The Times
Credit Suisse traders culled as back-office jobs go east: Hundreds of traders at Credit Suisse will become the first staff at the Swiss bank to lose their jobs as part of a redundancy programme that will cut the London workforce by a third.
We can lead world in financial technology, Osborne tells City: George Osborne has pledged to do everything in the government’s power to make Britain the world leader in financial technology.
Buy-to-let boom as banks ignore warning over risk to economy: Britain’s booming buy-to-let market stepped up a gear last month with lenders ignoring a warning from the Bank of England about the risks to the economy of offering more to landlords.
Asteroids the final frontier for miners: The world’s first trillionaires will grow rich by mining asteroids. So say those who can see a future when humans call more than one planet home. Now, legislation just passed by Congress has brought that far-off suggestion a step closer to reality by granting U.S. companies “finders keepers” rights to natural resources obtained in space. That includes, perhaps, trillions of dollars worth of platinum, gold, silver, iron, zinc, cobalt – and the main prize, water.
BHP sets up $100 million fund for victims of Brazilian mud tragedy: BHP Billiton and its Brazilian partner are to set up a fund for victims of the mudslide that destroyed a village in a valley below a huge iron-ore mine.
House prices soar as shortage hits home: The chronic lack of homes for sale has pushed up prices across the country for the third consecutive month.
The Independent
U.K. and China sign craft beer deal worth £100 million in barley exports: Britain has signed a deal worth up to £100 million to export around 750,000 tonnes of the grain to Chinese breweries over the next five years.
Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos overtakes Carlos Slim as fourth richest person in the world: Jeff Bezos has become the fourth richest person in the world, after the value of his company’s stock rose on Tuesday, surpassing Mexican telecom tycoon Carlos Slim.
Collapse of Olympus fraud case fuels calls for U.K. law reforms: Legal experts have called for an overhaul of U.K. corporate laws to hold companies to account after the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) dropped its prosecution of Japanese optical giant Olympus Corporation.
Singles Day 2015: Royal Mail and Alibaba are teaming up to import more Chinese goods to the U.K.: Royal Mail will extend its partnerships with e-commerce Alibaba to link Chinese sellers directly with U.K. online shoppers just in time for China’s Singles Day, the company has said.
Financial Times
Esure runs into fears over crash payouts: Esure’s bumpy ride on the stock market continued as concerns over how the insurer is coping with a rise in payouts to car crash victims weighed on its share price.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/4eebeca0-8882-11e5-9f8c-a8d619fa707c.html#axzz3qxijxwyt
TalkTalk warns cyber-attack costs could rise to £35 million: TalkTalk has warned that the cost of dealing with one of the most high-profile cyber-attacks on a British company could rise to £35 million, although it admitted it could not yet gauge the full extent of the impact on its business.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/20144af8-8846-11e5-90de-f44762bf9896.html#axzz3qxijxwyt
Argus Media Group to examine sale or initial public offering: Argus Media Group has hired bankers to advise on options for the privately owned company, including a sale or a stock market flotation.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/0a3c2732-8882-11e5-9f8c-a8d619fa707c.html#axzz3qxijxwyt
Fenner earnings slide 35% as miners tighten their belts: Fenner, one of the main makers of conveyor belts for the mining sector, has become the latest manufacturer to feel the chill of the commodities price slump as it lowered its earnings outlook.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/17ecc09e-8891-11e5-9f8c-a8d619fa707c.html#axzz3qxijxwyt
Apache rejects Anadarko Petroleum’s takeover approach: Anadarko Petroleum confirmed that it made a takeover approach to Apache, a fellow U.S. oil exploration and production company, but said the offer was rejected and has now been withdrawn.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/72d3747a-8883-11e5-9f8c-a8d619fa707c.html#axzz3qxijxwyt
Lex:
Microsoft: vielen Dank!: “Thanks a lot, Microsoft,” is something nobody was saying in Silicon Valley or Washington. In a blaze of publicity, the software company announced it would open data centres in Germany and hand the keys over to Deutsche Telekom so that U.S. courts could not demand the data.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/3/5d413890-88b0-11e5-9f8c-a8d619fa707c.html#axzz3qxijxwyt
Vivendi: roaming holiday: French media and telecoms group Vivendi has spent the past year shedding assets, carries a big heap of cash, and aspires to be a media powerhouse, That, and its growing stake in Telecom Italia, has the market abuzz with expectations of a takeover.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/3/8686411e-8888-11e5-90de-f44762bf9896.html#axzz3qxijxwyt
AB InBev: one for the road: AB InBev says that the deal is about growth, especially in Africa. If investors had wanted SABMiller’s growth they could have bought its shares. They did not need AB InBev to do soon their behalf – and at a big premium. What matters is what AB InBev can do with SABMiller’s assets that its own management could not.
