The Times
Caledonian Sleeper staff draw the line: The new year is likely to provide further trying times for Serco. The RMT train workers’ union has voted for strike action over the state of the Caledonian Sleeper, the overnight London to Scotland rail service that Serco began operating earlier this year.
Sainsbury’s has new stake holder – Sir Ken Morrison: The former Chairman of Morrisons has built a £6 million stake in Sainsbury’s — and given Mike Coupe, its Chief Executive, his public backing.
DLR’s French operator sets out stall to run Boris bike contract: The French company that helps to run several of London’s commuter rail routes is looking to operate the capital’s Boris bike scheme.
Downton producer in frame for ITV bid: The future of ITV is once again up in the air rather than on it after renewed speculation that another U.S. cable company is being linked with a bid for Britain’s largest terrestrial commercial broadcaster.
Stamp duty takes toll on £1 million house sales: The number of £1 million-plus sales in central London fell by more than a quarter between January and July from a year earlier as higher stamp duty deterred would-be buyers.
Israeli billionaire tipped in pools takeover: The football pools, once the lifeblood of Britain’s gambling industry with 10 million players, could be sold to a company backed by the billionaire Owner of London’s Camden market.
The Independent
Ministers too slow to wake up to steel crisis, say MPs: The Government failed thousands of steel workers by not being alert to alarms raised by the industry, according to a group of MPs.
Government’s new apprenticeship levy will hit jobs, warns CBI Chief: Thousands of jobs could be lost following the introduction of a new apprenticeship levy, according to the new head of the Confederation of British Industry.
Financial Times
Record year for European buyout exits: Buyout investors in Europe took advantage of high stock market valuations and a surge in corporate M&A to sell or list companies at a record pace in 2015, according to new data.
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Fosun drops bid for BHF Kleinwort Benson: Fosun International, the Chinese conglomerate whose Chairman was detained this month in connection with an unspecified investigation, announced it would withdraw its bid for BHF Kleinwort Benson, the London merchant bank.
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Capita benefits as rivals fail to deliver: The failures of Serco and G4S in delivering public services have left the field open for Capita, which leads a ranking of the British government’s biggest suppliers this year.
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HSBC appoints Rothschild for restructuring of private banking arm: HSBC has appointed advisers to spur the final phase of its private banking restructuring, after its Swiss unit came under heavy fire earlier this year for helping rich customers dodge taxes.
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BTG Pactual considers sale of commodity trading business: BTG Pactual is considering the sale of its commodity trading arm as the Brazilian bank seeks to bolster its finances following the arrest of its former Chairman and Chief Executive.
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Indonesian media mogul earmarks $500 million for M&A: Media mogul Hary Tanoesoedibjo, Donald Trump’s business partner in Indonesia, is eyeing $500 million of investments next year as an economic slowdown creates M&A opportunities and spurs competition between tycoons in Southeast Asia’s largest economy.
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BHP Billiton eyeing acquisitions as it considers dividend cut: BHP Billiton is stepping up its hunt for acquisitions or new projects, hoping to take advantage of distressed prices at a low point in the commodity cycle and increasing the likelihood that the world’s most valuable mining company will make a dividend cut next year.
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Lex:
Bank Rakyat: max micro: In the world of microfinance, Indonesia’s Bank Rakyat is a giant with a market value of $19 billion. Micro loans — below $10,000 — make up a third of its loan book, the largest segment. In some rural areas its bank Managers are reputed to have the status of a local mayor. No wonder: the Indonesian government backs Rakyat, holding 57% of the shares.
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The Daily Telegraph
Threadneedle Street ‘hawk’ Martin Weale pauses for thought: Martin Weale, the longest serving member of the Bank of England’s interest rate committee, reflects on the recent plunge in commodity prices and weak wage growth.
BG investor sells £100 million of shares: One of the biggest investors in BG Group has sold almost £100 million of shares in the oil and gas business in the past week, raising questions about its view of the company’s £55 billion takeover by Royal Dutch Shell.
