The Times
Engineering giant ‘target of takeover by U.S. rival’: CH2M, an engineering consultant at the heart of a host of Britain’s key infrastructure projects, is understood to be in advanced talks to be taken over by Jacobs, an American rival.
One failure’s unlucky, but two is a car crash: One sub-prime car financer crashing is unfortunate, but two doing so feeds the fear in some quarters that the market itself is heading for an almighty pile-up. The failure of Vehicle Trading Group, therefore, is ringing alarm bells beyond the specialist firefighters in the insolvency industry.
Sky delay could hurt investment, Murdochs warn: Lachlan and James Murdoch have warned the government that further delays to 21st Century Fox’s plan to take over Sky could harm Britain’s attractiveness to investors after Brexit.
Royal Mail union sees red over Boss Greene’s extra job: Postal workers have reacted angrily to the news that the £1.8 million-a-year Chief Executive of Royal Mail is to take a part-time job as a non-Executive Director of Easyjet.
Rail group offers fare cap at first opportunity: Train operators will voluntarily cap fares on two of the country’s busiest rail routes after a warning from the Competition and Markets Authority.
Qinetiq caught in no-man’s-land waiting for contracts to arrive: Shares in Qinetiq plunged to an eight-month low, falling by nearly 10% after the defence technology group warned that contracts that had been due to arrive in recent weeks had failed to do so.
Javid acts to help first-time buyers: Sajid Javid is expected to reveal a plan under which every local authority must calculate how easy it is for young first-time buyers to get on to the housing ladder by working out the average local salary-to-house price ratio.
Abramovich’s steel company hit by costly repair work: The need for repair work at its production plants in Russia and Canada could not have come at a worse time for Evraz. It has blamed the repairs for a sharp drop in its steel output, but the company, which is 31%-owned by Roman Abramovich, who controls Chelsea football club, said that it hoped to bounce back once ZSMK, its Siberian mill, had returned to full capacity.
The Independent
Morgan Stanley chooses Frankfurt as post-Brexit EU hub: U.S. banking giant Morgan Stanley has chosen Frankfurt as the site of its post-Brexit EU hub in a move that could see 200 jobs leave the U.K., the Press Association understands.
Airlines in ferocious summer fares war with £40 deals to the Med: On the eve of the busiest departure day for record numbers of British holidaymakers, The Independent can reveal that unprecedented travel deals are available due to a ferocious fares war during the peak month of August.
Audi advert compares women to used cars: German car brand Audi is facing fierce backlash on social media over an advert aired in China that is being accused of objectifying women.
Uber sued by disability rights groups: Uber was sued on Tuesday by disability rights groups and wheelchair users accusing the ride-sharing company of violating New York City human rights laws by failing to make enough of its vehicles accessible to disabled people.
IBM revenue worse than expected: IBM reported a lower-than-expected quarterly revenue on Tuesday, as growth in its higher-margin businesses that include cloud and artificial intelligence services failed to make up for declines across legacy business segments.
Theresa May to chair new business advisory group pre-Brexit: Theresa May will this week launch a new advisory group designed to respond to concerns of the business community and trade bodies as Brexit negotiations gather pace.
Combustion engine ban risks thousands of jobs, study warns: More than 600,000 jobs could be at risk in Germany from a potential ban on combustion engine cars by 2030, the Ifo Economic Institute said in a study commissioned by Germany’s VDA car industry lobby.
Financial Times
Drax appoints conservationist to board: Drax, the power company, has appointed a former head of one of Britain’s biggest conservation charities to its board as it steps up moves to abandon coal-fired electricity generation.
U.K. issues coded warning to Brussels over nuclear waste: Britain has put the EU on notice that it has the right to return radioactive waste to the bloc after it leaves, in an attempt to increase the U.K.’s negotiating clout on the vexed issue of nuclear regulation.
P2P lender RateSetter steps in to protect investors from losses: Peer-to-peer lending site RateSetter has been forced to step in to protect investors from millions of pounds of losses from a bad loan, in a sign of trouble brewing in the nascent sector.
Aviva offloads Friends Provident International to wealth group: Aviva has sold its lossmaking Friends Provident International unit for £340 million to RL360, a specialist in offshore wealth management.
Stada receives second takeover bid from Bain and Cinven: A private equity consortium has made a second attempt at buying Stada, Germany’s largest maker of generic drugs, with an improved €4.1 billion offer.
Akzo Nobel Chief steps down for health reasons: The Chief Executive of Akzo Nobel, the Dutch paint maker, has resigned with immediate effect on health grounds just weeks after fending off a €27 billion takeover attempt.
