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In the papers: IG Group, Goldman Sachs, Volkswagen

Published: 03:38 20 Jul 2016 EDT

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The Times
Bailey on the defensive as critics line up to attack: The new head of the financial regulator has come under fire for being too close to banks and will face tough questions from MPs about how robust he will be in policing the City.
‘Ditch nuclear and fire up gas to avoid power cuts’: Britain should shelve plans for a nuclear revival and fast-track proposals for new gas-fired power stations, a leading energy industry Boss has warned.
Monaco oil group faces SFO inquiry: The Serious Fraud Office has confirmed that it is conducting a criminal investigation into a Monaco-based oil services group at the centre of an international bribery inquiry.
Spread-better levels odds with pay boost: IG Group has increased its salaries to plug the drain of its staff to its spread-betting competitors. Last year the company paid an average salary of just under £53,000 to its 1,400 staff, but this has risen to more than £60,000.
No means maybe as Monsanto rejects Bayer’s takeover offer: Monsanto has rejected a sweetened takeover offer from Bayer, dismissing the German chemicals and seeds producer’s improved $65 billion bid as “financially inadequate”.
Big rebound for Goldman’s earnings: Goldman Sachs reported a 74% increase in quarterly earnings in a massive rebound after a terrible first quarter as both profit and revenue blasted past analyst expectations.
VW carried out emissions fraud ‘at all levels’: Dozens of Volkswagen employees orchestrated a huge fraud against American consumers and regulators for nearly a decade and then covered up evidence that the German carmaker had cheated on emissions tests, according to documents filed in courts in the United States.
Nintendo finally finds its mojo with Pokémon Go: As fans hunt Pokémon Go characters around the world, investors have been chasing Nintendo, more than doubling the game maker’s market value in just over a week to make it worth more than its Japanese rival Sony.
Vodafone Chief will go Dutch for joint venture: The jaunty strains of Executive musical chairs have resumed at Vodafone with the telecoms group dispatching the head of its British division back to his Dutch homeland.
BGC sees new horizon with Sunrise: BGC Partners is expanding into the specialised market of equity derivatives after the interdealer broker bought Sunrise Brokers, a London-based group that has been trading since 1991.
The Independent
High street banks offering zero interest on savings accounts, FCA Sunlight report reveals: High street banks have been named and shamed for giving some customers zero interest on their savings if they fail to move their money into newer accounts.
Airport retailers failing to pass VAT savings directly to customers despite investigation: Airport retailers are still not passing on the tax they have been charging on tax-free sales directly to customers, almost a year after an Independent investigation into the practice.
Tesco and other supermarkets using fake farm brands sPark complaint from NFU: U.K. supermarkets have come under fire after the farmers’ union lodged an official complaint over the misleading use of farm names.
The Daily Telegraph
Cath Kidston takes floral kitsch to India: Cath Kidston, the brand famed for its floral prints, is taking its first steps into India as part of its ambitious global expansion plan.
SABMiller board to discuss investor opposition to AB InBev deal: SABMiller Directors will discuss mounting frustration among some of the FTSE 100 brewer’s shareholders with the terms of its £77 billion takeover by rival Anheuser-Busch InBev.
Grasp Brexit opportunity to overhaul tax system, says Adam Smith Institute: Politicians should use Brexit as a chance to “reboot Britain”, scrapping corporation tax and reforming swathes of government in an effort to reignite the economy, a think tank has recommended.
Offshore wind farms in doubt after RSPB gets planning consent quashed: Multi-billion pound plans to build a series of wind farms off the coast of Scotland are in doubt after the RSPB won a legal challenge to quash their planning consent over fears they would kill too many birds.
Mobile app allows GlaxoSmithKline to track patients in real-time arthritis study: GlaxoSmithKline has become the first pharmaceuticals company to use a medical research app from Apple to study how disease affects patients in real time.
Central London Travelodge sold for £42.3 million as overseas buyers swoop on British assets: A central London Travelodge has been sold to a Chinese property magnate for more than £42 million, in a further sign that overseas buyers are scrambling to buy U.K. assets in the wake of sterling’s plunge following the Brexit vote.
Arbuthnot profits soar after disposals as Secure Trust eyes acquisitions: The banking group Arbuthnot is aiming to expand its lending services after selling off its subprime loans arm and most of its stake in Secure Trust Bank, which together sent the firm’s half-year profits soaring from £12.7 million to £225 million.
