Oil prices dropped sharply on Monday morning after the US paused air strikes on Iran for a second consecutive night, easing fears of a wider Middle East conflict that had driven crude towards $100 a barrel last week. The de-escalation coincided with a busy morning for UK corporate news, including another takeover for the London Stock Exchange and a pre-IPO loss disclosure from Chinese fashion giant Shein, underlining the continuing wave of M&A activity hitting British-listed firms.

Brent crude fell 5.3% to $91.68 a barrel, with US military officials reportedly advising Donald Trump against resuming the bombing campaign, while Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to travel amid the ongoing diplomatic manoeuvring. Separately, DCC Energy agreed to a £5.75bn takeover by private equity firms KKR and Energy Capital Partners, offering shareholders £65.25 a share plus dividends, a 24% premium, joining Mitie, Intertek, easyJet, Beazley and Schroders in this year's string of London exits. Shein reported a $99m first-quarter net loss, versus $395m profit a year earlier, blaming the US scrapping a tariff exemption on small parcels, ahead of its planned Hong Kong listing; the article also notes AstraZeneca beat profit forecasts on strong cancer drug sales.