Newspapers today: The Times, Independent, FT, Telegraph, Guardian, Mail, Express, Herald 210216

The Times

Polman has a lot on his plate after the takeover that wasn’t: Paul Polman may be off the hook after Kraft Heinz scuttled away from a potential £115 billion takeover, but the Chief Executive of Unilever has a difficult few years ahead of him.

Broadcaster is going to the dogs: Sports Information Services has agreed terms on the purchase of two greyhound stadia in the northeast from William Hill for an undisclosed price.

High earners cash in on self-employment: Thousands of highly paid workers are setting themselves up as self-employed to dodge tax in a move that threatens to leave the Treasury £6 billion out of pocket, analysis has shown.

Doubling cost of energy-from-waste plunges Interserve deeper into mire: The cost of a botched move into building energy-from-waste incinerators at Interserve has more than doubled, triggering a sharp rise in its debt.

New dispute forces copper price up again: Copper climbed back above $6,000 a tonne as Anglo, which reports its annual results this morning, stopped producing at El Soldado.

Adding the markets and investors to the mix: A chain of cocktail bars founded by three former TGI Friday’s bartenders has been put up for sale for up to £60 million. Be At One, which runs bars with a menu of 190 cocktails and no food, is understood to have appointed AlixPartners to handle a formal sale.

Strike threat looming at BMW over plans to change pensions: BMW was warned yesterday that it could face the first strike by its British workforce over plans to downgrade its pension scheme.

Hopes start to sink for world’s biggest float: Saudi Arabia’s plans to float off a stake in the nation’s state oil producer have been delayed until next year at the earliest because of the complexity of the transaction.

The Independent

Government is failing to tackle massive gender pay gap: The Government is not doing enough to tackle the gaping divide between male and female pay and must bolster efforts to ensure flexible working is offered to all, according to cross-party committee.

Global sales of U.K. food and drink hit the £20 billion for the first time: Global sales of U.K. food and drink have hit the £20 billion mark for the first time in history, as the Government prepares to ramp up its focus on international trade following the U.K.’s decision to leave the EU.

Russia overtakes Saudi Arabia as world’s largest crude oil producer: Russia overtook Saudi Arabia as the world’s largest crude producer in December, when both countries started restricting supplies ahead of agreed cuts with other global producers to curb the worst glut in decades.

Unilever shares fall sharply after Kraft Heinz drops bid: ​Shares in Unilever fell sharply on Monday, a day after Kraft Heinz dropped its £115 billion ($143 billion) offer to buy the consumer goods giant, a takeover that would have been one of the biggest ever in corporate history.

Saudi Stock Exchange appoints first female Chief in history of the kingdom: Saudi Arabia’s stock exchange has appointed a woman to the position of chairperson for the first time in the kingdom’s history, sparking hopes that the country is progressing—albeit slowly—towards gender equality.

Expedia to double size of its U.K. headquarters despite fears over EU departure: Online travel company Expedia plans to double the size of its U.K. base and has signed a new lease that runs until 2030, according to a company statement. The company will expand its London hub, which employs about 1,400 staff, by 138,000 square feet.

Global arms trade hits highest levels since the Cold War: The global trade of weapons has risen over the past five years to its highest level since the end of the Cold War.

Financial Times

Vale welcomes move by leading investors to end power pact: Brazil’s Vale said on Monday that its leading shareholders would dissolve a longstanding pact controlling the world’s largest iron ore producer from 2020, in a move intended to improve transparency at the company and enable increased trading in its stock.

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Freeport-McMoRan threatens to sue Indonesia over mine dispute: Freeport-McMoRan on Monday warned the Indonesian government it was prepared to sue Jakarta if it could not resolve an increasingly bitter dispute that has slashed production at its flagship copper deposit in the country.

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3G Capital has up to $15 billion to deploy in next megadeal: 3G Capital, the private equity group that spearheaded Kraft Heinz’s failed $143 billion bid for Unilever, has up to $15 billion to deploy on its next megadeal, according to several people close to the group.

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Portugal begins ‘concluding’ talks with Lone Star for Novo Banco: Portugal has entered “concluding” talks with Lone Star on the sale of Novo Banco as Lisbon seeks to close a deal with the U.S. private equity fund on the future of the rescued lender.

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HSBC tightens standards on lending to palm oil industry: HSBC has tightened its standards on lending to the palm oil industry, pledging that it would cut ties with companies linked to the destruction of rainforests in key production areas.

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Nigeria edges closer to devaluation with dollar move: Nigeria’s central bank has edged closer to a full devaluation by making dollars available to private individuals at 20% above the official rate.

