The sell-off on Wall Street is gathering pace – the Nasdaq, Dow and S&P 500 are all down 1%, shortly after the opening bell.

The ADP monthly payrolls report disappointed the market today. Private-sector companies in the US hired 135,000 more workers in September, while some had expected 140,000 more jobs. It was the smallest gain since June. Crucially, the previous month’s reading was revised sharply lower to 157,000 from 195,000. This doesn’t bode well for the official payrolls figures, out on Friday…

Adam Marshall, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, says businesses across the UK want the Prime Minister to get a Brexit deal – not just get Brexit done. He warned of the economic chaos that would follow a no-deal departure from the EU.

The prime minister repeated his wish to reach an agreement with the EU, but over the next two weeks businesses need to see these intentions turn into concrete reality. In the real world, companies are still facing a nail-biting period ahead and the unwanted prospect of a messy and disorderly exit on the 31^st of October.

The reality is that neither the UK government nor many businesses are fully ready for a no-deal exit from the EU on the 31^st of October. No one should downplay the disruption and economic dislocation that would be caused by a messy departure.

Here are our full stories on chairman Vernon Hill’s departure from Metro Bank, the lender he founded in 2010, and the creation of the world’s biggest online betting firm, led by the owner of Paddy Power.

The £10bn all-share deal will bring together Flutter Entertainment, the owner of Paddy Power and Betfair, and The Stars Group (TSG), which owns Sky Bet and Poker Stars.

Sterling is off its lows, now down about 0.1% against both the dollar and the euro. It was little moved immediately after Johnson’s speech, when it traded down 0.4% against the dollar and 0.3% lower against the euro.

The Institute of Directors has reacted cautiously to the prime minister’s speech in Manchester. Its director of policy, Edwin Morgan, said:

Business leaders keenly hope there is space for a deal, but we are fast running out of road. We await the details behind the government’s proposals, but the issues in addressing the Irish border are not just technical in nature, and they can’t be treated in isolation. Moreover, avoiding a hard border can’t put the compliance burden so high on businesses that it aggravates the existing challenges while creating a whole new set of problems.

The lobby once again warned that a no-deal exit would “not relieve uncertainty but exacerbate it,” squashing investment and distracting ever further from urgent domestic issues.

We will continue to do all we can to help firms prepare for the potential impact of no deal, but for many, the injurious effects of a disorderly Brexit simply cannot be planned away. On top of this, there is still no confirmation of no deal tariff changes or any further detail since March on how trade across the Irish border will be managed in practice. Small firms need this clarity as well as targeted assistance to see them through the Brexit tumult.

Deutsche Bank strategist Jim Reid says:

What is hard to argue with is that the global manufacturing sector is now very much in a recession.

This now makes an already important Fed meeting later this month even more of a crucial risk event.

The Federal Reserve cut interest rates for the second time this year in September and indicated that future rates cuts would depend on the economic data.

My economics colleague Phillip Inman has also looked at today’s moves in markets.

The World Trade Organization warned yesterday that the outbreak of tariff wars pose a threat to jobs and living standards as it slashed its forecast for trade growth during 2019.

Stock futures are pointing to a lower open on Wall Street, after US shares hit a one-month low yesterday following the ISM manufacturing shock.

The Dow Jones is expected to open 160 points, or 0.6% lower, while the S&P 500 is seen down nearly 17 points, or 0.57% , and the Nasdaq is set to open more than 50 points down, a 0.68% drop.

Our Brexit correspondent Lisa O’Carroll has just spoken to Boris Johnson’s dad.

Meanwhile, Thomas Cook staff who lost their jobs when the 178-year-old travel company collapsed at the beginning of last week, are protesting in Westminster. They have handed in petitions at Downing Street and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). to demand an urgent inquiry into the firm’s demise.

“Let’s get Brexit done,” Johnson repeats, as he finishes his speech. He spoke for about 45 minutes, and stuck to his mantra of the UK leaving the EU by 31 October.

Markets were unmoved by his comments as they contained few details of the Brexit negotiations.

There has been little impact on sterling. The pound is still down 0.4% against the dollar at $1.2255 and 0.3% lower against the euro at €1.1219.

The FTSE 100 index continues to slide. It’s now down more than 150 points at 7209.61, a 2.05% drop.

Boris Johnson is giving his keynote speech at the Tory party conference in Manchester. More on our politics live blog here.

You can read more on Ofgem’s website.

Ofgem has appointed Jonathan Brearley, its current executive director for systems and networks, as chief executive. He will take over from Dermot Nolan at the end of February.

