Shares in betting group Entain briefly surged on Monday morning, after the company reiterated its earnings guidance for the 2024 fiscal year.

For the Entain side of the business, the company said it now expected group earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) to be at the top of its £1.04bn ($1.26bn) to £1.09bn range.

The company reiterated its previous full year guidance of a core loss of $250m for its US BetMGM business.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "Entain might have scored the winning goal in recent months, but its share price has more than halved since 2021 which implies something drastic needs to be done to revive its fortunes and win back the market’s favour.

"Today’s trading update is a good start, but the market will need more good news rather than a stroke of luck."

Yahoo Finance UK's Vicky McKeever writes:

Sales of Apple's (AAPL) iPhone dipped in 2024, with the tech giant losing some of its market share last year, research indicated.

Preliminary results from Counterpoint Research's market pulse showed that while global smartphone sales grew by 4% year-on-year in 2024, following two years of declines, iPhone unit changes were down 2%.

The data showed Apple's global smartphone sell-through market share fell slightly from 19% in 2023 to 18% last year.

Counterpoint Research said: "Apple’s iPhone 16 series was met with a mixed response, partly due to a lack of availability of Apple Intelligence at launch. However, Apple continued to grow strongly in its non-core markets like Latin America, Africa and Asia-Pacific-Others."

Meanwhile, a notice to shareholders showed Apple has asked that investors vote to block a proposal to get rid of its diversity, equity and inclusions (DEI) programmes. Apple said it had been advised that conservative think tank the National Center for Public Policy Research planned to submit a proposal at its annual meeting that the company cease its DEI efforts. Apple's board recommended that shareholders vote against the proposal at the meeting on 25 February.

Shares in Apple were flat in pre-market trading on Monday morning.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said:

Yahoo Finance UK's Pedro Goncalves writes:

Oil prices spiked to their highest levels in four months following the US Treasury Department's imposition of additional sanctions on Russian oil on Friday.

Brent crude futures surged 1.6% to $81.04 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude jumped 2.5% to $78.51.

The Biden administration unveiled its most extensive sanctions package to date, aimed at undermining Russia’s oil and gas revenues, which are seen as vital funding for its ongoing military campaign in Ukraine. The latest US Treasury measures specifically target major Russian oil producers, including Gazprom, Neft, and Surgutneftegas, as well as 183 vessels linked to the transportation of Russian oil.

These sanctions are expected to disrupt Russian oil exports significantly, forcing key importers such as China and India to explore alternative sources from regions including the Middle East, Africa, and the Americas.

“The new Russian sanctions from the outgoing administration are a net addition to at-risk supply, adding more uncertainty to the (first quarter) outlook,” RBC Capital Markets said.

Read more on Yahoo Finance UK

GSK (GSK.L) is 0.8% lower in early trade, following news it has agreed a deal to buy a company making treatments for gastrointestinal stromal tumours.

The pharma giant said it would pay $1bn up front for 1DRx, and another $150m if milestones in drug development come good.

Big banks are on the agenda to report this week. Specifically, quarterly results from:

• JPMorgan (JPM)

• Citi (C)

• Wells Fargo (WFC)

• Bank of America (BAC)

• BlackRock (BLK)

• Goldman Sachs (GS)

• Morgan Stanley (MS)

Futures contracts suggest US stocks are also set to take a knock when the market opens later on.

From our US team:

US stocks plunged on Friday as investors digested the final jobs report of 2024. The data blew past expectations on hiring, raising more uncertainty about the path of interest rates this year.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) sank about 1.6%, or close to 700 points, while the S&P 500 (^GSPC) also fell 1.5%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) tumbled 1.6%. The three major gauges erased all year-to-date gains with Friday's pullback.

The Dow lost 1.1% for the week, the S&P gave up 0.7%, and the Nasdaq decreased by 0.6%.

The December nonfarm payrolls report showed a very healthy labor market: The US economy added over 250,000 jobs in the month, while the unemployment rate fell to 4.1%. That's the good news. The less good news is that the strong reading could prompt the Fed to keep rates higher for longer, some on Wall Street believe.

The 10-year Treasury yield (^TNX) continued a recent uptick on Friday, moving closer to 4.8% to touch its highest levels since late 2023.

Hello from London. We're here to give you another week of live market news. We have a relatively quiet day on diary ahead of a busy week, including latest UK inflation readings on Wednesday and crucial GDP figures on Thursday.

Markets are already nervy as traders begin, with the pound heading below the £1.22 mark and the FTSE set to slip.

Let's get to it.