The Questor Column:
Royal Mail makes a good long-term bet: Unlike the current hot weather, Royal Mail is a constant that’s always with us - and has been for 500 years. In fact, the business is able to trace its history back to Henry VIII knighting Brian Tuke, the first Master of the Posts, in 1516. Obviously since then there have been some major changes, and perhaps the most notable one was the privatisation of the business in back in October 2013. While it seemed a good idea at the time - despite accusations that it had been woefully underpriced at 330p, with shares 38% as trading began and peaking at 615p three months later - those high hopes haven’t quite panned out.  A further blow to Royal Mail’s ambitions has been online shopping business Amazon’s decision to explore an in-house delivery system. To give an idea of scale, last year the company’s U.K. postal business had revenues of £7.7 billion, of which parcels made up £3.2 billion, and letters represented £4.47 billion. The European parcels business had revenues of £1.58 billion. Royal Mail is estimated to have almost 50% of the U.K.’s parcel delivery business. The company cut 3,500 jobs last year, generating £191 million in redundancy costs, and while this axe-wielding will pay off in the long term, a 2.8% pay rise for frontline staff to keep them on board during the Chief Executive’s transformation of Royal Mail weighs on operating profit. The biggest issue for the company is the structural decline in the number of letters being sent. There has been some relief for Royal Mail. Watchdog Ofcom’s decided not to impose price controls on letter postage after an investigation over concerns of a lack of competition in the market following Whistl’s withdrawal last year. Like its presence, revenues are pretty constant at £9.3 billion for the next few years and Royal Mail makes a good long-term bet. Questor says “Hold”.
The Guardian
IMF cuts U.K. growth forecasts following Brexit vote: The International Monetary Fund has slashed its forecast for U.K. growth next year after warning that the decision to leave the EU had damaged the British economy’s short-term prospects and “thrown a spanner in the works” of the global recovery.
Higher travel costs push up U.K. inflation: Britain’s brief flirtation with deflation has receded further into the past after dearer air fares, the rising cost of driving and more expensive computer games pushed up the cost of living last month.
Middle-income families in U.K. resemble the poor of years past, says IFS: Plunging levels of home Ownership and an increased reliance on state benefits to top up salaries have meant that Britain’s middle-income families increasingly look like the poor households of the past, according to one of the U.K.’s leading thinktanks.
Uber faces court battle with drivers over employment status: Uber is facing a legal challenge from drivers who say that they should be recognised officially as workers at the company, as calls grow for new rights for the U.K.’s burgeoning army of self-employed individuals.
Customers of collapsed tour operator may get £8 each in compensation: British holidaymakers whose summer plans have been ruined by the collapse of a budget tour operator have Expressed frustration and anger over their poor treatment and lack of financial protection, as it emerged that they could receive compensation of less than £8 each.
Excessive Executive pay has hurt public trust in business, says report: Excessive boardroom pay risks undermining public trust in big business, the accountancy regulator has said in a report calling for a concerted effort to increase trust in the way that companies are run.
Construction firm Dunne Group folds with loss of 524 jobs: A Scottish construction group specialising in reinforced concrete foundations and superstructures for buildings, used in some of the tallest skyscrapers in London, has folded with the immediate loss of 524 jobs.
Daily Mail
Takeaway delivery service that’s ruling the roads... and now Deliveroo’s bringing wine to your door!: Deliveroo is conquering Britain one meal at a time – and the takeaway business has just struck a deal to deliver wine and beer to your door.
Netflix shares fall 14% after it pulls in a million fewer subscribers than expected following price hike: Netflix shares fell 14% after the company reported subscribers for its online streaming service were a million fewer than expected.
Frozen and Disney Princess toys boost Hasbro but shares drop on poor sales of Star Wars figures: Toys aimed at girls – from Disney Princess dolls to figures from the film Frozen – have given Hasbro a boost.
Landmark ruling by a European Union watchdog that’s set to give Brexit boost to British banks: A landmark ruling by a European Union watchdog has given British hedge funds a major boost following the Brexit vote.
Bank tech firm Worldpay forced to apologise after technical glitch blocks millions of transactions: Worldpay has been forced to apologise as millions of daily transactions are blocked by a technical glitch in its systems.
BT Group told by MPs to put its Openreach broadband service in order or face a break-up of the business: MPs have told BT Group that it ‘must put its house in order’ and could be stripped of its broadband division if the telecoms giant fails to improve and invest more in the service.  
Daily Express
House prices jump by £16,000 a year: House prices in Britain leapt by thousands of pounds in the year to May, as the market continued to boom, official figures revealed.