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Lloyd’s confirms Bruce Carnegie-Brown as Chairman: Lloyd’s has confirmed that Bruce Carnegie-Brown will take over as chair of the London-based insurance market from John Nelson in June.

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RBS could face tougher terms to drop Williams & Glyn sale: The U.K. Treasury could be forced to impose tougher terms on Royal Bank of Scotland to free the bank from selling Williams & Glyn following an investigation by Brussels, according to people close to the plans.

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Bastaki to replace Saad as head of Kuwait Investment Authority: The Kuwait Investment Authority is set to replace its longstanding managing director, ending Bader al-Saad’s 14 years running the world’s oldest sovereign wealth fund.

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Emilio Saracho replaces Angel Ron as Banco Popular Chairman: Emilio Saracho has been appointed Chairman of Banco Popular, the Spanish bank that earlier this month unveiled an annual loss of €3.5 billion.

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China’s Geely and France’s PSA bid for Lotus Owner Proton: China’s Geely and France’s PSA are in the race to buy Proton, the struggling Malaysian carmaker that owns Lotus, with the two groups set to submit rival offers in the coming days.

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Odebrecht’s web of corruption spreads across Latin America: The Odebrecht scandal is spreading — metastasising in the words of Medley Global Advisors — from Brazil to the rest of Latin America. As details of the plea bargain struck by the disgraced construction company are made public, it is becoming clear that its dealings were not just at the heart of Brazil’s lava jato scandal. In order to win public works contracts, Odebrecht paid massive bribes to a huge number of politicians across the region and for many years.

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Time Inc looks to sell services to 30 million subscribers: Pets are people too, at least to the readers of People magazine. The celebrity weekly dedicates a section of its website and a Twitter feed to videos, photos and stories about animals, including regular segments with a vet who was once featured in its Sexiest Man Alive issue.

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Uber breaks silence on female engineers after harassment claim: Uber has broken its silence on the low representation of women engineers in its workforce, as it struggles to contain the fallout over its handling of a sexual harassment complaint.

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Apple claims Brussels breached its fundamental rights in tax case: Apple is claiming that the European Commission breached its fundamental “right to good administration” when it demanded last year that the tech giant pay €13 billion in back taxes to Ireland.

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Japan scraps 24-hour culture to keep down wages: The end of 24-hour service is partly because there are fewer students in Japan’s ageing society. But the main factor is the growing shortage of casual staff — a big issue after four years of robust economic growth — that makes it hard to operate profitably during late-night hours.

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Lex:

Vedanta Resources: sleight of hand: Vedanta group managers have had to do a bit of juggling to move money where needed. Some of its zinc, aluminium, copper and oil operations carry a lot of debt. A cursory examination reveals a corporate structure that has Vedanta Resources resting at the top of a pyramid, with Vedanta Limited directly below. The latter owns cash-rich Cairn India, with $3.8 billion of cash on its balance sheet. Vedanta Resources has access to this treasure trove only via its holding in Vedanta Limited, which today stands at 50.1%.

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Tech IPO bonuses: grade inflation: When a company goes public, the Chief Executive bears heavier burdens. Evan Spiegel of Snap will thus get a stock award when the messaging app closes its initial public offering next month. That should ease the pain of earnings calls and Sarbanes-Oxley red tape.

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Listed hedge funds: rescue me: Spare a thought for Mike Novogratz. Mr. Novogratz was a hotshot macro trader at Fortress Investment Group for more than a decade, before an unceremonious departure in late 2015 after heavy losses in his fund. When he left, Fortress repurchased his shares for $4.50 — well off the company’s 2007 IPO price of $18.50. But when SoftBank recently bought out all of Fortress for $8 a share, a 39% premium to its undisturbed price, it was an indication that the market had failed to understand how to value Fortress.

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Lombard:

Who wrote the chat-up lines in Kraft’s clumsy courtship?: In advising Kraft Heinz to plight its troth to Unilever, Lazard seemingly failed to recognise quite how unwanted those affections were.            Unilever’s very public rejection of the U.S. group’s advances was brutal. “Kraft Heinz has the utmost respect for the culture, strategy and leadership of Unilever,” wooed the cheesy orange American, even after all was lost. To which the Anglo-Dutch object of its affections pointedly refused to respond. Awkward, or what?

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Vast and loose: Vast Resources may be many things, but vastly resourced is not one of them, writes Kate Burgess. The tiny Aim-quoted mining company, known as African Consolidated Resources until 2015, needs gazillions to develop its mining projects in Zimbabwe and Romania. And it will struggle to raise them in the market.

