Newspapers: The Times, Independent, FT, Telegraph, Guardian, Mail, Express, Herald 050916

The Times

Insolvency experts to be quizzed over ‘fees fraud’: A number of leading insolvency practitioners are due to be interviewed under caution as part of a criminal investigation into an alleged multimillion-pound professional fees fraud.

We want five years to cope with Brexit, banks demand: Banks are demanding up to five years to deal with the consequences of Britain’s departure from the European Union, a move that if successful could prompt accusations of favouritism and incur the wrath of those campaigning for a swift exit.

Data talks with Chinese still on despite security concerns: Talks between a £3.75 billion British data centre company and a Chinese consortium about a potential investment are continuing despite fears about its impact on national security.

Cruise ships throw a lifeline to struggling oil services industry: Suppliers to the world’s oil industry are switching to alternatives including cruise ships as they struggle to stay afloat amid the longest downturn since the 1980s.

Shareholders have new spring in step: Investor revolts over pay this year are already double their level of the shareholder spring in 2012 and the jump in bruising encounters at annual meetings is threatening to be a “pivotal moment for Executive pay”.

Tesco auditor slips back into retailer’s aisles: The accountancy group under investigation by its professional watchdog over its audit of Tesco has a new role at the supermarket chain. Tesco has appointed PwC as an independent adviser, despite replacing it as auditor with Deloitte.

Apprentices in poor regions ‘will suffer under funding cuts’: Ministers are facing calls to reconsider changes to apprenticeship funding rates amid claims that they will have a devastating effect on the poor.

Manufacturers put spending plans on hold: Manufacturers are more confident after a rebound last month, but they remain wary about the prospects for the rest of the economy after the vote to quit the European Union.

Yotel Founder moves into rented flats: A co-Founder of the Yotel chain says that he wants to make renting an apartment as easy as booking a hotel.

The Independent

Theresa May risks cabinet row after pouring cold water on Boris Johnson’s ‘points-based’ immigration system: The immigration system lauded by Boris Johnson, Liam Fox and other top Brexit backers has been rubbished by Theresa May in a move that could spark fresh Cabinet divisions.

Britain is now the second biggest arms dealer in the world: Britain is now the second biggest arms dealer in the world, official government figures show – with most of the weapons fuelling deadly conflicts in the Middle East.

Financial Times

Polymetal feels undervalued despite gold surge: The Russian miner that will rejoin London’s FTSE 100 index this month still faces a fight to win acceptance from investors who remain biased against the country, its Chief Executive says.

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Hinkley Point offers £100 billion revenue prize to EDF and China partner: EDF and its Chinese partner could be paid more than £100 billion over 35 years for Hinkley Point C’s electricity if the U.K. government gives the go-ahead to the French utility’s contentious nuclear power station, according to analyses commissioned by the Financial Times.

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Swiss-style deal will not work after Brexit, Hildebrand warns: The former head of the Swiss central bank has warned that the U.K. is wrong to think that negotiating a Swiss-style deal with the EU for financial services will be a feasible or desirable response to Brexit.

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Chinese private groups play a growing role in M&A: China’s private sector has completed about $60 billion in outbound mergers and acquisitions and other direct investment such as project finance this year.

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Priory Owner to sell hospitals after competition concerns: The U.S. Owner of the Priory, the mental healthcare chain that has counted Kate Moss, Ray Wilkins and Robbie Williams as clients, is hoping to raise up to £300 million from site sales in the U.K.

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Brewers size up Vietnam beer sale plan: International brewers are sizing up a $2.2 billion plan by Vietnam to auction off its two largest state beer makers, in the latest stage of what has been a stop-start opening up of one of Southeast Asia’s leading emerging markets.

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Uniqlo expands deeper into Asia: Challenged by frugal consumers at home and losses in the U.S., Japan’s Uniqlo clothing chain is pushing deeper into Asia, with a new flagship store in Singapore and plans to launch retail operations in India.