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/3/22f3fab6-8887-11e5-90de-f44762bf9896.html#axzz3qxijxwyt
The Daily Telegraph
HMRC to merge 170 offices into 13 hubs as part of major overhaul: HM Revenue & Customs is to close all 170 of its offices across the country in favour of 13 new regional tax centres as part of a major restructuring designed to shave hundreds of millions of pounds from its budget.
Bad bankers are like shoplifters, says George Osborne: Bankers who received taxpayer money during the financial crisis are not unlike shoplifters, Chancellor George Osborne has said.
End QE now or risk a new financial crisis, warn Germany’s ‘Wise Men”: The European Central Bank must end its unprecedented stimulus measures in order to prevent a new financial crisis from erupting in the Eurozone, Germany’s top economic advisers have warned.
James Dyson loses EU battle over vacuum cleaners: Sir James Dyson has lost a major legal battle with the European Union over the regulation of vacuum cleaners, the day after David Cameron demanded an end to punitive Brussels red tape on businesses.
Challenger banks get help on capital costs: Britain’s challenger banks could be put on a more even footing with their larger rivals, allowing them to compete more effectively for customers, the Chancellor has hinted.
U.K. unemployment plummets to lowest in more than seven years: Britain’s jobs-rich recovery gathered momentum in the quarter to September as unemployment fell to a seven year low and the number of people in work hit a fresh high.
Boeing drops GKN for 737MAX airliner contract: GKN has been dropped by Boeing as a supplier for a key part for its new 737MAX as the plane-maker scrambles to hit production targets.
The Questor Column:
Unusual move in Brammer share price day before profit warning: Shares in industrial parts distributor Brammer plunged 16% lower the day before the market was made aware of a painful profit warning. The unusual move in the share price came in advance of management informing the stock market that a slowdown in the U.K. steel industry and aerospace sector would leave profits lower than expected. The company supplies thousands of different parts for industry, from ball bearings to gearboxes and tools. The company generates about 60% of its sales from Europe, and warned that the falling value of the euro against the pound will knock £43 million of revenue this year, and £2.5 million from underlying operating profits. The collapse in the oil price during the past 18 months has also reduced demand for industrial parts among oil and gas customers throughout the Nordic region. The company said it now expects full-year underlying pretax profits of about £28 million to the end of December, down from £35 million a year earlier. The company said it will also incur costs of around £6 million related to redundancies as it seeks to cut costs. The debt levels have also increased following a series of acquisitions with net debt rising to £91 million at the end of June, up from £85 million six months earlier. Brammer is suffering from very difficult markets, and the shares trading on a forware PE ratio of 13 times are best avoided for now.
Buy Energy Assets for the long term: Energy Assets, which installs smart electricity and gas meters for industry, enjoyed a share price jump of almost 10% as first-half results reassured investors. The company said that the core meter asset management division, which generates around half of group profits and installs meters, had a strong first half when it increased group revenue by 22% to £20.6 million. By the end of September, the number of owned or managed meters rose from 365,000 at the end of March to 404,000. The market expectation is for full-year pretax profits to reach £10.6 million, up from £9.3 million last year. The company should generate 30p in earnings per share for the 12 months. The rental fees Energy Assets earns are guaranteed by blue-chip names such as npower, British Gas and Gazprom; the fees also rise with the Retail Prices Index for up to 15 years. The Government requires all industrial customers to have smart meters installed by 2020, and this should support steady growth until then. The company’s Siteworks, which installs the meters, reported that revenue increased by a third during the first six months. We like the potential for steady cash generation and the shares remain a buy for the long term. Energy Assets at 507p +42p. Questor says “Buy”.
The Guardian
British pay growth slows but labour market remains robust: Pay growth for Britain’s workers appears to be slowing sharply, raising questions about the durability of the recent improvement in living standards.
Property shortages keep driving up prices, say experts: The supply of properties coming on to the market fell for a ninth month running in October, driving up prices on homes for sale.
Buy-to-let mortgages at highest level since 2007, says CML: The number of buy-to-let mortgages taken out by landlords purchasing properties rose to its highest level in more than seven years in the summer, figures from banks and building societies show.
A Lidl bigger: £1.5 billion store expansion to include self-checkouts and toilets: Lidl is to invest £1.5 billion over the next three years as it steps up its store expansion with new-look outlets that include self-checkouts – and customer toilets.
Singles’ Day: China splurges $9.3 billion in 12 hours on world’s biggest online shopping day: Shoppers have spent more than $9 billion (£6 billion) in the first 12 hours of China’s Singles’ Day sales, topping last year’s total for the world’s biggest online shopping day.
VW diesel emissions investigation widened to include other brands: German car regulators are expanding their investigation into suspected diesel emissions manipulation beyond Volkswagen to more than 50 models from brands including BMW, Mercedes, Ford, Volvo, Nissan and Jaguar Land Rover.
Daily Mail
Former Tory party treasurer Michael Spencer sells ICAP’s voice broking business to rival Tullett Prebon for more than £1 billion: Former Tory party treasurer Michael Spencer has sold ICAP’s voice broking business to rival Tullett Prebon for more than £1 billion.
