The Times
Miners in meltdown after £7 billion is wiped off valuations: Nearly £7 billion was wiped from the value of Britain’s leading mining companies after traders took fright at a dividend cut by Anglo American and as new signs of a slowdown in China sent commodity prices crashing to their lowest levels for years.
Yahoo ditches $32 billion Alibaba spin-off after tax bill outcry: Yahoo is set to abandon plans to spin-off its $32 billion stake in Alibaba, the Chinese e-commerce group, after investors expressed concern about a potentially huge tax bill.
Banks are shamed over interest rates: Several banks that pay almost no interest to savers have been named and shamed by the financial regulator as part of its drive to make the market more competitive.
Regulator to reassess HSBC card charges: The financial regulator will open a new investigation into whether HSBC overcharged customers who were struggling to make credit card repayments, after years of campaigning by a whistleblower.
Rio Tinto slows spending to safeguard its dividend: Rio Tinto is cutting back on expansion as it tries to weather the storm afflicting mining groups, but it has repeated its promise not to similarly trim the dividend.
Mild winter sends shiver through U.S. gas market: American gas prices have tumbled to their lowest point in 17 years as an unusually warm start to winter exacerbates a widening supply glut.
The only way is still up for house prices: The chronic shortage of homes for sale will continue to push up house prices despite a dip last month, according to Britain’s biggest mortgage lender.
The Independent
Co-operative Energy hit with record-breaking level of complaints: Co-operative Energy has attracted the most customer complaints ever recorded by Citizens Advice in its quarterly ranking of the best and worst suppliers, collecting 1,584 complaints per 100,000 customers.
Airport runway delay ‘could cost U.K. £5 billion’: Delaying the hugely controversial decision on expansion of U.K. airport capacity could cost the economy more than £5 billion, the head of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) warned.
Opt-out text messaging service for nuisance calls planned by Ofcom: British consumers harassed by unwanted calls will be able to send a text to opt-out under new plans unveiled by Ofcom, the industry watchdog.
Financial Times
Alistair Darling joins board of Morgan Stanley: Alistair Darling, the former British Chancellor of the Exchequer, is to join the board of Morgan Stanley, following his former Boss Gordon Brown into a new career in international finance.
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RBS legal Chief jumps ship to Santander U.K.: Royal Bank of Scotland’s top lawyer has resigned after less than a year in the role to join rival Santander U.K.
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Genus makes breakthrough in tackling pig disease: Genus, the livestock geneticist, has announced what it says is a big step forward in tackling a major pig disease using gene editing technology.
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Kinder Morgan slashes dividend by 75%: Kinder Morgan, the largest operator of gas and oil pipelines in North America, has slashed its dividend by 75%, just four days after warning that its payout was under review.
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BDO delivers double-digit revenue growth: BDO, the accountancy and consultancy firm, delivered double-digit revenue growth in its latest financial year, boosted by 19 mergers.
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DuPont and Dow in $120 billion deal talks: Dow Chemical and DuPont are in talks about a potential $120 billion merger that would bring together the two largest U.S. chemicals companies, and then split them up into three new businesses, according to a person familiar with the negotiations
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Bill Ackman calls on Norfolk Southern to accept CP’s revised bid: Bill Ackman stepped up pressure on Norfolk Southern’s board to reconsider its rejection of Canadian Pacific’s takeover proposal when the activist investor fiercely criticised the U.S. railway’s management.
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Lex:
Prosper: Terror finance: It is not yet clear what the perpetrator in the San Bernardino shootings clicked when asked for the purpose of the loan taken out on Prosper Marketplace. The online lender does not provide an appropriate category.
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Railway wars: crazy train: Last year he formed an investment vehicle with Valeant Pharmaceuticals to facilitate a combination between Valeant and rival Allergan. The gambit failed. Allergan ended up selling out to Actavis, while Valeant’s fortunes have gone in the opposite direction. For added humiliation, Mr Ackman and Valeant now face a lawsuit over their arrangement.
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Anglo American: buyers be where: For all its global sprawl and tangled imperial heritage, the challenges facing London-listed miner Anglo American are easily grasped. Its earnings come from mining iron ore, coal, copper, platinum and diamonds. Since 2012, the price of all of these has drifted lower, punctuated by the occasional more violent downward lurch.