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Safaricom’s Little steps back from big Uber fight: The Chief Executive of Safaricom, Kenya’s largest company by market value, has sought to play down a price war with Uber, saying he never dreamt of driving the ride-hailing service out of the African country.

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Activist fund’s investment fuels Japan shipping M&A rumours: The summer investment patterns of an enigmatic activist fund have sparked speculation that one of Japan’s biggest shipping companies may soon be embroiled in global industry consolidation.

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Sony makes move on mobile gaming: Sony is set to push “aggressively” into mobile gaming, having watched from the sidelines as its console rival Nintendo enjoyed meteoric success with the Pokémon Go augmented reality (AR) game.

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Lex:

Asian contingent capital: bluff call: Those employing reverse psychology ask for something in anticipation of receiving the complete opposite, their true aim. Investors in the loss-absorbing contingent convertible bonds from Asian issuers know that game well. Singapore bank DBS recently issued a $750 million “coco” bond at a record low coupon of 3.6%.

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The Daily Telegraph

Britain can leave EU and still thrive, says Stiglitz: Britain is easily capable of thriving outside the European Union, one of the world’s leading economists has insisted in an interview with The Daily Telegraph.

U.S. howls over Apple ruling sit ill with its own actions: There was something almost entertaining about the torrent of outrage from Washington last week which greeted the EU’s controversial ruling that Apple must pay €13 billion in back taxes.

No U.K. fracking this year as Yorkshire legal challenge drags on: Britain’s efforts to get fracking for shale gas have suffered a fresh delay after it emerged a legal challenge against the only approved project will not be heard until the end of November.

Brands Hatch Owner on track for Silverstone bid: The Owner of the Brands Hatch circuit in Kent has revealed that he is planning a bid for Silverstone, the home of Formula One’s British Grand Prix.

Crawford Healthcare on top after a roller coaster ride: “At one point, we were two weeks away from being properly bust,” says Richard Anderson, Chief Executive of Crawford Healthcare, as he recounts the early days of the medical company.

BAE sets sights on bigger slice of the cyber defence market: BAE Systems has teamed up with Germany’s top insurer Allianz as it aims to grab a bigger slice of the burgeoning cyber defence market.

ECB poised to cut growth forecasts as policymakers mull fresh stimulus: The European Central Bank is poised to cut its growth forecasts in the wake of the Brexit vote, as President Mario Draghi signals that policymakers are ready to do more to boost the flagging recovery.

Government urged to guarantee rights of existing EU workers: The Government has been urged to “provide immediate certainty” to businesses over the residency rights of existing EU employees following the referendum, after two in five companies reported it was a serious concern among their staff.

The Guardian

Theresa May tells G20 she plans to tackle bad corporate behaviour: Theresa May is to bring forward proposals to tackle bad corporate behaviour such as excessive Executive pay and aggressive tax avoidance before Christmas, as she used the G20 summit to warn that some people feel left behind by globalisation.

Japan’s Brexit demands range from possible to fanciful: Japan’s threat that many of its companies will quit the U.K. if Brexit negotiations are botched comes with an unprecedented and slightly panicky list of demands.

Latest post-Brexit data may dispel doom and gloom: A raft of data published this week will offer the latest health check on the state of the U.K. economy following June’s vote to leave the EU, with economists expecting the figures to suggest businesses were so far “proving resilient”.

Director bonuses continue to grow at largest U.K. firms, City analyst says: The U.K.’s largest firms paid Directors bigger bonuses in 2015 than the previous year, despite a fall in the number of shareholders backing their remuneration plans, according to analysis by Deloitte.

Daily Mail

U.K. doughnut dust-up looms with Burger King Owner set to launch Canadian favourite Tim Hortons: Canadian doughnut giant Tim Hortons is seeking to break into the British market by opening its first U.K. stores.

Government grants £500,000 to small British firm hoping to develop Zika vaccine: The Government has granted £500,000 to a small British firm that is on track to develop a Zika vaccine.

High Street war wipes £8 billion off retail giants Next, Marks & Spencer and Sports Direct: Three of Britain’s biggest clothing chains have lost more than £8billion of their market value in the last 12 months – underlining the crisis engulfing the country’s high streets.