Government’s Help to Buy scheme and new mortgages help housebuilder Barratt Developments report jump in demand for homes: The Government’s Help to Buy scheme and new mortgages helped housebuilder Barratt Developments report a jump in demand for homes.
Daily Express
Energy giant SSE makes £550 million profit in just six months but still refuses to cut bills: ENERGY giant SSE has sparked outrage as it reports bumper profits of millions of pounds thanks to plunging wholesale fuel costs that it has refused to pass on to customers ahead of the winter.
TalkTalk offers free upgrade to customers after cyber-attack: All TalkTalk customers are to be offered a free service upgrade after the company was nearly brought to its knees by hackers who stole hundreds of thousands of personal account details.
The Scottish Herald
Cairn Energy Boss blames Indian government for redundancies: The Chief Executive of Cairn Energy Simon Thomson has accused the Indian Government of forcing the oil and gas firm to shed around 40% of its workforce following a tax claim he said was spurious.
House of Bruar highlights A9 effect: House of Bruar, the luxury retailer known as the “Highland Harrods” has highlighted challenging economic conditions for luxury retailers but said it is well placed to handle them after achieving three years of bumper profits.
Phoenix runs up losses after Grangemouth closure: The Phoenix Car Company has seen losses more than treble after racking up costs linked to the closure of its Honda dealership in Grangemouth last year.
Law firm CMS to move Glasgow office: CMS, the law firm which acquired Dundas & Wilson last year, is moving its Glasgow city centre office to 1 West Regent Street.
Glasgow Airport celebrates one million additional passengers: Glasgow Airport has reported a 14% year-on-year jump in passenger numbers for the latest month, and declared it has attracted an additional one million travellers in total over the year to October.
BPI on track to meet profit expectations: Packaging company British Polythene Industries has expressed confidence it will meet its profit expectations for 2015, while outlining plans for around 90 redundancies at its English operations.
The Scotsman
AB InBev launches £69.7 billion SABMiller bid: Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world’s largest brewer, launched its $106 billion (£69.7 billion) offer for rival SABMiller , and agreed to sell the latter’s stake in American venture MillerCoors to help secure regulatory approval.
E.ON sales dip as wholesale fuel prices plunge: The German-owned group said that revenues from its U.K. supply business fell 5.6% to £5.1 billion in the first nine months of the year compared to a year earlier as oil prices have fallen by more than half since the summer of 2014.
Sainsbury’s cuts dividend as first-half profits slide: Sainsbury’s interim same‑floorspace sales fell 1.6% and its market share dipped as the supermarket giant revealed the latest scars of food deflation and competition from the discounters.
FanDuel ordered to stop trading in New York state: One of Scotland’s most lauded technology start-ups has been ordered to stop trading in its biggest market in the United States.
Home care provider Mears to create 120 Lothians jobs: Mears, the provider of home care and support services, is to embark on a “major” recruitment drive to double its presence across Edinburgh and the Lothians.
City A.M.
House purchase lending jumps to seven-year for October: Mortgage lending reached its highest level for the month of October in seven years, new data released shows, as low inflation rates and rising wages helped keep consumer confidence levels high.
Apple commits to Ireland expansion despite looming EU tax ruling: Apple has said it is committed to its operations in Ireland regardless of the outcome of an investigation into its tax affairs.
Eurostar travel disruption after London to Paris ES9050 train collides with boar on the line in France: Eurostar is sending a rescue train to move the ES9050 London to Paris train, which was stopped when it hit a boar earlier this evening, to Lille.
Eurozone asset purchases could be ramped up in December, says European Central Bank’s Benoit Coeure: A European Central Bank (ECB) official has hinted that the central bank could ramp up its €1.1 trillion (£780 billion) asset purchase programme as soon as December.
Federation of Small Businesses calls on London councils and TfL to offer free festive parking: Business lobby group the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) is calling on London councils and Transport for London to offer free parking for Christmas shoppers over the festive period.
CBRE hired by billionaire Carl Icahn to sell Fontainebleau casino: Commercial real estate giant CBRE has been appointed by billionaire business magnate Carl Icahn to sell the Fontainebleau Las Vegas, an unfinished 68-story hotel casino on the Las Vegas Strip, the company said.
Fitch warns that Portuguese government debt is at risk of downgrade if Socialists take over: A major ratings agency has said that Portugal’s government debt is at risk of losing its already mediocre credit rating if the Socialist-led coalition is appointed to govern.
Great Portland’s first half results boosted by mammoth Facebook letting: Great Portland Estates posted record beating results in the first half of the year after Facebook agreed to take all of its office space at Rathbone Square near Tottenham Court Road, in one of its biggest lettings deals to date.
Bitcoin has no future, says UBS Chairman Axel Weber at Bank of England’s Open Forum: The Chairman of investment bank UBS, Axel Weber, has played down the potential of crypto-currencies such as Bitcoin.