The energy watchdog’s chairman Martin Cave said:

Jonathan will take up his new role at a time of unparalleled change in the energy industry in order to meet the pressing need to decarbonise.

Ofgem’s role is to ensure that consumers, especially the vulnerable are protected from sharp practice and receive fair treatment.

Brexit headlines popping up on Reuters:

A European Commission spokeswoman says the commission president Jean-Claude Juncker will hold a call with Boris Johnson at 3:15pm GMT (2:15pm BST). She says the EU will examine objectively any UK proposals, and stresses that the EU wants a deal.

She adds that a legally operable solution must be reached that meets all goals of the Irish “backstop”.

The pound is now down 0.42% against the dollar, off earlier lows when it was down 0.6%; it’s also recouped some ground against the euro, although it is still 0.26% lower against the single currency.

There are only three risers on the FTSE 100 index at the moment: Flutter is up nearly 20% following the near £10bn merger gambling deal that will unite the owners of Paddy Power and Poker Stars. Tesco is 0.5% ahead and metals mining firmn Polymetal International is the third gainer, up 0.4%.

The FTSE as a whole continues to slide on global growth and Brexit worries. It is down 1.74%, or 128 points, at 7232.20.

Returning to the main UK corporate story today, the surprise departure of Tesco chief executive Dave Lewis, my colleague Kalyeena Makortoff has done a profile of the new Tesco boss, Ken Murphy, who will take over next summer.

The 52-year-old Irishman is described as a “Boots lifer,” who has spent his entire career so far in health and beauty retail.

Equities are in full retreat this morning, with European stock exchanges shedding 1% or more. Markets have been hit by yesterday’s US manufacturing shock, poor UK construction figures this morning and fears that Boris Johnson’s Brexit offer will not lead to an agreement with the EU.

The FTSE 100 index in London is the worst-performing market, down 1.65% or 121 points at 7238.41. Sterling has slid nearly 0.6% to $1.2233.

Chris Beauchamp, chief market analyst at online trading firm IG, says:

The risk-off atmosphere created by yesterday’s US ISM [manufacturing] miss continues to hang over markets. European equities have turned firmly lower in early trading, on the very reasonable assumption that, if things are that bad for the US, then they must be even worse for Europe.

And right on cue, German GDP forecasts have been downgraded. Following the theme, it is clear that a tough outlook for Germany makes things even worse for southern Europe’s moribund economies, with or without another half-hearted dose of QE from the ECB. We are rapidly moving away from the realms of what central banks can do, but governments refuse to pick up the slack. How long equities can remain immune in such an environment remains to be seen.

Mark Robinson, chief executive of public sector procurement firm Scape Group, says it is concerning that construction activity is falling steeply at the start of autumn.

We are seeing the biggest decline in new work, new orders and employment levels for a decade, when we were in the middle of a financial crisis. The parallels between now and then cannot be ignored. We are facing significant economic upheaval with no end to the uncertainty in sight and the construction sector is responding accordingly, with both public and private sector clients exercising caution.

Civil engineering work, which represents essential road and rail projects that keep our local communities moving and our economies growing, are grinding to a halt and even big ticket items like HS2 are being called into question.

We desperately need clarity from the government on their legislative programme and detail on whether the EU is going to accept Boris’ proposed deal. Provide us with this clarity and businesses will finally be able to make decisions on projects that have been paused and pushed to the side. We shouldn’t hold our breathe and hope for an immediate Brexit bounce, but we can be mildly optimistic that there will be an up-tick in activity.

The UK construction survey also showed that companies’ input prices rose strongly, as the weaker pound pushed up the cost of fuel and imported materials, such as tiles from Spain.

Hayes of IHS Markit warned of a long slump in Britain’s construction industry.

Low confidence has subsequently caused construction order books to fall substantially. Panellists reported another sharp drop in demand in September that was one of the strongest in the post-crisis era.

Forward-looking indicators suggest that businesses are bracing themselves for a protracted construction slump, with input purchasing and employment both falling at rates unsurpassed since 2010.

Overall, the performance of the UK economy once again hinges on the service sector showing a marked degree of resilience to offset the weakness seen in construction and manufacturing.

Noble Francis, economics director at the Construction Products Association and honorary Professor at the Bartlett School of Construction of Project Management at UCL in London, tweeted:

IHS Markit/CIPS, which compiled the UK construction survey, said Brexit uncertainty was to blame for the latest decline in activity.

