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Arm Holdings, the British microchip designer, has delivered a blow to the UK government’s hopes of building a tech superpower by confirming it will float in New York rather than London.

Its headquarters, operations and “material IP” will remain in Cambridge and the company made promises to continue investment in the country, opening a site in Bristol.

It also left the door open to a secondary listing on the London Stock Exchange, but there was disappointment that it had shunned the UK public market.

Rene Haas, chief executive, said pursuing a US-only listing of Arm in 2023 is the “best path forward” for the company and its stakeholders.

“Arm is proud of its British heritage and continues to work with the British government,” he said. “We will continue to invest and play a significant role in the British tech ecosystem. Arm also intends to consider a subsequent UK listing in due course.”

In a double blow for London, CRH, the Dublin-based building products group, announced plans to switch its primary listing from London to New York.

Flutter Entertainment, the gambling group that owns the Paddy Power betting shops and fantasy sports business FanDuel, said its shareholders had been “supportive” of a shift in listing to the United States. It emerged earlier this week that Shell had explored the possibility of moving its listing from London.

Analysts say London’s listing rules, requiring company’s to sell a large proportion of shares, as well as a lack of liquidity are issues that need to be addressed.

A spokesperson for the Treasury said: “The UK is taking forward ambitious reforms to the rules governing its capital markets, building on our continued success as Europe’s leading hub for investment, and the second largest globally.

“We continue to attract some of the most innovative and largest companies in the world – and note Arm’s commitment to expanding its presence in the UK, providing a boost to growth, jobs and investment.”

4.30pm: London closes flat

The FTSE 100 closed just 3.07 points higher having been buoyed by comments from a US Federal Reserve chief about the outlook for interest rates.

Atlanta Federal Reserve President Raphael Bostic said he favoured “slow and steady” quarter-point US rate increases to limit risk to the economy.

Brent crude has made a sharp recovery, climbing to over $85 per barrel.

8am: North Sea deal

Equinor is to buy the British oil and gas business of Canada’s Suncor Energy for $850m, giving the Norwegian company stakes in several key North Sea petroleum assets.

Equinor said the deal includes a 29.9% stake in the Buzzard oilfield and an additional 40% stake in the Rosebank development.

Full story here

7am: Energy bills ‘freeze’ talk

Householders may escape the planned £500 hike in energy bills after it emerged the Treasury has been talking with energy companies to extend the Government’s support package at £2,500 a year.

Bills are due to go up from April as the Government’s energy price guarantee raises the maximum people can pay on average to £3,000 a year.

The Government have previously said the energy price guarantee is under review while a Treasury source declined to “comment on speculation”.

7am: Rightmove

Online estate agent Rightmove posted a 7% rise in operating profit last year to £241.3m. Revenues were up 9% to £332.6m.

The company said it will “remain alert to the ongoing economic uncertainty” but insisted it is “not materially impacted by the property market cycle”.

It proposes an 8% hike in the final dividend to 5.2p.

7am: AMTE delivers battery cells

AMTE Power, the Scottish developer of battery cells for specialist markets, has delivered its first ultra prime cells to its customer for testing.

Full story here

Global markets

Shares in Asia rose on prospects for a recovery in China and a reversal of losses on Wall Street following comments by the Atlanta Federal Reserve chief on interest rates.

Raphael Bostic said he favoured “slow and steady” quarter-point US rate increases to limit risk to the economy.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index advanced 1.6%, while the Shanghai Composite in China gained 0.4% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index advanced 0.9%..

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended trading up 1%. The S&P 500 closed 0.8% higher while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite gained rose 0.7%.