• Alibaba: the stock has fallen heavily since yesterday, after lower-than-expected results.
  • Applied Materials: the stock loses 5% post-trade after disappointing results.
  • Ryanair wants to leave the London Stock Exchange, to focus on its Dublin listing and its Nasdaq-listed ADR.
  • Unilever finalizes a $5.1bn deal to sell its tea business to CVC.
  • Apple 's electric car will be fully autonomous, according to Bloomberg.
  • U.S. states investigate the impact of Instagram (Facebook) on children.
  • Crown Resorts receives a $6.2 billion offer from Blackstone.
  • Ford moves into semiconductors and boosts electric production goals.
  • Avast shareholders approve $8.6 billion buyout by NortonLifeLock.
  • AstraZeneca plans to commercialize COVID-19 antibody therapy.
  • Prada is considering a potential partnership between Compagnie Financière Richemont and Farfetch on YOOX Net-a-Porter.
  • Pfizer announced Thursday that the U.S. government would pay $4.29 billion for 10 million doses of its experimental COVID-19 antiviral treatment. The German weekly Wirtschaftswoche, citing sources, also reported that the U.S. laboratory would submit an application for approval of the same treatment to European authorities on Friday.
  • Merck & Co is down 1.2% in pre-opening trading after a clinical trial of a combination of its MK-8507 and islatravir drugs for the oral treatment of AIDS was halted midway through.
  • PayPal is up 1% in pre-market trading after the payment group announced that cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin, would now be accepted to make purchases on sites in its network.
  • Intuit - The accounting software company jumps nearly 11% in premarket trading after announcing Thursday it expects revenue growth of 26% to 28% for fiscal 2022, up from 15% to 16%.
  • Alibaba fell 0.3% to $143.15 in premarket trading after plunging 11.12% after lowering its annual revenue growth forecast.
  • Foot Locker is down 5% in premarket trading and headed for its worst session since September, as the athletic footwear retailer said it expects continued stress on global supply chains in the fourth quarter.
  • Farfetch - The online high-end fashion specialist fell 22.4% in pre-market trading after reporting a larger-than-expected net loss in the third quarter.
  • Phil Spencer, the head of Microsoft's Xbox division, said Thursday that his group is reviewing its relationship with Activision, which has been hit by accusations of sexual abuse among its employees.
  • Blackstone - The U.S. private equity group submitted a $6.2 billion bid for Australian casino group Crown Resorts after Star Entertainment Group withdrew its $6.6 billion proposal.
  • Delta Air Lines is considering a stake in Italian airline Italia Trasporto Aereo (ITA), the former Italian airline, to strengthen its presence in the European market, the daily La Repubblica reported Friday, citing government sources.

Key earnings reports: CNP Assurances, Sydney Airport, Kingfisher, Future Plc, Foot Locker, Laurent-Perrier...