London's deal-making tally climbs as Wall Street waits on the Fed

Bonds and chips ahead of the Fed

US Treasury yields moved higher on Monday as investors positioned for the Federal Reserve meeting, according to The Wall Street Journal. The move carried into Asia overnight. Japanese government bond futures fell, tracking the declines in the US Treasury market.

Equities went the other way. Chip stocks rebounded in New York, lifting the Nasdaq and the broader indexes as traders looked ahead to a run of big technology earnings. The Journal described the sector returning to rally mode after a wobble.

In Tokyo the Nikkei rose 1.3 per cent, led by chip and metals names. The WSJ also flagged something less tidy beneath the surface of the US market, where the headline gains rest on a narrowing band of stocks even as the indexes advance.

Two separate pieces from This is Money took up the question of how to invest around what one called the AI bubble, alongside news that IG has cut its foreign-exchange fee on overseas shares to 0.49 per cent.

London keeps losing companies

The outsourcer Mitie agreed a £3.1bn takeover by OCS, a deal the Guardian framed as another blow to the London stock market. City A.M. counted it as the eleventh mega takeover of 2026, with the running total of bids reaching some £70bn according to This is Money. One adviser quoted by City A.M. warned that the market is going to run out of companies. Mitie's boss is in line for a payday reported at around £50m.

Not every approach is landing. IP Group, the science and technology investor, rejected an improved £752m offer from the pension fund manager Railpen. Metro Bank, meanwhile, is examining a roughly £2bn merger with the rival challenger lender Aldermore, Sky News reported.

Mike Ashley's Frasers Group increased its stake in Hugo Boss as it stepped up takeover efforts around the German fashion house. And in football finance, the Guardian reported that Liverpool's owner FSG is in talks to sell a 30 per cent stake to a consortium led by Amit Bhatia for £1.35bn.

Thames Water remained a live problem. Its lenders offered the government a golden share in a last-ditch attempt to head off nationalisation, according to This is Money. Elsewhere the law firm Linklaters reported partner profits rising to £2.5m after a record year.

Tariffs, Hong Kong and the queue to list

Donald Trump announced 50 per cent tariffs on Canadian goods, which the White House cast as a response to Canada's treatment of US farmers. Mark Carney said he was looking at all options, the BBC reported, and Canadians interviewed described the measures as frustrating. Separately, CNBC reported that Trump plans steep tariffs on generic drugs from 2028, framed as a push to move production to the United States.

Hong Kong is drawing the listings that London is losing. Zhongji Innolight is seeking up to $7bn in what would be the city's biggest flotation this year, the WSJ reported, with SCMP putting the figure nearer $8bn and noting the optical-component maker has already lined up 30 cornerstone investors. A US biotech developing therapies for infant brain injuries also plans a Hong Kong listing.

The territory is expected to approve tax breaks for hedge funds, a step SCMP said is aimed at attracting investment and talent. SCMP also reported that a SpaceX slump has failed to dent Hong Kong tech, with investors seen pivoting elsewhere, while China Merchants Securities dropped a South Korea ETF as volatility in Seoul spilled over.

One deal stayed stuck. A judge paused the mega-merger of Paramount and Warner Bros, the BBC and Sky reported, halting a combination long feared across Hollywood. Meanwhile the WSJ noted private-equity assets trapped in so-called zombie funds have reached a record high, a reminder of how much capital across the industry remains hard to move.