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Lombard:
Anglo cuts reflect class warfare: If there was a yearbook for mining Bosses appointed in 2013, Mark Cutifani’s entry would read “Voted most likely to suspend the dividend”. He took the helm at Anglo American, the third-largest London-listed miner, as commodity prices started to totter and a generation of expansionary Bosses were ousted or retired.
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Durkin and diving: Cenkos appears to be taking advantage of a two-for-one offer on involvement in corporate shaggy dog stories. The mid-cap broker is embroiled in controversy surrounding Northwest Biotherapeutics, a U.S. drugs group in which fund Manager and sometime client Neil Woodford has invested. Meanwhile, repercussions from accounting irregularities at Quindell, to which Cenkos once acted as corporate broker, rumble on.
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The Daily Telegraph
Fear grips market as oil leads commodity crash: Brent crude prices have crashed below $40 a barrel for the first time since the depths of the global financial crisis as Opec floods the market to drive out rivals, with a parallel drama unfolding across the gamut of industrial metals.
Arqiva seeks higher valuation with mobile mast focus: Arqiva, the Owner of Britain’s television masts, is planning to refocus its business on the mobile industry as bankers conduct a strategic review that could lead to a sale or flotation.
French billionaire Bollore readies London electric car scheme: The French industrial magnate Vincent Bollore will next month bring his electric car-sharing scheme to London.
Airbus’s new spaceplane patent shows company is ‘deadly serious’ about supersonic flight: Airbus files another patent intended to help develop supersonic spaceplane that shows aerospace giant is considering a future that’s faster than the speed of sound.
Estonia pulls out of financial transactions tax as George Osborne threatens legal challenge: George Osborne has described plans for a European financial transactions tax as “very uncertain” and potentially illegal, as Estonia pulled out of a proposed deal amid concerns about the rules.
Volkswagen suspended from FTSE ‘ethical’ index following emissions scandal: Volkswagen has been suspended from the index of socially responsible investments after it was found to have cheated on emissions tests.
City sage says there is ‘absolutely no way’ the U.K. will leave the EU: Old Mutual’s Richard Buxton said the odds are against Brexit as Irish central bank warns on risks to Irish economy of a U.K. exit.
U.S. launches trade dispute with China over tax on imported aircraft: The U.S. has launched a trade dispute against China, claiming that American aircraft and components are put at a disadvantage because of a tax break Beijing offers locally made small aircraft.
The Questor Column:
RWS Holdings delivers solid full-year: AIM-listed translation firm RWS Holdings has seen its shares rise more than 55% over the past three months as it delivered a solid increase in annual profits, defying fears of a slowdown. The full-year adjusted pretax profits increased 3% to £22.7 million to the end of September, and were slightly ahead of detailed guidance provided to the market last month. Revenue increased by 2% to £95.2 million. RWS takes patents in English and translates them for companies such as Siemens and Ford to protect their technology across different markets. The shares had struggled this year but jumped last month when RWS said sales for the full-year would be above market expectations. The company’s core operation of translating patents – 56% of group revenue – benefited from a spike in U.S. patent applications. The shares were given further momentum when RWS announced last month that it had agreed to pay $70 million (£46 million) for U.S.-based CTi, a translation firm that specialises in life sciences patents. The deal will be financed by $25 million in cash from RWS and $45 million in a new debt facility from Barclays. RWS has proven to be a steady long-term investment that has gradually increased dividend payments and we’d be happy to hold in the wake of the annual results. RWS Holdings at 220p -5.5p. Questor says “Hold”.
Victrex clears way for cash returns: Victrex has completed a major expansion plan this year and reported another year of steady trading that clears the way for greater returns of cash to shareholders. The Lancashire-based manufacturer, a specialist in high performance plastic polymers, has increased maximum production capacity by 70% to 7,000 tonnes a year. Its third £90 million plant was finished this year and the company said that future spending will fall to between £25 million to £35 million a year, down from £41 million during the year to the end of September. Victrex increased sales of its Peek polymers by 7% as it is managing to offset a slowdown in the oil and gas sector, which contributes 5% of group revenues, with strong demand from the aerospace and automotive sector, and consumer electronics. The company said that full-year production volumes were up 19% to 4,217 tonnes to the end of September. Elsewhere, the U.S. spinal business suffered 5% lower revenues due to consolidation of customers. That said, overall group revenue was up 4% to £263.5 million for the year to the end of September. The pretax profits were up 4% to £106.5 million, even despite being held back by an £7 million loss from foreign currency movements and revenues falling in the more profitable U.S. spinal business. The group’s gross profit margin fell to 63.8%, from 64.6% last year to reflect the higher sales to the less profitable consumer electronics customers. Victrex is clearly not immune to any cyclical slowdown in the economy that might be approaching. With that in mind, the shares are certainly looking highly rated, trading on 18 times forecast earnings, especially given that profits are only forecast to increase by about 6% in the year ahead. That said, the company has an excellent product and is well placed in world markets. Questor would be happy to hold on to these shares for the long term. Victrex at £18.91 -51p. Questor says “Hold”.
