* STANDARD CHARTERED: BlackRock said on Friday it would join a new sovereign debt roundtable set up to accelerate progress on stalled relief efforts for distressed countries, with Britain's Standard Chartered also joining, according to sources.
* BALFOUR BEATTY: More than 100 engineering workers at Balfour Beatty will stage three 48-hour strikes in March, British trade union RMT said on Saturday.
* TESCO: Tesco Plc is planning to review its presence in the UK banking sector in a move that could lead to a sale of its banking arm, Sky News reported on Saturday.
* REAL ESTATE: Average asking prices for British residential property rose by just 14 pounds in February from January, data from property website Rightmove showed on Monday.
* STRIKES: Britain's University and College Union said on Friday it was
pausing strike action for the next two weeks to allow negotiations to continue.
* OIL: Oil prices were little changed in early Asian trade as rising
supplies in the United States and forecasts of more interest rate hikes cooled
optimism over China's demand recovery.
* GOLD: Gold prices were stuck in a tight range as bets of more interest
rate hikes from the U.S. Federal Reserve dimmed the outlook for non-yielding
bullion and boosted the dollar.
* METALS: London copper prices slipped as a firmer U.S. dollar made
greenback-priced metals more expensive to holders of other currencies.
* FTSE: Britain's FTSE 100 ended lower on Friday, with energy stocks leading
losses as oil prices fell on concerns about interest rates staying higher for
longer, while lender NatWest dropped on a dour earnings forecast.
* For more on the factors affecting European stocks, please click on: TODAY'S UK PAPERS
> Financial Times > Other business headlines (Reporting by Prerna Bedi in Bengaluru)