German carmakers launch fightback against ‘death of diesel’: Germany’s leading makers of premium cars are taking a proactive stance against the “death of diesel” as they fight for the future of a technology that currently accounts for half of the car market in Europe.
Theresa May criticises BBC as star salaries reveal gender gap: Theresa May called on the BBC to pay men and women equally after the corporation published the names of its 96 stars paid more than £150,000 a year, exposing a wide gap between male and female broadcasters.
NBCUniversal launches first Snapchat news programme: NBCUniversal is betting that Snapchat users will tune in to hard news in between sending disappearing photos and taking puppy ear-filtered selfies.
Apple joins top suppliers in Qualcomm countersuit: A group of Apple’s largest Asian suppliers is countersuing Qualcomm alleging anti-competitive behaviour and breaches of contract, as the chipmaker sues Apple for patent infringement in Germany, opening yet more new fronts in the legal battle between the tech companies.
SoftBank begins Vision Fund investments with West Coast tech: SoftBank has announced almost half a billion dollars’ worth of tech investments in a diverse group of companies ranging from robotics to farming, as its begins to deploy its $93 billion Vision Fund.
Uber, Amazon and Microsoft brace for accounting shake-up: Uber’s reported revenues are being cut in half and sales at Amazon and Microsoft could be higher than previously stated — all thanks to a forthcoming change to accounting rules.
Mnuchin and Ross talk tough to China over trade deficit: The Trump administration claimed a “very big step forward” had been achieved toward addressing the trade deficit with China as two of the President’s top economic lieutenants said they expected to hold discussions with Beijing on targets aimed at paring back the imbalance.
U.S. tech sector surges past its dotcom era peak: The U.S. technology sector on Wednesday surged past its dotcom bubble peak for the first time, as investor demand sent shares of companies including Facebook, Microsoft and Oracle into virgin territory.
EasyJet accelerates hunt for new Chief Executive: EasyJet has brought forward the start date of Moya Greene, the Royal Mail Boss, on to its board as the low-cost airline accelerates its search for a new Chief Executive.
Coal has no future, says U.S. railroad Boss: One of the largest haulers of U.S. coal says fossil fuels have no future, despite pledges to the contrary from President Donald Trump.
Wizz Air Boss accelerates contingencies for Brexit: Wizz Air, central and eastern Europe’s largest low-cost carrier, is accelerating contingency planning for Brexit as the group warned of the risks of Britain crashing out of the EU.
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Lex:
McCormick: some like it hot: On Wednesday, McCormick’s confirmed it would acquire Reckitt Benckiser’s food unit for $4.2 billion in cash. The business includes French’s mustard and Cattleman’s barbecue sauce as well as Frank’s fiery gloop. The U.S. group’s shares fell 5%.
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Netflix: powerful streams: In Europe, banks have paid higher base salaries to get around caps on bonuses. In the U.S., it works the other way. But a law aimed at limiting Executive pay is ineffective and outdated. The case of Netflix shows why it needs to be rethought.
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Akzo Nobel: injured in battle: Play the ball not the man is all very well as an aphorism during times of concord. But the bitter €27 billion struggle over Akzo Nobel has clearly had an impact on the health of Ton Büchner, Chief Executive, who announced his resignation on Wednesday. His departure could yet make a deal with suitor PPG more likely.
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Lombard:
Aviva seeks digital disruption in Hong Kong as well as Hoxton: The FTSE 100 insurer on Wednesday announced that it was selling Friends Provident International, the offshore wealth manager that looks after “high net worth” types in Asia and the Gulf, for £340 million. This will allow it to focus on other growth opportunities in Asia “through digital, and disrupting the traditional insurance industry”.
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Drax overhauls the coal: As an exercise in ‘Greenwashing’ — or trying to appear more environmentally friendly than you really are — Wednesday’s announcements from Drax looked textbook, if somewhat surprising. With a metaphorical puff of white smoke, the low-carbon power generator said it had appointed David Nussbaum, former head of the World Wide Fund for Nature, to deliver its “sustainability agenda”.
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The Daily Telegraph
Elliott attacks ‘disastrous’ BHP Billiton plan to build potash mine: Activist investor Elliott has slammed BHP Billiton’s plans to develop a giant potash mine in Canada, warning it could be as “disastrous” as its foray into U.S. shale.
Regulators assessing suitability of Deutsche Boerse board: German regulators will be assessing the suitability of Deutsche Boerse’s management team in light of insider trading allegations made against the German exchange’s Chief Executive.
