The FTSE 100 is being spurred forwards by Cadbury this morning on news the British chocolate maker has received a £10.2bn takeover approach from US goods giant Kraft.

Axa Investment Managers has recruited Mark Beveridge as global head of the Axa Framlington business.

Hargreaves Lansdown has added the Liontrust European Absolute Return fund to its Wealth 150 list.

Investec Structured Products has unveiled the FTSE 100 Bonus Income plan in its latest suite of product launches.

Allianz Global Investors is set to launch a Ucits III version of its Discovery Europe fund in October.

Hargreaves Lansdown has removed the UBS UK Smaller Companies fund from its Wealth 150 recommendation list.

The Dow Jones has made a modest ascent this morning, with a good start for financials offsetting poor unemployment data.

The FTSE 100 has bounced back over 4,700 for the first time since opening this week, with mining stocks at the forefront of today's strong gains.

Arbuthnot Banking Group is unveiling its structured products arm on 10 September, with the launch of an income product.

Corporate bond funds saw a resurgence in popularity following a two-month dip in demand, accounting for a third of net sales on the Cofunds platform in July.