Volvo and Renault among leading truck firms fined record £2.5 billion for pricing cartel: Leading truck makers have been fined a record £2.5billion for colluding on pricing by the European Commission.
U.K. factories set for slowdown post- Brexit despite hope of export from weaker pound: U.K. factories are braced for a slowdown in orders over the next six months despite hopes for an export boost from a weaker pound.
The Scottish Herald
Scottish retail sales down as clothing category weak, but some bright spots: The value of retail sales in Scotland in June was down 1.4% on the same month of 2015, in contrast to a year-on-year rise in the U.K. as a whole, amid weakness in the clothing category.
FirstGroup Chairman warns vote to leave EU may slow bus and rail growth, calls for U.K. city congestion to be tackled: FirstGroup’s new Chairman has warned that the Brexit vote may slow growth in its bus and rail businesses, and called on the U.K. government to give urgent priority to tackling urban congestion to keep city bus travel viable.
Braveheart hails profitable start to year: Braveheart Investment Group, the Perth-based venture capital fund Manager and investor, has declared it has enjoyed a positive and profitable start to its financial year.
Smurfit named Chairman of John Menzies amidst shareholder pressure: John Menzies has appointed Dermot Smurfit as independent Chairman of the group following the resignation in May of Iain Napier.
Clan of whisky beers off to strong start: The Craft Beer Clan of Scotland has already signed export deals for beers produced under its recently announced Clan Brewing Company venture with Williams Bros.
Sales boost for Scottish Fine Soaps Owner: Scottish Fine Soaps maker Alexander Ross has grown revenue to more than £16 million but seen pretax profits slide six% to £1.2 million because of an increase in distribution costs.
Scottish and U.K. growth will slow to crawl post-Brexit vote, recession possible: Economic growth in Scotland will slow sharply to a crawl next year following the U.K.’s vote to leave the European Union, with business investment tumbling and house prices falling, a big four accountancy firm predicts.
Royal Mail monitoring U.K. economic growth amid fears of Brexit slowdown: Royal Mail said it is keeping a close eye on Britain’s economic growth amid fears of a sharp slowdown following the Brexit vote.
The Scotsman
Rising fuel prices drive inflation to 0.5% in June: The rate of inflation rose to 0.5% last month, according to official figures published.
Mixed messages on troubled Scots firms’ fortunes: Two pieces of research covering troubled Scottish businesses paint contrasting pictures of firms’ fortunes over the past quarter and looking ahead.
Edinburgh Park office building sold for £4.5 million: Property investor Drum has acquired an office building at Edinburgh Park for £4.5 million.
EU emergency package to dish out €30 million funding boost: U.K. farmers will get a €30 million (£25.1 million) share of a new €500 million EU emergency support package – aimed chiefly at the dairy sector – farm commissioner Phil Hogan has announced.
Colpitts World Travel bought by rival group Direct: The Edinburgh and Aberdeen offices of a global travel firm have been bought up in a deal combining two U.S.-based operators, with all 25 staff north of the Border being kept on.
Software group Ideagen posts 58% surge in profits: Annual profits at Ideagen, the software group with a sizeable Scottish presence, have soared by more than half.
Edinburgh IT outfit aims to reduce costly downtime: An automated monitoring provider has launched to tackle the problem of IT system failures, estimated to cost U.K. businesses more than £10 billion a year.
City A.M.
Cloud brings profit downpour for Microsoft as profits jump and share price climbs: Microsoft has bounced back into the black in the second quarter of the year with strong growth in its cloud-based products boosting earnings at the tech giant.
The strength of the U.K.’s legal eagles heightens need for favourable Brexit deal: Five successive years of growth in the legal sector increases the need to secure the best business deal possible in Brexit negotiations, a study out argues.
Evans Cycles Owner ECI Partners applying the brake after slowdown in bike sales: Evans Cycles is in talks with banks to overhaul its financing arrangements following industry-wide fears the bicycle market is peaking.
Philip Morris International’s share price hit as the tobacco giant chokes on earnings below analyst expectations: Big Four tobacco firm Philip Morris International’s (PMI) share price was down almost four% on the New York Stock Exchange after it missed analyst expectations in its second quarter results.
Closed-ended investment company assets reach record high despite “challenging” 2016: Total assets under management (AUM) in closed-end U.K. investment companies, including trusts, reached a record high of £141 billion at the end of June, according to new figures.
Rio Tinto sinks to bottom of the FTSE 100 as output misses estimates: Rio Tinto tumbled, as the miner’s second quarter production results came in below expectations.

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