Barclays boss fined £642,430 over whistleblower incident - as it happened

Jes Staley has been fined by UK regulators for a breach of conduct after he tried to uncover the identity of whistleblower

• Barclays will also claw back 500,000 of Staley's bonus
• Bank of England's Broadbent: we never promised a May rate rise
• Zoopla owner to be sold for 2.2bn to US private equity firm
• Pound recovers some ground after Bank of England held rates

3.00pm BST

Before we close up for the day, here is a summary of the main developments:

2.36pm BST

Over in France, President Emmanuel Macron's first year bodes well for the French economy according to Jessica Hinds, European economist at Capital Economics.

One year into President Emmanuel Macron's term, the French economy is performing well. Annual GDP growth is healthy and the labour market is recovering steadily. But this owes little to Macron's efforts so far, reflecting instead the impact of previous reforms and the favourable global backdrop.

However, the reforms that he has implemented or announced bode well for the future of the French economy. He has made the labour market more flexible and looks likely to follow through on his commitments to boost households' disposable income and reduce businesses' costs. Further tough reforms lie ahead but the progress made so far provides cause for optimism.

2.32pm BST

The opening bell has gone on Wall Street:

1.40pm BST

Wall Street is expected to edge higher after the opening bell according to traders at spread-betting firm IG:

US Opening Calls:#DOW 24752 +0.11%#SPX 2724 +0.09%#NASDAQ 6964 +0.05%#IGOpeningCall

1.08pm BST

US tech giant is on the verge of a significant milestone, with a market value edging ever closer to the $1 trillion mark.

Apple has had a phenomenal week and a half, in which it has gained over 17%, putting it on track for a record breaking winning streak.

The rally, which started just prior to Apple reporting quarterly earnings and a $100 billion share buyback has also been propped up by comments from Warren Buffet as his firm Berkshire Hathaway brought up another 75 million shares in Apple.

12.25pm BST

Here is our full story on the decision by UK regulators to fine Barclays' boss Jes Staley 642,430 over his attempts to unmask a whistleblower:

Related: Barclays boss Jes Staley fined 642,000 over whistleblower scandal

12.15pm BST

Barclays said that it will claw back 500,000 of the bonus awarded to Jes Staley for 2016 - the year in which he tried to unmask a whistleblower.

The group's whistleblowing processes are fundamental to ensuring that individuals feel comfortable raising concerns and are encouraged to do so.

Accordingly, the board has now confirmed its decision of April 2017 and has made a very significant adjustment to Jes's variable compensation on the recommendation of the board remuneration committee.

The board is pleased that the FCA and PRA's investigations have concluded and are now behind us. The board has reiterated its support for Jes, as have shareholders at last week's annual general meeting.

As a business, we remain focused on executing our strategy and delivering greater returns for shareholders."

11.49am BST

Barclays' boss Jes Staley has responded to the news that he has been fined 642,430 by regulators for attempting to discover the identity of a whistleblower.

He said:

I have consistently acknowledged that my personal involvement in this matter was inappropriate, and I have apologised for mistakes which I made.

I accept the conclusions of the board, the FCA, and the PRA, following their respective investigations, and the sanctions which they have each applied.

11.41am BST

Barclays boss Jes Staley did not act with "due skill, care and diligence" when he tried to unmask a whistleblower in 2016, UK regulators declared as they announced the 642,430 fine.

The Financial Conduct Authority and Prudential Regulation Authority put out a joint statement to announce the penalty.

Given the crucial role of the chief executive, the standard of due skill, care and diligence is more demanding than for other employees.

Mr Staley breached the standard of care required and expected of a chief executive in a way that risked undermining confidence in Barclays' whistleblowing procedures.

11.12am BST

Breaking news: UK regulators have fined Barclays chief executive Jes Staley 642,430 for a breach of conduct after he tried to uncover the identity of a whistleblower.

Related: Barclays CEO Jes Staley faces fine over whistleblower incident

10.58am BST

The pound is faring better today after a cautious tone from Bank of England policymakers drove it to a five-month low against the dollar on Thursday.