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The Daily Telegraph

Drivers have ‘no choice’ but to sue Volkswagen over ‘dieselgate’ emissions scandal: Volkswagen drivers affected by the “dieselgate” scandal have been left with no choice but to sue the company, according to lawyers acting for drivers.

Oil price recovery vulnerable as U.S. shale confounds OPEC: The short-lived recovery of world oil prices is already in danger as OPEC and Russia fail to deliver on agreed output cuts and America’s shale industry roars back to life.

Shell defies doubters by predicting boom for liquefied natural gas: Royal Dutch Shell has brushed off concern that the burgeoning market for liquefied natural gas is already oversupplied, after paying £36.5 billion to buy market leader BG Group.

Political pressure over LSE merger mounts: Political pressure over the London Stock Exchange’s £21 billion merger with German rival Deutsche Boerse is mounting ahead of a parliamentary debate on the controversial tie-up, amid concerns a major City institution will become “locked in the EU” following Brexit.

French Connection loses Christos Angelides after move to Reiss: French Connection faces more woe after its much-heralded non-Executive director Christos Angelides was made new Boss of high street rival Reiss.

Vedanta targets £8 billion expansion as profits recover: Indian mining group Vedanta Resources believes it can challenge industry titans BHP Billiton and Vale with a $10 billion (£8 billion) expansion programme that will boost its footprint in oil, gas, zinc and lead.

Demonitisation in India hits the gemstone market: The removal of bank notes in India is causing indigestion in the gemstone industry, with the after-effects being felt in London-listed companies.

The Guardian

World’s largest sailing yacht impounded in Gibraltar: The world’s largest sailing yacht has been impounded in Gibraltar over claims that its billionaire Russian owner owes the shipbuilder €15.3 million (£13.3 million).

Bovis to pay £7 million to compensate customers for poorly built homes: Bovis Homes is to pay £7 million to repair poorly built new homes sold to customers, raising fresh questions about the standards of new-build properties across the country and the regulation of the market.

Government vows to do all it can to protect jobs at Vauxhall’s U.K. plants: The business secretary has promised the government’s “unbounded commitment” to protecting jobs at Vauxhall amid concerns over the carmaker’s future.

Pension changes could cost 11 million Britons thousands of pounds: Companies could slash pension promises to 11 million employees, potentially knocking thousands of pounds off the incomes of people in retirement, if proposals in a government consultation paper are approved.

Made in the U.K. goods could cost more as import prices rise: Britain’s manufacturers fear the rising cost of raw materials will soon dent a robust recovery since the Brexit vote that has included total orders hitting a two-year high.

Greece standoff over €86 billion bailout eases after Brussels deal: Greece’s bailout inspectors are returning to Athens to seek changes to the country’s tax, pensions and labour market laws in a sign that the Greek prime Minister, Alexis Tsipras, will give way to European pressure for deeper reforms.

Daily Mail

Dulux unveils £10 million U.K. research centre for more than 100 scientists to develop fire-resistant paints: Dulux’s owner is creating a £10.7 million paint research centre in Gateshead. More than 100 scientists will be developing fire-resistant paints for industrial use at the Akzo Nobel site in Felling, due to open at the end of next year.

Poundland owner and Shoprite abandon $14 billion deal to create Africa’s biggest shop network: Poundland owner Steinhoff and supermarket chain Shoprite have abandoned a $14 billion deal to create Africa’s biggest shop network.

Last call for pagers as Vodafone hangs up more than 20 years after the heyday of the beeper devices: Vodafone, the last major pager network supplier, is selling up – more than 20 years after the heyday of the beeper devices. The deal will make professional services firm Capita the last remaining pager operator in the U.K.

Shopping centre developer behind Bullring and Brent Cross feels the pinch as profits plummet by 56%: Profits at Hammerson collapsed after the shopping centre group booked heavy losses on the value of its property portfolio. The group, which owns sites around the country, said full-year profit fell 56% to £322.8 million.

The City is ‘crucial’ to the success of Europe and trade barriers could have ‘disastrous consequences’, study warns: A cash crisis will hit banks on the Continent if the EU fails to reach a financial services deal with Britain, according to a report. The study by a respected City group suggests the bloc’s lenders could be cut off from crucial markets if they lose access to London.

Catering giant Compass secures a ten-year contract with Tottenham Hotspur at its new £750 million stadium: Catering giant Compass has secured a ten-year contract with Tottenham Hotspur at the club’s new 61,000-capacity stadium.

Daily Express

British manufacturing demand at two year high as Pound is ‘about to surge’: Demand for British manufacturing is soaring after Brexit with the industry rocketing to a two-year high, according to new figures.