The Guardian
Oil producers prepare for prices to halve to $20 a barrel: The world’s leading oil producers are preparing for the possibility of oil prices halving to $20 a barrel after a second day of financial market turmoil saw a fresh slide in crude, the lowest iron ore prices in a decade, and losses on global stock markets.
Commodities rout deepens as Chinese trade data signal weaker demand: The accelerating rout in commodity prices has piled pressure on energy and resources shares in Asia Pacific amid more signs of slowing demand from China.
Opec bid to kill off U.S. shale sends oil price down to 2009 low: Oil prices have slumped by 5% after the latest attempt by Saudi Arabia to kill off the threat from the U.S. shale industry sent crude to its lowest level since the depths of the global recession almost seven years ago.
Recovery ‘too reliant on consumer debt’ as BCC downgrades forecast: Britain’s economic recovery remains too reliant on debt-fuelled consumer spending, a leading U.K. business organisation has warned, as it downgraded its growth forecasts in the face of a manufacturing slowdown.
Majority of 450 staff at yacht maker Fairline made redundant: The majority of the 450 staff at Fairline Boats have been made redundant after the luxury yacht maker went into administration last week.
Walt Disney doubles Vice stake as television expansion looms: Walt Disney has doubled its stake in Vice Media, the edgy, youth-focused media group, in a deal that takes its stake to 10% and values the group at $4 billion (£2.6 billion).
Tesco garden centre chain Dobbies £48 million in red: Tesco’s garden centre chain, Dobbies, has slumped £48 million into the red after writing down the value of its stores.
Daily Mail
Boeing launches new 737 MAX passenger jet with more than 250 British suppliers already benefiting from healthy order book: Boeing has rolled out the first of its new generation 737 MAX passenger jets from the factory after years of development and testing, writes Ben Griffiths.
MPs to launch fresh inquest into HBOS collapse with two senior financial regulators already being lined up to face a grilling: MPs will launch a fresh inquest into the collapse of Halifax Bank of Scotland next week.
Britain’s manufacturing sector facing bitter winter as output drops again in October: Britain’s manufacturing output fell 0.4% month-on-month in October, with the annual production of machinery and equipment plunging 15.3%, official data revealed today.
Luton Airport begins £110 million revamp to increase capacity from 12 million to 18 million passengers a year: Luton Airport has begun its £110 million revamp which will increase capacity and improve services. The airport said the redevelopment will create 3,700 jobs by 2030 and will extend capacity from 12 million to 18 million passengers a year.
Peppa Pig Owner Entertainment One plummets by nearly a third on pricey £285 million debt deal: Peppa Pig Owner Entertainment One has seen shares fall by nearly a third after it revealed a refinancing deal that sets its debt bill at £285 million with higher interest rates.
Mergers and acquisitions still below pre-crisis levels with deals between U.K. firms at their lowest since records began in 1969: Mergers and acquisitions in Britain have still not bounced back to their pre-financial crisis levels – but the value of the deals is up nearly a quarter from last year, figures show.
Hornby losses accelerate to £4.5 million following computer woes and three profit warnings in three years: Hornby said half-year losses widened to £4.5 million in the six months to September 30, from £500,000 a year earlier.
One in every five pounds was spent online last month as retailers suffer weak sales growth in November: U.K. retailers suffered their weakest sales growth since 2011 last month, as the hype surrounding Black Friday discounts failed to generate strong trading.
Daily Express
Drivers’ early Christmas present: Fuel prices set to drop to just £1 a litre ahead of Xmas: Fuel prices are on course to drop to £1 a litre, just as motorists head off on Christmas driving trips across the country, according to experts.
Anglo to slash 85,000 jobs as it faces worst slump in commodity prices in a decade: Anglo American is to slash more than half its activities and cut 85,000 jobs as it steps up its cost saving drive in the face of the worst slump in commodity prices in a decade.
