Weekly Review
The FTSE 100 finished down 83.43 points on the week at 6,749.40.
Equity view
Easyjet impressed this week after the British budget airline said it now expects an increase in revenues per seat in the first half.
Water company United Utilities said it is targeting dividend growth of at least inflation as recorded by the Retail Price Index going forward.
Dublin-based airline Aer Lingus has said it would be willing to recommend a sweetened €1.36bn takeover offer from IAG to its shareholders.
Afren revealed it needs to raise funds in excess of its market capitalisation to avoid running out of cash amid falling oil prices. The company also extended its 'put up or shut up' deadline for Nigeria's Seplat to make a firm takeover offer.
Mexican precious metals group Fresnillo beat forecasts with its silver and gold production in 2014 and said it expects to grow output this year.
Severn Trent has cut its dividend for next financial year but is planning a £100m share buy-back programme to reduce its gearing ratio.
Business management software group Sage said it made a "solid start" to the new financial year with Q1 organic revenues up 5.3%, and remains on track to hit its growth targets.
Credit checking group Experian has announced a $600m share buyback and made positive noises about growing its dividend.
Production in the fourth quarter generally declined at Anglo American as the mining giant warned that crumbling commodity prices would lead to impairment charges in its full-year results.
Royal Mail chairman Donald Brydon will step down later this year, the company revealed.
Oil major Shell said it is looking to reduce costs and lower investment in 2015 in response to the collapse in crude prices, cutting $15bn from its potential spending over the next three years. The company also missed fourth-quarter profit forecasts by some 20%.
Economic news
The UK economic expansion slowed more than forecast to just 0.5% in the fourth quarter of 2014, as contractions in construction and production weighed on growth.
Consultancy GfK’s gauge of UK consumer sentiment bounced back by five points in January to a reading of 1, ahead of the -3 economists were expecting.
Total lending to individuals in the UK increased by 0.1% month-on-month, or by £2.2bn, in December to reach £1.466bn, the Bank of England revealed.
International events
High-street retailer H&M said 2014 was a "very good year" for the business as sales in constant currencies increased by 14%.
The Danish central bank cut its deposit rate to - 0.5% in a bid to fight building pressures on its currency peg against the flagging euro.
US initial jobless claims fell from 308,000 to 265,000 in the week ending 24 January, reaching their lowest level in 14 years.
Eurozone unemployment dropped for the first time in five months in December to reach its lowest point since August 2012, according to data released by Eurostat.
Despite beat earnings forecasts, Alibaba shares fell on Thursday after the ecommerce group's third-quarter sales rose less than expected.
Amazon was in favour after earnings topped forecasts. The online retailer giant reported earnings of 45 cents a share, jumping past expectations of 17 cents, but revenue of $29.33bn was slightly below expectations.
Google was in focus after earnings and revenue missed targets. The amount the firm received per ad click decreased even as the number of clicks increased.
US gross domestic product grew at a 2.6% annual rate in the fourth quarter, the Commerce Department said. This was down from 5% in the third quarter and below the 3% forecast.
Apple reached a new milestone on Friday, as shares set a new record high by breaking through the $120 mark.
Republican Mitt Romney has decided against running for president in the 2016 US elections.
Russia unexpectedly cut benchmark interest rates amid concerns over an impending recession. The one-week auction rate was reduced to 15% from 17 %, the central bank said in a statement on its website Friday. Most analysts had predicted no change.