Shares in software company Oracle (ORCL) rose nearly 1% in pre-market trading on Friday, recovering slightly following a 5.5% fall in the previous session.
The decline in shares came following a Bloomberg report that Oracle sold $18bn (£13.5bn) of US investment-grade bonds on Wednesday, which was said to be the market's second biggest deal of the year.
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The company remained in focus after a separate Bloomberg report on Thursday said that Oracle, along with Silver Lake Management LLC, and MGX were weighing a 45% stake in a US version of TikTok. Spokespeople for Oracle, Silver Lake and MGX had not responded to Yahoo Finance UK‘s request for comment at the time of writing.
US president Donald Trump signed an order on Thursday afternoon to formalise US government's approval of the spin-off of TikTok's US operations from China-based ByteDance in a deal valued at $14bn.
Shares in Costco (COST) edged nearly 1% lower in pre-market trading on Friday, on the back of the wholesale retailer reported fourth quarter earnings after market close on Thursday that only slightly beat Wall Street's expectations.
For the quarter, revenue at the wholesale giant clocked in at $86.16bn, compared to expectations of $86.03bn, with adjusted earnings per share coming in at $5.87, higher than the forecasted $5.82, per Bloomberg consensus estimates.
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Lale Akoner, global market analyst at eToro, said: “In our view, the key takeaway is Costco’s ability to sustain volume growth and margin stability despite a backdrop of higher labour costs, tariffs and cautious discretionary spending.”
“The results highlight that scale and efficiency remain key advantages in retail: Costco’s bulk model helps offset cost pressures and maintain loyalty,” she said. “While the stock trades at a premium, its consistent performance positions it well relative to peers who are more exposed to discretionary spending slowdowns.”
“Overall, Costco’s results underscore a broader theme: resilient, essentials-driven retailers are well positioned in an environment where macro headwinds weigh more heavily on less diversified, discretionary-focused peers,” Akoner added.
On the London market, shares in pharmaceuticals company AstraZeneca (AZN.L) fell shortly after the market open but then steadied to hover at the flatline, as investors digested Trump's announcement of a 100% tariff on patented drugs.