Polluted water treatment expert Siltbuster answers World Cup construction call: Waste water treatment expert Siltbuster, whose technology prevented pollution in the Mediterranean after the Costa Concordia cruise ship disaster, has been drafted in to deal with contamination threats on World Cup construction sites in Qatar.

Shoppers set to ditch big brands & switch to cheaper own-label produce if food prices rise: Britons are set to ditch big-brand food products and switch to cheaper supermarket own-label goods in a bid to keep their grocery bills down, according to a new report.

Low-income families have less than £100 put away, report finds: The savings gap between families on low and high incomes has widened over the past year, with lower-earning households typically relying on less than £100 in their rainy day fund, a report has found.

Chancellor Philip Hammond’s Budget boost on economy: Chancellor Philip Hammond is in line for a Budget boost as Britain’s fiscal watchdog unveils a brighter outlook on economic growth and the public finances, according to a report.

Rolls-Royce hoping to ride out turbulence: Rolls-Royce reported a record £4.6billion loss in its full-year results last week. Much of this is a result of the fall in the pound, which impacted the value of the group’s currency agreements. A £671million fine for historic bribery and corruption was also a factor.

The Scottish Herald

Inverarity Morton hires Annand: Scottish drinks wholesaler Inverarity Morton has appointed former Tennent Caledonian Executive Steve Annand as sales director. He formerly headed cider brand Magners and succeeds industry veteran Donald Campbell in the role.

Walker replacement revealed at BenRiach Distillery Company: Rachel Barrie is to replace Billy Walker as whisky maker for The BenRiach Distillery Company following its £285 million acquisition by Bacardi owner Brown-Forman in April 2016.

Energy plant woes leads group to £160 million charge: The construction group sacked as principal contractor on the Glasgow Recycling & Renewable Energy plant has seen its shares dive by almost one-third after revealing its exit from the energy from waste business will cost it £160 million.

Scotland trailing on small firm equity deals: Scotland accounted for only three% of the value of equity investments in smaller businesses in the U.K. last year, a report reveals today.

Shareholder groups slate Royal Bank of Scotland: The organisations calling for Royal Bank of Scotland to appoint a shareholder committee to help monitor management have renewed their criticism of the lender and called for radical reform of the corporate governance regime in the U.K.

Progress for tidal power project: Renewable energy firm Atlantis Resources has installed a fourth turbine at the MeyGen tidal power development in the Pentland Firth.

The Scotsman

Health tech start-up snap40 gets £1 million shot in the arm: An Edinburgh healthcare technology start-up that has developed a device to monitor patients’ vital signs in real time has won a £1 million deal with NHS England that will help fund ongoing clinical studies.

Edinburgh bucks decline in £1m-plus home sales: The number of house sales valued at £1 million and above dropped by 6% last year, according to data from property group Rettie & Co.

Paisley power and lighting firm sees turnover surge: A Paisley-headquartered electrical engineering specialist that secured the largest LED street lighting contract in the country last year has seen its sales charge up.

Nurturing the next generation of entrepreneurs: Business accelerator Entrepreneurial Spark’s Impact Report, published today, contains some impressive statistics and a blueprint for the future, finds Scott Reid.

Enterprise guru joins board of social letting agency: Scotland’s first social enterprise letting agency has netted a top specialist in entrepreneurship and business growth as it limbers up for expansion.

City A.M.

British consumers see no negatives from Brexit despite rising economy fears: Brexit did not stop British consumer confidence from growing over the past year, despite the economy topping a list of concerns for future prospects, according to a new poll.

Volkswagen has fixed 470,000 of the U.K. cars hit by the emissions scandal: German carmaker Volkswagen has fixed 470,000 cars out of 1.2 million affected by the diesel emissions scandal in Britain, the firm’s U.K. managing director told MPs yesterday.

Trade Secretary Liam Fox visits Southeast Asia to promote British links with the region: Trade Secretary Liam Fox is to visit Singapore and Vietnam this week in his first trip to Southeast Asia since coming to office as he seeks to bolster Britain’s overseas links

Astrazeneca to sell commercial rights of cancer drug in $320 million deal: AstraZeneca has struck a $320 million (£256 million) deal with TerSera Therapeutics to sell the commercial rights of its Zoladex cancer treatment in the U.S. and Canada.

S&P Global Platts is overhauling its Brent oil benchmark for the first time since 2007: S&P Global Platts’ Brent oil assessment is set to be revamped for the first time in a decade to address the falling supply underpinning the benchmark that prices most of the world’s oil.

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