The Times
Wall Street rides Trump wave to hit record highs: Wall Street hit record highs for a second day running as investors piled into equities in the hope of a fiscal stimulus under Donald Trump.
Crude nears $50 as hopes of OPEC deal grow: Growing speculation that the OPEC nations and Russia will agree output cuts at a meeting next week sent the price of Brent crude surging to its highest level in three weeks.
Tunnock tucks into bigger slice of the action: The company, which makes caramel wafers, snowballs and tea cakes, increased revenue by 3.5% to £53.1 million in the 12 months to the end of February, attributing the improvement to greater sales to existing customers.
Belgians in hostile bid for Lavendon after rebuff: Group Thermote & Vanhalst (TVH) has made a final cash offer of 205p a share for Lavendon, which rents out aerial work platforms, “cherry pickers”, to construction workers on sites across Britain, Europe and the Middle East.
VW plots driverless road ahead: Electric cars and autonomous vehicles will be at the heart of Volkswagen’s turnaround plan in the wake of the diesel emissions scandal, the group said.
Steak is on the menu as M&B seeks growth: Mitchells & Butlers is to sell a £50 million package of bottom-end pubs and step up expansion of its Miller & Carter steakhouse chain as it seeks to build on tentative signs of an upturn.
Babcock shows its fighting spirit after shares plummet: Babcock has failed to shake off the gloom in the outsourcing sector with shares in the defence engineer and military support company falling heavily despite its insistence that it is not under threat of an existential crisis.
Shares sky high at steel fabricator to the City: The share price of Severfield resembled one of the skyscrapers it helps to construct after the steel fabricator reported soaring profits and dividends.
Analysts upbeat after house sales rise in October: The number of homes sold in Britain increased by 1% in October compared with the previous month, but were down 8% against the same month last year.
The Independent
Lloyds share sale cuts Government stake to under 8%: The Government has reduced its stake in Lloyds Banking Group to below 8% as it continues progress towards fully privatising the bailed-out lender. Taxpayers had owned 43% at the height of the financial crisis in 2009.
Millions of Trump voters to lose overtime pay once he takes office: Many millions of Americans who voted for Donald Trump could find themselves losing their right to overtime pay as soon as he takes office.
Government ‘acting like Dad’s Army’ over Brexit says Ryanair Boss: Ryanair Boss Michael O’Leary has compared Government ministers to the characters of television sitcom Dad’s Army due to their “lunatic optimism” over Brexit.
Government debt rises again in October spelling trouble for Hammond: The Government borrowed less than expected in October but deficit reduction is still behind schedule, official figures released show. The numbers highlight the problems facing Chancellor Philip Hammond as he prepares for Wednesday’s Autumn Statement.
‘The U.S. isn’t an island’ TPP members respond to Donald Trump: The United States cannot just “sit there” and “not trade” with the rest of the word, the prime minister of New Zealand warned as fellow members of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) reacted with concerns to Monday’s vow of U.S. withdrawal by Donald Trump.
IBM pledges major investment in U.K. despite Brexit vote: IBM has announced a major new investment in Britain, joining fellow tech giants Facebook and Google in showing faith in the U.K. after the Brexit vote.
Brexit vote wipes £1.2 trillion off U.K. household finances in 2016: The cost of Brexit to U.K. households has been put at $1.5 trillion (£1.2 trillion), according to a new report.
The Daily Telegraph
Bets on fresh commodity supercycle court fate as dollar soars to fifteen-year high: Rampant speculation and exaggerated hopes of a Trump-led boom have fueled a blistering rally in industrial metal prices. Oil is recovering from the dead. Intoxicating talk of a new commodity supercycle is suddenly on everybody’s lips.
Hewden collapses into administration after warning about Brexit slowdown: Hewden, the heavy machinery rental firm, has collapsed into administration after being hit by uncertainty following the EU referendum and a desperate search for new funding failed.
All Bar One owner sees trouble ahead as pub costs rise: The owner of All Bar One is predicting a shake up for the pub industry next year as cost pressures threaten to exacerbate the fall in profits suffered by the company this year.
AO World slips on European margins as U.K. price rises loom: The online electricals retailer AO World has struggled to convince investors that its costly European expansion is on track as its losses in the venture widened.
Cobham Chairman quits in latest departure from the troubled engineer: A third Boss at Cobham has bailed out of the struggling aerospace and defense group with Chairman John Devaney stepping down.
Clydesdale Boss defends Williams & Glyn bid: The Boss of Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banking Group has hinted shareholders support its bid for Williams & Glyn and dismissed concerns the lender is being overambitious with the mooted deal.