Hotel Chocolat ice cream gives sales sugar rush: Hotel Chocolat sales have broken through the £100 million mark for the first time as its “Ice Cream of the Gods” boosted the business during the recent heatwave.
Northern Trust picks Luxembourg over Ireland for post-Brexit hub: Northern Trust has followed in the footsteps of a number of its rivals by picking Luxembourg as its new EU home in response to Brexit.
Shares in Morgan Sindall hit 10-year high after stellar first half: Shares in construction company Morgan Sindall hit a 10-year high during Wednesday’s trading after the company bucked recent trends and reported a strong first-half performance.
Act now to stop companies moving jobs for Brexit, businesses urge Government: Businesses have started to trigger their Brexit contingency plans even before knowing the details of the U.K.’s departure from the EU, or even the type of transition period which may be agreed upon.
Morgan Stanley weathers bond market slump: A painful overhaul of Morgan Stanley’s bond business has borne fruit after the Wall Street giant weathered a downturn in fixed income markets and surpassed fierce rival Goldman Sachs’ trading revenues.
The Guardian
Deutsche Bank expects subpoenas over Trump-Russia investigation: Executives inside Deutsche Bank, Donald Trump’s personal bankers, are expecting that the bank will soon be receiving subpoenas or other requests for information from Robert Mueller, the special counsel who is investigating possible collusion between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign.
British Airways cabin crew extend strike into August holiday peak: Striking British Airways cabin crew have announced a further two weeks of action for the first half of August in their battle over pay and sanctions at the airline.
U.S. court overturns Libor convictions of ex-Rabobank traders: An appeals court has overturned the convictions of two former Rabobank traders in the first U.S. criminal appeal related to investigations into the manipulation of the Libor interest rate.
HS2 cost concerns as NAO uncovers £2.7 million in redundancy payouts: Fears that high-speed rail project HS2’s £55.7 billion budget could spiral higher have been underlined by an audit showing unauthorised redundancy payments to staff, far above the government cap on payouts.
Christie’s reports soaring sales of £10 million-plus art: Demand among wealthy art lovers for high-value lots, including work by Constantin Brancusi and Max Beckmann, and record spending from Asian buyers boosted Christie’s auction house in the first half of the year.
Drax looking at ‘coal-free future’ as it reveals £83 million pre-tax loss: The operator of the U.K.’s largest power station has seen its share price slide after it posted a pre-tax loss of £83 million in the first half of the year despite increasing earnings by 73%.
Mercedes recalls 3 million diesel cars over emissions concerns: Almost every new Mercedes-Benz diesel car bought in the U.K. during the past six years is being recalled to improve their emissions performance.
Daily Mail
Just Eat plunges as panic selling hits airlines and food delivery firms caught by ‘rip-off’ card fees ban: Airlines and food delivery firms took a beating after being singled out by the Government as the worst offenders for imposing ‘rip-off’ card charges on customers.
Volkswagen deliveres 5.2 million vehicles in first half of the year: Car maker Volkswagen delivered 5.2million vehicles in the first half of the year, up 0.8% from the year before. The firm said strong demand in Russia, the Czech Republic and Poland helped offset a 2.3% fall in its home market Germany.
Horlicks sell off heralds new era for Glaxo: British pharmaceuticals giant GlaxoSmithKline has announced plans to sell its Horlicks drinks business in the U.K. and cut 320 jobs.
Sir Philip Green poaches Burberry sales guru Paul Price to run Topshop: In his second major appointment this week, Green has lured Burberry’s Chief merchandising officer Paul Price to become Chief Executive of the High Street fashion chain, in a bid to turn around falling sales and profits.
BT hires Boss of water regulator Ofwat hired to fight criticism in wake of Italian fraud scandal: Cathryn Ross, the Chief Executive of water regulator Ofwat, is understood to be taking charge of the telecom company’s regulatory affairs division – a key role which will oversee the way the firm behaves.
Daily Express
State pension age rise brought forward seven years: Millions of Britons face a longer wait to retire, as the state pension age will rises sooner than previously outlined, under plans unveiled by the Government.
Britain set for devastating recession if Brexit talks fail: Britain is at risk of crashing into a recession as a result of failed Brexit talks, credit rating agency Moody’s has warned in a scare-mongering report.
Now fears for Ireland’s economy as shock figures show nation on brink: Ireland’s economy is loaded with more debt and MUCH smaller than previously thought, shock figures reveal.