It is up 0.2% against the dollar at $1.3549 (after falling as low as $1.3457 yesterday), and up 0.1% against the euro at a1.1351.

Related: Bank of England holds UK interest rates at 0.5%

10.43am BST

RBS boss McEwan does not know where his cheque book is.

Asked by an LBC radio listener why the bank was closing so many bank bank branches, McEwan says people just aren't using branch services as much these days, including him

Cheque usage is down 17% over the last year. I can't recall [when I last used my cheque bank]. It annoys me to have to write one.

I don't know where to find my cheque book. It's either up in the cupboard at home or my PA might have it.

Related: RBS to close 162 branches with loss of 800 jobs

10.31am BST

Ross McEwan, chief executive of Royal Bank of Scotland, has warned more branches could close in England and Wales as a result of transferring customers from its Williams & Glyn unit to competitors.

Around 120,000 of its small business customers will be moved by the end of the year to address competition concerns.

I don't know at this point. We'll have to wait until the end of the year to see what actual footfall disappears when we move these customers out.

RBS Chief Executive Ross McEwan is live in the LBC studio, answering your questions. Watch live: https://t.co/vF2CJ1vQQw

10.10am BST

Oil prices have recovered some - but not all - of the session's losses.

Currently off 0.1% at $77.41, but still near the three-and-a-half-year high of $78 achieved on Thursday.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch analysts have predicted $100 oil next year. Not entirely convinced, but increases my confidence that Saudi Aramco won't list in 2018. Would also make Putin very, very happy.

10.01am BST

Investors across Europe are in a subdued mood this morning, with most major indices slightly down:

9.36am BST

Shares in Zoopla-owner ZPG have jumped 30% on the news that it is to be bought for 2.2bn by US priuvate equity firm, Silver Lake.

ZPG is the top riser on the FTSE 250, with shares priced at 488p.

9.23am BST

Some big UK takeover news this morning, with the announcement that ZPG - owner of property website Zoopla and Prime Location and Uswitch - is to be bought for 2.2bn by the American private equity fund Silver Lake.

Silver Lake is the global leader in technology investing and I am firmly of the belief that ZPG will benefit from their technology expertise and global network, which will help accelerate our growth.

Since its IPO in 2014, ZPG has evolved and diversified as we have made significant progress in becoming the platform of choice for consumers and partners engaged in property and household decisions.

8.54am BST

Oil prices might have come off three-and-a-half years this morning but could hit $100 a barrel next year.

That's according to analysts at Bank of America, who are point to a fall in exports from Iran and a collapse in Venezuelan output.

Looking into the next 18 months, we expect global oil supply and demand balances to tighten.

If a new Iran deal is not reached in the next six months or Opec/Russia extend production cuts into 2019, global oil markets would likely tighten further.

8.44am BST

Broadbent says the job of the Bank's rate-setting monetary policy committee is to monitor the data and respond accordingly:

The economy moves in an unpredictable fashion. Our forecasts are helpful, they point to the general direction of things, but there will be unforeseeable events and we have to be able to respond to those.

It is entirely the sensible thing to do to wait to see whether we're right that the economy will bounce back a bit from here. For me, the decision [to leave rates on hold at 0.5%] was straight forward.

I don't think that's fair. You're always responding to news and to suggest somehow we'd nailed our colours on [to May] I just don't accept that's what we said. We never said that.

8.33am BST

Ben Broadbent, deputy governor of the Bank of England, has come under pressure this morning after the decision by the monetary policy committee on Thursday to leave interest rates on hold at 0.5%.

We'd given some guidance of what we expect, what might happen to the path of interest rates over the next two or three years, but that's never been a promise that at particular point in time we're going to raise them. We're not in a position to do that.

Forward guidance has never been about a precise date of when interest rates are going up, we've never said that. Some rises in interest rates, very gradual, to a limited extent [over the next two or three years], that's all we've said.

8.08am BST

Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of the world economy, the financial markets, the eurozone and business.

Oil prices are down this morning on hopes that other oil-producing nations will step in to plug a potential fall in exports from Iran after President Trump pulled America out of the nuclear deal.