AstraZeneca wins green light to resume key cancer trials: AstraZeneca has resumed recruiting patients in two large clinical trials on head and neck cancer after U.S. regulators lifted a pause on the studies following cases of bleeding.
The Questor Column:
In a growth-and-inflation world, this share could run higher still: Shares in PageGroup, the recruitment specialist, stand some way above their low for the year of 265p but are even further from their 12-month high, north of 500p. If markets maintain their faith in the growth-and-inflation trade, the FTSE 250 stock has the potential to run higher still. Net cash on the balance sheet and a decent dividend yield could offer some protection against large falls, while the firm has in the past paid special dividends too. Britain generated a quarter of gross profits in 2015, but Europe and the Middle East provided nearly 40%, Asia 20% and America the rest. The Chief Executive, Steve Ingham, flagged uncertainty in Britain and China as challenges but the share price slide and consensus forecasts of just 2% earnings growth for 2016 and a 5% fall in 2017 suggest that a lot of bad news may already be factored in. The shares could be choppy, but the balance sheet provides some welcome protection. Questor says “Hold”.
Savannah Resources: Markets are currently embracing President-elect Donald Trump in the hope that his policies can breathe life into a U.S. economy that continues to grow at a rate well below pre-crisis trends. Only time will tell whether he can but for the moment reflation is in vogue and the price of copper is responding, to the potential benefit of the miner Savannah Resources. The stock, whose market value is just £19 million, is suitable only for aggressive, risk-tolerant investors willing and prepared to accept losses, as the company currently generates no revenues. However, October’s exploration results from two blocks in Oman look exciting. Production is due to start in late 2017 and the timing could be propitious as copper is back above the $5,500-a-ton mark. Clear risks remain, but the quality of the copper is high. Questor says “Speculative Buy”.
The Guardian
Autumn statement: Hammond to crack down on letting fees: Millions of families who are being charged hundreds of pounds by agencies to cover the supposed administrative costs of renting will be offered relief when Philip Hammond promises to ban letting fees.
Philip Hammond rejects calls to reverse £3 billion annual cut to work allowance: Philip Hammond will cushion the blow of deep cuts to in-work benefits for “just about managing” households, as he delivers his first autumn statement.
The Brexit economy: remarkable resilience as spectre of inflation looms: The Chancellor, Philip Hammond, has been given a boost ahead of his maiden autumn statement by a Guardian analysis showing the economy continues to confound gloomy forecasts for a post-referendum slump.
The U.K. economy is slowing – experts debate the Brexit watch data: David Blanchflower, professor of economics at Dartmouth College, New Hampshire, and former member of the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee (MPC) from June 2006 to May 2009
Boost to public finances lifts Chancellor ahead of autumn statement: Britain’s public finances improved in October with a fall in the monthly deficit to £4.8 billion from £6.4 billion in the same month last year, giving the Chancellor a lift ahead of Wednesday’s autumn statement.
Daily Mail
Hackers wipe £5 billion off engineer Vinci in 25 minutes with hoax press release saying it had fired its finance director: Vinci briefly saw more than £5 billion wiped off its value after a hoax press release claimed that the construction giant had fired its finance director following an accounting scandal.
Entertainment One’s profits hit after it invests heavily in big films like The BFG and The Girl On The Train: Investing in big movies such as The BFG and The Girl On The Train proved costly for media giant Entertainment One. The media company, which distributes and produces films and TV shows, and fought off a takeover bid from ITV earlier this year, said half-year profits were lower than expected because earnings from DVDs and pay-TV sales from its next blockbusters hadn’t been pocketed yet.
Catering giant Compass serves up a tasty dividend hike thanks to strong demand in North America: The catering giant, which provides food for the Wimbledon tennis championships as well as at the headquarters of Google and Twitter, said performance in North America ‘continued to be excellent’ after sales were boosted by contracts with schools and universities.
Weak French markets continue to drag on B&Q owner Kingfisher but strength in U.K. and Poland sees total sales rise: B&Q owner Kingfisher saw its third quarter results helped by another strong performance at Screwfix, but weakness in France continued, weighing on its shares.
Daily Express
EU to be shunned as ‘Ireland doesn’t want to become Europe’s new banking hub after Brexit’: Ireland is reluctant to take over from London as Europe’s banking hub after Britain leaves the European Union (EU), banking sources have claimed.
Pension pots to lose value because of inflation: Workers saving now for their old age were warned that even a £1 million pension pot may not be enough for a comfortable retirement.
