London pre-open: Footsie to fall below 5,000

Date: Monday 26 Sep 2011

Taking its lead from Asian markets, where continuing concerns over the Eurozone debt crisis have prompted a wave of selling, the blue-chip index in London is set to dive below the psychologically important 5,000 level at the outset, with City sources predicting the FTSE 100 will open down 79 points from Friday's close of 5,067.

Business publisher Reed Elsevier is to acquire the entire issued share capital of Accuity Holdings from Investcorp, a global investment firm, for a consideration of £343m payable in cash. Compliance-focused Accuity is a US provider of online subscription-based data solutions for the financial services industry.

The start of the second half of the year has been a tough one for Aberdeen Asset Management, which has seen assets under management (AUM), as at the end of August, slide 4.8% to £176.9bn from £185.7bn at the end of June. Most of the fall was accounted for by market movements and foreign exchange fluctuations, which reduced AUM by £8.1bn, but the business also saw net outflows of £0.8bn. "Given the economic backdrop in Europe and the US and heightened market volatility during the last two months, Aberdeen's new business flows have been resilient," said Martin Gilbert, Chief Executive of Aberdeen.

Bunzl, the international distribution and outsourcing group, has announced two small bolt-on acquisitions. The first is Ideal Global Sistemas de Higiene, a Brazilian supplier of cleaning and hygiene consumable products. The other is D-Care, based in Utrecht, which is principally engaged in the distribution of medical disposable products throughout the Netherlands.

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