ARM to disappear from the London Stock Market this week after £24 billion sale to Softbank: One of Britain’s brightest tech stars will disappear from the London Stock Exchange this week after its sale to a foreign buyer.

One in three homeowners frustrated by their lack of progress getting up the next property ladder ring: A third of homeowners say they are disappointed by their lack of progress on moving up the property ladder, a new report by Lloyds Bank has revealed.

Daily Express

‘Brexit boost’ for mobile phone firm Unshackled: A new mobile phone firm back by John Caudwell, the billionaire Founder of Phones4U, says that the business stands to benefit on the back of Brexit, despite facing massive competition from the likes of Vodafone and EE.

Morrisons to trim meat prices in latest store price war: WM Morrison is to slash meat and poultry prices by up to 20% from Monday, as part of its latest salvo in the ongoing supermarket price war.

The Scottish Herald

Brewing giant Coors open to craft deals: The Scottish arm of North American brewing giant Molson Coors has declared it is open to making acquisitions in the country’s rapidly growing craft beer sector, as it highlighted a boost from two major supply deals with customers in Scotland.

Investors await Barratt update to indicate Brexit impact on property sector: Housebuilder Barratt Developments will be looked to by the City for any clues on how the property sector has performed after the Brexit vote when it announces its full-year results on Wednesday.

Food prices plunge to record low – but not for long, warn trade Bosses: Shoppers enjoyed falling prices last month as the cost of food hit a record low and retailers continued to roll out discounts, a report has revealed.

Small firms missing out on export bonanza: The majority of small businesses in the U.K. are missing out on a huge potential windfall by failing to export.

Lending sourced through invoice finance leaps beyond £20 billion: The total amount of lending secured by U.K. businesses through invoice finance exceeded £20 billion for the first time.

May urged by business to guarantee EU residency rights: Prime Minister Theresa May has been urged to preserve the residential rights of EU citizens who are currently working for British companies following the Brexit vote.

We have criticised Scottish tax hikes, CBI insists: The CBI has defended its record of holding the Scottish Government to account, as it confirmed Hugh Aitken will stand down as its head in Scotland in 2018.

The Scotsman

Building boost as ‘hub’ programme breaks £1 billion mark: Hundreds of smaller-sized building firms are said to be benefitting from increased activity as the value of construction work linked to a Scotland-wide programme to develop new community facilities pushes through £1 billion.

Start-up offers a solution for HR support: A start-up business that promises to shake-up the market for human resource and employment law support is aiming to build up a 50-strong workforce.

Latest appointments and promotions: Law firm Weightmans LLP has appointed Cassandra Auld as partner in its real estate team in Glasgow.

Embattled Sports Direct throws open its doors: Under-fire Sports Direct Boss Mike Ashley is bracing himself for a showdown with shareholders and unions this week as he prepares to throw open the retailer’s factory doors in a bid to address concerns over corporate governance and working practices.

City A.M.

More than a third of corporate debt is now with challenger banks, but London firms yet to be convinced: Challenger banks are giving the incumbent players a run for their money, as figures out show over a third (34%) of U.K. business mortgages and charges are now issued by the smaller, newer lenders.

Royal London attacks Sports Direct over corporate governance issues ahead of AGM: Two major investment firms are set to join a revolt against Sports Direct’s corporate governance at a crunch AGM on Wednesday.

American Formula 1 takeover edges closer but subject to European Commission sign-off: The eagerly-anticipated sale of Formula 1 to Liberty Media will need to navigate a series of tight chicanes including potential scrutiny by the European Commission (EC).

Bayer board to debate making a hostile approach for Monsanto: The board of German multinational chemical and pharmaceutical firm Bayer is expected to debate taking another swing at U.S. seed company Monsanto when it meets next week.

Balfour Beatty exec lined up to sweeten National Grid bid: The Chairman of Britain’s biggest construction company is being lined up to sweeten a bid for National Grid’s network of gas pipes which could be worth up to £10 billion.

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