UK

Stocks across Europe enjoyed a relief rally following the victory of Emmanuel Macron in the first round of the French presidential election on Sunday, causing the blocks market to burst back into life after muted activity in the week before the vote.

Tullow Oil, the Anglo-Irish oil and gas drilling company, finished its £625m rights issue with a small rump placement on Tuesday morning.

The UK Debt Management Office has tweaked its funding target for the 2017-18 financial year, cutting its planned Gilt sales by £900m to £114.2bn. The sovereign has also picked a bond for its next syndication.

Lone Star Funds, the US private equity group, has achieved a full exit from Forterra, the UK brick maker, after an accelerated bookbuild led by Numis Securities and Peel Hunt on Thursday night which was increased due to strong demand.

Drax Group, the UK energy holding company, held a roadshow on Wednesday and Thursday for a £500m fixed and floating rate senior secured bond offering, following its acquisition of Opus Energy earlier this year, and further increased it to £550m on Friday.

Many of the illiquid products on CME Europe will stop trading at the end of this week following CME Group’s decision to close the derivatives exchange.

Investors were hit with a fresh political surprise on Tuesday, as UK prime minister Theresa May announced that the country would hold a snap general election on June 8.

Shares in Cobham, the troubled UK aerospace and marine technology company, have risen 12% since the company’s shareholders gave their backing for the company’s second rights issue in 12 months on Wednesday.

UK hotel group Travelodge and social care firm Voyage Care both started roadshows on Wednesday for £165m and £250m of notes, respectively.

Stobart Group, the listed UK infrastructure and support services company, has floated Eddie Stobart Logistics, its Warrington-based trucking subsidiary, on London’s Alternative Investment Market.

Lorcan O’Shea, head of UK and Ireland equity capital markets at Deutsche Bank, has left the bank.

The first round of the French presidential election takes place this Sunday and, while the market is mostly quiet, Derek Halpenny, head of global markets research at MUFG, says that market participants have not priced in much risk of a shock anti-EU result.