* SHELL: Brazilian state-run company Petrobras and international oil major Shell will work together to identify potential opportunities to explore for and produce crude and natural gas, Petrobras said.
* ASDA: British supermarket groups Asda and Morrisons have started to remove some of their customer purchase limits on salad vegetables and fruit after weeks of shortages and empty shelves.
* LENDERS: Britain's financial watchdog said it expects the number of mortgage borrowers struggling to keep up with payments to rise at a much slower pace in the next 12 months than previously forecast because interest rate hikes will be more modest.
* OIL: Oil fell for a fourth session, heading for its biggest weekly loss in five weeks on worries about the prospect of steep interest rate hikes in the United States slowing growth and hitting fuel demand.
* GOLD: Gold prices eased as investors keenly look forward to the U.S.
non-farm payrolls report due later in the day to assess the likely path of the
Federal Reserve's rate-tightening cycle.
* METALS: Copper prices slid, heading for weekly losses as fears over
persistent interest rate hikes by the U.S. Federal Reserve weighed on investor
sentiment, while improving supply prospects added downward pressure on the
market.
* FTSE: London's FTSE 100 closed lower on Thursday amid investor caution
over higher U.S. interest rates, with mining stocks leading the falls as metal
prices dropped due to a stronger dollar.
* UK CORPORATE DIARY:
Berkeley Group Trading update
Robert Walters Plc FY Results
* 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)
