Alphawave shares surge on Qualcomm takeover
Shares of London-listed chip designer Alphawave have surged more than 20% after the company agreed to a $2.4 billion takeover by U.S. semiconductor giant Qualcomm.
The California-headquartered firm will pay 183 British pence ($2.48) per Alphawave Share in an all-cash deal.
Qualcomm announced its intention to bid for Alphawave in early April, when Alphawave shares were valued at 94 pence, giving the final cash offer a 95% premium.
Analysts had previously expected the bid to complete as Alphwave has significant intellectual property rights in high-speed connectivity. The company boasts of multiple customers, including a hyperscaler that analysts believe is Amazon‘s AWS.
— Ganesh Rao
Advertising giant WPP’s CEO to retire
WPP Group CEO Mark Read is set to retire at the end of the year after more than 30 years at the company, including seven years as chief executive, the firm said.
Shares of WPP have recorded a negative total return of 41% over Read’s tenure, compared to the 49% achieved by the FTSE All-Share index and 54% returned by the FTSE 100 index.
WPP added that the search for a successor to Read was also under way.
“After seven years in the role, and with the foundations in place for WPP’s continued success, I feel it is the right time to hand over the leadership of this amazing company,” Read said in a statement to investors.
“I am excited to explore the next chapter in my life and can only thank all the brilliant people I have been lucky enough to work with over the last 30 years, and who have made possible the enormous progress we have achieved together.”
Here are the opening calls
LONDON, ENGLAND – MARCH 24: A red London double decker bus and a UPS delivery van pass across Waterloo Bridge in front of St. Paul’s Cathedral on March 24, 2025 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by John Keeble/Getty Images)
John Keeble | Getty Images News | Getty Images
Good morning from London! This is CNBC’s live blog covering all the action in European financial markets as the new trading week begins.
Futures data from IG suggests London’s FTSE will open 7 points higher at 8,836, Germany’s DAX up 3 points at 24,296, France’s CAC 40 up 5 points at 7,801 and Italy’s FTSE MIB 13 points higher at 40,595.
Global market focus will be on U.S.-China trade talks which are expected to take place in London on Monday. President Donald Trump announced Friday that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and two other Trump administration officials will meet with their Chinese counterparts in the capital as efforts to negotiate a trade deal continue.
In other news, CNBC will be at London Tech Week this week with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang set to deliver a keynote speech on Monday morning. There are no other major earnings or data releases due.
— Holly Ellyatt
Global market action overnight
Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), on the day of Circle Internet Group’s IPO, in New York City, U.S., June 5, 2025.
Brendan McDermid | Reuters
U.S. equity futures were mostly flat overnight, with the S&P 500 trading near a record high and a busy week of potential market-moving news ahead.
U.S, inflation data is expected to be a key topic later in the week. The latest consumer price index is due out on Wednesday, followed by the producer price index on Friday. Traders will be looking for clues about how the current tariff rates are affecting the economy.
— Holly Ellyatt, Amala Balakrishner, Jesse Pound
