed the 2015 Rugby World Cup final, will get the 2019 tournament underway when he takes charge of the opening game between Japan and Russia in Tokyo on Sept. 20.

Following are the match officials for the 2019 Rugby World Cup pool matches in Japan (country they represent in brackets):

South Africa captain Eben Etzebeth says the team selected for their Rugby Championship opener against Australia at Ellis Park on Saturday is not second-string in comparison to the one sent to New Zealand.

Jul 19 (OPTA) - Super League fixtures for this weekend Friday, July 19 fixtures (GMT) Hull Kingston Rovers v Huddersfield (17:45) Sunday, July 21 fixtures (GMT) Leeds v Hull (13:00) London Broncos v St Helens (13:00) Salford v Catalans (13:00) Castleford v Warrington (13:30)

After ripping the heart out of New Zealand's bleary-eyed cricket fans on Sunday with a man-of-the-match performance in the Cricket World Cup final, England all-rounder Ben Stokes has now been nominated for the New Zealander of the Year award.

New Zealand Rugby (NZR) have cancelled more than 700 tickets for next week's hotly anticipated All Blacks test with South Africa in Wellington after they were purchased on the secondary market.

A lingering hamstring injury to Sonny Bill Williams has given Ngani Laumape what could be his only chance to show All Blacks coach Steve Hansen he should be in the Rugby World Cup squad in Japan.

Quiet Australian achiever Cameron Smith was the lone bright spot on a poor day for a proud golf nation, sneaking within two strokes of halfway leaders Shane Lowry and J.B. Holmes at the British Open on Friday.

Jul 19 (OPTA) - Scores from the PGA Tour The Open Championship on Friday -8 J.B. Holmes (USA) 66 68 Shane Lowry (Republic of Ireland) 67 67 -7 Tommy Fleetwood (England) 68 67 Lee Westwood (England) 68 67 -6 Justin Harding (South Africa) 71 65 Justin Rose (England) 69 67 Cameron Smith (Australia) 70 66 […]

Hometown favourite Rory McIlroy missed the halfway cut by one stroke at the British Open on Friday, despite matching the best score of the championship with a six-under-par 65 in the second round at Royal Portrush.

Ireland's Shane Lowry proved master of the Dunluce links for the second successive day to move into a share of the halfway lead with American J.B. Holmes at the British Open on Friday.

Hometown favourite Rory McIlroy was most likely to miss the halfway cut at the British Open on Friday, despite matching the best score of the championship with a six-under-par 65 in the second round at Royal Portrush.

Ireland's Shane Lowry grabbed a share of the lead at the British Open after carding a second consecutive round of 67 giving himself a chance of redeeming his 2016 meltdown at the U.S. Open.

Lee Westwood admits his caddie knows little about golf but that's alright because the person carrying his bag around the Royal Portrush links is his girlfriend Helen Storey.

A battling Tiger Woods rediscovered some of the old magic at the British Open on Friday but the American will be packing for home after failing to make the cut at Royal Portrush.

Jul 19 (OPTA) - Scores from the LPGA Tour Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational on Wednesday -5 Brooke Henderson (Canada) 65 -4 Paula Creamer (USA) 66 -3 Robyn Choi (Australia) 67 Minjee Lee (Australia) 67 Jasmine Suwannapura (Thailand) 67 Amy Yang (Korea Republic) 67 -2 Celine Boutier (France) 68 Na Yeon Choi (Korea Republic) 68 […]

A battling Tiger Woods rediscovered some of the old magic at the British Open on Friday but the American will be packing for home after failing to make the cut at Royal Portrush.