Bad news for homeowners as house prices suffer shock drop: House prices fell in November and registered the smallest quarterly rise in almost a year, according to data released by lender Halifax.
The Scottish Herald
Linn invests in products as it fights currency headwinds: Linn Products has highlighted the challenges posed to exporters by the strength of the pound after it suffered a fall in profits but said investment in new products such as Tweed-covered speakers should ensure it prospers.
Tidal power specialist Atlantis Resources sign collaboration with subsea cabling firm JDR: Tidal power firm Atlantis Resources has signed a five-year collaboration agreement with a subsea cabling business.
Charity accepts merger to advance responsible business agenda: The 33-year-old Scottish Business in the Community is to merge with its bigger English counterpart after its corporate members voted for the change to help deliver a “national action plan for responsible business”.
Aberdeen oil services firms target challenging North Sea fields: Aberdeen-based oil services firm Amplus Energy Services has said it has formed a venture with French giant Technip that will aim to develop challenging North Sea fields.
Profit rise for motors firm Bridgend: Family owned motor dealer and vehicle repair firm Bridgend Group has seen turnover rise 24%.
Castle View hikes profit by 60%: Castle View Ventures, the Bridge of Allan-based group spanning leisure management, catering and food production, has reported a 60% rise in pretax profits to £5.58 million.
Robertson Group reports record turnover and profit: Elgin-based Robertson Group has reported record turnover of £288 million and pretax profit of almost £12 million for the full-year to March 2015.
The Scotsman
Engineering consultant moves into new Glasgow base: More than 110 employees from WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff, the recently merged professional services and engineering consultancy, have moved into their first joint office in Glasgow.
Video game analytics firm aims to double headcount: An Edinburgh technology firm that helps video game developers analyse player behaviour has unveiled ambitious plans to double its headcount next year.
Watchdog reveals savings accounts paying lowest rates: Savings accounts paying the lowest interest rates have been laid bare by the City watchdog as part of a raft of measures to make it easier for savers to switch and compare.
EnQuest buoyed by rise in production: North Sea explorer EnQuest said it was confident of growing production by a third next year as it unveiled a jump in second-half output.
City A.M.
World Bank: East Asia needs ‘womb-to-tomb’ policies to deal with ageing population and shrinking workforce: East Asia needs to introduce ‘womb-to-tomb’ policies to deal with the decline in the labour force and higher public spending that will come with an ageing population, the World Bank has warned .
M&A activity in the U.K. increased 90% in 2015, to highest levels since 2007 thanks to Shell’s BG deal and AB InBev’s takeover of SABMiller: U.K. M&A activity is at its highest level since 2007, up 90% from last year to $516.5 billion (£344.4 billion), according to EY.
Low inflations means U.K. workers are set to see real wages increase 2.3% in 2016: U.K. workers will have something to celebrate this Christmas: real wages are set to increase by 2.3% next year, the biggest rise since 2008.
U.K. property listings drop by a fifth in November as London scores zero: New property listings dropped by more than a fifth across the U.K. in November, with not one London borough recording a rise in supply, new research shows.
U.K. homeowners unprepared for interest rate hike, warns TSB: U.K. homeowners are unprepared for an interest rate rise, despite nearly three quarters of borrowers facing an increase in their monthly repayments if the Bank of England votes for a change in the base rate.
Homewares and fashion retailer The White Company rockets ahead with an almost doubling of profits: Furniture, clothing and homewares retailer The White Company reported an almost doubling of profits for the full year ended 28 March.
AB InBev Chief Executive Carlos Brito defends “beerhemoth” SABMiller merger to Senate Committee sceptics: Anheuser Busch InBev Chief Executive Carlos Brito was put through his paces as members of the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee voiced concerns that the £71 billion merger between the world’s two largest brewers AB InBev and SABMiller, would harm consumers and competitors in the U.S.
Insurer AIG backs Camden Market Owner Market Tech Holdings with £900 million loan: American insurance giant AIG has thrown its weight behind the Owner of Camden Market after agreeing to provide it with a £900 million debt package.
Private equity house KKR to buy scientific testing specialists LGC from London investment firm Bridgepoint: American private equity firm KKR has agreed to buy life sciences firm LGC from London-based investment group Bridgepoint for an undisclosed sum.