Dairy Crest’s margins saved by cheese amid rising price of cream: Strong sales of cheese helped prevent Dairy Crest’s fortunes souring after soaring cream prices ate into profits in its butter business.
IP Group bumps up takeover offer of Touchstone Innovations to £490 million: Science commercialisation firm IP Group is closing in on a £490 million takeover of university spin-off Touchstone Innovations after it won key support.
Harry Potter helps boost sales for Bloomsbury amid new books to be published this year: Harry Potter publisher Bloomsbury has another hit on its hands – a new digital music division. The group’s digital resources boosted revenues by 16% in the three months to May 31 and the recently launched Bloomsbury Popular Music – a reference library featuring artistes such as Bruce Springsteen – proved popular with music students in academic trials.
The Scottish Herald
Retail optimism drops as Brexit impact hits: Optimism among Scottish retailers and wholesalers has plunged in the latest quarter amid inflationary pressures fuelled by the Brexit vote, a survey reveals.
Ctrip deal brought £18 million tax boon to tech firm Skyscanner: Scottish travel search business Skyscanner received a tax credit of nearly £18 million in the last financial year thanks largely to its takeover by Chinese company Ctrip in December.
Another harbinger of hazardous times ahead: Scottish Chambers of Commerce’s survey is the latest of a raft of harbingers of hazardous times ahead for businesses, as Brexit looms large.
Burness Paull adds City weight with Freshfields hire: Burness Paull has continued its strategy of hiring solicitors from City law firms, turning to magic circle stalwart Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer for the addition of a litigation partner.
Eastern credits larger display areas as car dealer drives profits up: Car dealer Eastern Holdings has lifted profits by nearly 7% to £9.6 million as larger display areas helped drive higher sales at its flagship Luxury Car Village in Edinburgh.
Transport group in offer to cap fares on route: The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has said there is reasonable grounds to believe a proposal by FirstGroup to cap unregulated train fares between London and Exeter may be remedy its concerns.
The Scotsman
Scotland ranked best place to start a business: Scotland has been ranked as the best place in the U.K. to start a business, thanks to five key factors.
BrewDog co-Founder toasts Edinburgh start-up conference: The Co-Founder of craft beer maker BrewDog has been revealed as a headline speaker at a start-up event that returns to Edinburgh in November.
London Stock Exchange Group embracing bitcoin technology: The centuries-old London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) is embracing burgeoning bitcoin technology in the hope of scrapping outdated paper trading certificates for small and medium-sized businesses.
Catering firm Entier secures £6.5 million funding boost from BGF: Entier, Scotland’s largest privately-owned catering business, is looking to grab a bigger slice of international markets after agreeing a seven-figure funding deal.
£750,000 project shines light on screen production sector: A pilot project has been launched that aims to provide business support to screen production companies working in Scotland.
EnerMech lands contract for work on polar research ship: Aberdeen-based engineering services specialist EnerMech has been awarded a contract on the £150 million polar research vessel the RRS Sir David Attenborough.
Angel entrepreneurs pledge to help new firms: Scotland’s vibrant angel investor scene is “the envy of the world” thanks to its unrivalled infrastructure and Government backing, not to mention the country’s wealth of business nous and experience.
City A.M.
British American Tobacco gets shareholder backing for $49 billion Reynolds takeover to create world’s biggest listed tobacco company: British American Tobacco (BAT) got the go-ahead from shareholders for its $49 billion (£37.6 billion) takeover of Reynolds, and said it now expects the deal to be completed by next Tuesday.
Damian Collins pledges to keep “a very close eye” on the initial SFO bribery probe: Ministers are ready to haul Formula One’s owners and regulator in front of an influential select committee after the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) finishes an initial bribery probe into the sport.
Companies’ cash piles reach nearly €1 billion as cash relative to revenues hits seven-year high: Companies based in Europe, the Middle East and Asia (EMEA) have been stacking up the pennies, as cash piles hit €974 billion (£861.43 billion) for non-financial businesses at the end of 2016.
Hedgies circle Sports Direct: Short sellers scramble to bet on troubles: Hedge funds are betting on bad news as Sports Direct announces it preliminary full-year figures.
Holland & Barrett’s profit trimmed as it bats off growing competition from the national supermarkets: Holland & Barrett’s profit was trimmed last year as it faced off growing competition from the national supermarkets.
Oil and gas sector poised for renewed M&A activity as barriers to North Sea decommissioning are removed: The oil and gas sector is poised for growth and renewed merger and acquisition (M&A) activity as the complexities around decommissioning are removed, a new report suggests.