Joe Hayes, economist at IHS Markit, said

The UK construction sector remained mired in a downturn at the end of the third quarter, according to the latest PMI data. Activity is being pulled down at its second-fastest clip for over a decade as firms are buffeted by client hesitancy, heightened Brexit uncertainty and a weak outlook for the UK economy.

The commercial sector was a notable casualty in September, with building activity here falling at the fastest rate since April 2009, highlighting the damaging effects of project delays and belt-tightening.

The FTSE 100 index has tumbled more than 100 points to 7252.44, a 1.47% decline, as traders worry about the worsening economic outlook around the globe.

Jobs in the construction sector are being cut at the fastest pace since December 2010. The downturn has spread across all areas, with commercial construction the worst-performing.

Analysts at Daiwa say:

In the currency market, after a modest bounce yesterday afternoon, sterling is weakening again (close to 0.89/€) ahead of Boris Johnson’s speech to the Conservative Party conference which, amid the jingoism, will see him preach to the converted about his imminent Brexit proposals.

It remains to be seen, however, how much (honest) detail about those plans – extraordinarily, the first he’ll have made since the referendum more than three years ago – will actually be made available today. However, the substance reported in the press suggests proposals that have minimal chance of being agreed by the EU, and seem designed principally to allow Johnson to blame the Europeans for any failure to reach a deal before the end of October. Of course, our baseline forecast is still that the Article 50 deadline will be extended we still expect.

Shares are also being hammered by rising global economic gloom, after yesterday’s US manufacturing shock and poor factory surveys in the UK and the rest of Europe.

• UK’s FTSE 100 down 1.2%
• Germany’s Dax down 0.9%
• France’s CAC down 1%
• Spain’s Ibex down 0.8%

Malcolm Barr, economist at JPMorgan Chase, is sceptical that Boris Johnson’s Brexit offer will be well received in Brussels.

Although the UK has moved towards the EU position a little, we doubt the EU will regard it as viable basis upon which to begin a detailed negotiation at this stage. As we wrote yesterday, expect acrimony to ensue. According to some media reports, the UK is set to withdraw from the talks if the EU do not respond positively to the proposal outlined today.

The FTSE 100 index is now more than 80 points lower, at 7277.04 - a decline of 1.14%. The pound is also down as just discussed. Markets are decidedly nervous as they wait for Boris Johnson to unveil his final Brexit offer.

My colleagues on politics write:

In his speech to the Conservative party conference in Manchester on Wednesday, the embattled prime minister will outline what he will call a “fair and reasonable compromise”, which Downing Street says has been drawn up after 70 hours of discussions with other EU member states.

He will insist that if the EU27 fails to engage with his proposals, he will press ahead with a no-deal Brexit at the end of October.

Brussels has warned there will be a cold reception if the offer resembles draft proposals leaked on Monday, which would involve customs clearance sites five to 10 miles from the Irish border – later denied by Johnson.

Paul Donovan, an economist at UBS Global Wealth Management, is back after being suspended in June for making controversial comments about swine fever in China.

His thoughts on manufacturing are:

Globally, the gap between sentiment and reality is the widest since 2012. Trade taxes worry manufacturers. When asked, manufacturers say they are less than happy about life, but their actions are more positive. Investors should worry about trade taxes. They should not panic about sentiment.

He also notes:

• Global bond yields rose yesterday. Some yield curves steepened. Do steeper yield curves predict an economic boom? They do not, any more than inversions predict a recession. Weaker bond markets reflected a poor Japanese auction. This reflected fewer “captive” investors (who buy for non-economic reasons). Such investors distort bond markets and bond market signals.

• In the interminably tedious EU-UK divorce process, UK Prime Minister Johnson speaks at the Conservative Party conference. Exit proposals to the EU are expected. There is no certainty among investors about the proposals, if the EU will agree a deal, if the British Parliament will pass a deal, or if Johnson will remain as prime minister.

Iaroslav Shelepko and Akash Utsav, economists at Barclays, have sent us their thoughts.

The US ISM extended its decline, plunging from multi-year highs (above 60.0) to lows (below 48.0) in just 13 months, with the global trade slowdown largely spurring the sentiment decline. The spillovers of external demand slowdown and an associated decline in business investment are particularly evident in Europe.

With manufacturing PMIs at post-GFC [global financial crisis] lows in Germany, European sentiment deteriorated further in September, touching a six-year low. We still expect domestic demand resilience to prevail over industrial recession; however, the risk that European activity could lose its remaining steam ahead of a possible no-deal Brexit in early 2020 (our baseline) looms large.