British food exports outside the European Union boom following Brexit vote: British food exports to countries outside the European Union (EU) surged by almost 20% in the three months to September, highlighting the growing importance of the U.K. trade outside the bloc.
Brexit economy boost: Britain’s borrowing slows amid surging tax income: Britain’s public borrowing fell last month as tax receipts surged, putting the economy on an even stronger footing following the vote to leave the European Union (EU).
Brexit boost: Canada hails ‘affinity’ with U.K. and backs new trade deal between nations: Canada wants to form a trade deal with Britain post-Brexit, according to the country’s finance minister. Bill Morneau said there is an “affinity” between the U.K. and Canada and the relationship is regarded as “pretty dear”.
Mitie abandons healthcare role for elderly and vulnerable people: Mitie is to withdraw from providing care at home to elderly and vulnerable people after local authority budget cuts left its long-term business plan “unsustainable”.
The Scottish Herald
Law firm prepares to face conflict court claim: Law firm Burness Paull is preparing to defend a professional negligence case being brought by a former client of legacy firm Paull & Williamsons.
‘No excuse’ for stall in milk prices says NFU as it calls for struggling dairy farmers to be paid 30ppl minimum: MILK processors across the U.K. have no excuse for not paying dairy farmers a minimum of 30p per litre, NFU Scotland has warned. With that failure in mind, the union has called for the formation of a dairy producer Organisation in order that farmers can be legally represented in any future disputes they may have with their buyers.
Morrisons revives Safeway brand: Supermarket group Morrisons is preparing another foray into the convenience sector, this time by reviving the Safeway brand.
Price hikes on way for food and drink: U.K. manufacturers’ export order books deteriorated in November and growth of output volumes slowed further, while food and drink prices are set to rise amid mounting inflationary pressures, a survey shows.
Boardroom pay falls at Edinburgh oil and gas firm amid crude price plunge: Bowleven Chief Executive Kevin Hart has seen the value of his pay packet plunge 37% during a year when the oil and gas company has said it made frustratingly slow progress on its core exploration territory in West Africa.
Macfarlane shares up as firm signals profits will be higher this year: Shares in Macfarlane Group have jumped by more than eight% after the Glasgow-based company declared it was on track to lift profits “well above” last year’s results.
The Scotsman
Edinburgh dominates awards for Scotland’s best hotels: Businesses in Edinburgh have won five out of eight categories in a competition to recognise the best guest accommodation in Scotland, confirming the capital’s dominance of the tourist market north of the border.
Mitie hit by second profit warning as it reveals £100 million loss: Beleaguered outsourcing firm Mitie shocked the City with its second profit warning in two months as it continues to battle the impact of increased economic uncertainty and higher staff costs.
CYBG sees strong start as standalone bank: Glasgow-based CYBG, behind the Clydesdale and Yorkshire high street banking brands, has notched up its first annual pre-tax profit in five years in a strong start to life as a standalone business.
U.K. sales growth reinforces Kingfisher’s third-quarter sales: DIY group Kingfisher has unveiled strong sales growth in its Screwfix business in the third quarter, seen as an indication that tradesmen are keeping busy in the first full quarter after June’s Brexit vote.
500 jobs to go as Kwik Fit Insurance close Uddingston branch: More than 500 jobs are at risk under plans to close a Kwik Fit Insurance office near Glasgow.
City A.M.
The European Commission unveils U.S.-style protection for insolvent companies: A radical cross-border shake-up of insolvency laws was proposed by the European Commission. An EU draft directive was issued proposing to give companies more breathing space to sort out debts instead of being forced to cease trading.
China’s European spending spree undeterred by U.K.’s Brexit vote: Chinese deal activity in the U.K. has not been slowed by the Brexit vote and the appetite for European takeovers in general is likely to increase, according to a new report.
U.S. bookshop chain Barnes & Noble blames election for sluggish sales: U.S. bookshop chain Barnes & Noble is hoping it can sell more books now the distraction of the U.S. election is over.
Love Drinks is now the U.K. distributor for award-winning Australian craft gin distillers Four Pillars: Love Drinks has been appointed the exclusive U.K. distributor of Four Pillars Gin. The premium import, distribution and marketing company specialises in representing craft distilled of family-owned brands.
Deutsche Boerse expects EU statement of objections to London Stock Exchange merger before Christmas: Deutsche Boerse expects the EU competition regulator to publish a statement of objections to the company’s £21 billion merger with the London Stock Exchange next month.