Consortium closes in on City Airport: A mega-consortium of some of the world’s most powerful sovereign wealth and pension funds is among the leaders in the £2 billion race to buy London City Airport.
Switch from grants to loans may not be so bad for business: The Chancellor’s Autumn Statement revealed a change in how innovative companies receive match funding from the Government, writes Alan Tovey.
Consortium closes in on City Airport: A mega-consortium of some of the world’s most powerful sovereign wealth and pension funds is among the leaders in the £2 billion race to buy London City Airport.
The Guardian
Christmas shoppers grab last-minute bargains as nervous retailers slash prices: Christmas shoppers have been snapping up festive bargains, as retailers slashed prices to cope with tough trading conditions.
Warm December gives nervous U.K. retailers the Christmas shivers: Retailers are hoping to see a last-minute dash to the high street this week after Christmas shoppers appear to have left gift buying later than ever.
Netflix paid no corporation tax despite 4.5 million U.K. subscribers, report claims: Netflix paid no U.K. corporation tax last year despite being estimated to have around 4.5 million subscribers in the country, it has been reported.
U.K. buyers need to save for up to 24 years to get on housing ladder: Homebuyers now have to save for up to 24 years to set aside a deposit large enough to buy them a foot on Britain’s housing ladder, according to new research.
U.K. Bosses cautious over pay rises in 2016: British employers expect to keep hiring permanent staff in 2016 but are cautious about offering meaningful pay rises, according to a survey from employers’ group CBI.
Venison and veal on the menu as Christmas shoppers trim the turkey: Supermarkets are selling out of meats such as venison as adventurous shoppers opt for alternatives to the traditional turkey for the U.K. Christmas dinner centrepiece.
Daily Mail
Drug giant Shire plans to sweeten its £20 billion Baxalta bid by adding £8 billion cash payment to fresh offer: Drug giant Shire is planning to sweeten its £20billion offer for Baxalta as it battles for control of its American rival.
Lloyds investors head to Supreme Court to overturn decision cancelling more than £3 billion worth of annual interest on bonds: Lloyds savers have secured a fighting fund to appeal against the High Court’s decision to allow the bank to strip them of generous interest payments.
Daily Express
The new living wage could hamper economic growth warn experts: Economic growth could be hit by increasing costs such as the new national living wage, coupled with a shortage of skilled workers, a leading business group has warned.
Gift of early Christmas pay a curse, say one third of Brits: Early Christmas pay cheques are seen as a curse rather than a blessing by nearly one in three Britons – as many will end up blowing their festive windfall too early, research has found.
The Scottish Herald
ScotlandIS Chief to chair CodeClan: The long serving Chief Executive of trade body ScotlandIS has been appointed as the first chair of digital skills academy CodeClan.
Scottish construction sector confidence slips: Confidence in the Scottish construction sector has slipped to its lowest level in almost two years, according to trade data.
Lockheed Martin to carry out asset integrity study: Lockheed Martin has been commissioned to carry out an asset integrity study to identify new ways to maximise oil and gas recovery from U.K. waters.
Spark lifts profits and plans for growth: Spark Energy, the fast-growing supplier to the lettings market, has reported a 43per cent increase in turnover to £118.6 million and pretax profits of £3.4 million – up from the previous year’s £1.27 million.
The Scotsman
Angel investors provide tech firms with £2 million lift: Two Scottish technology start-ups have together secured more than £2 million in funding from indigenous angel investors as they look to ramp up growth in 2016.
IME Property eyes new year Glasgow and Fife push: Commercial property agency IME Property has both Glasgow and Fife in its sights as it pushes beyond its Edinburgh heartland.
RBS begins search for next batch of apprentices: The first steps to a career in banking and technology are being offered by Royal Bank of Scotland after the lender launched a search for 130 new apprentices.
City A.M.
Row breaks out over closure of Redcar steel plant: The government’s handling of the closure of the Redcar SSI steel plant earlier this year has become the source of a row in the halls of Westminster.
Shoppers feel flush in the run up to Christmas: Consumer confidence has been growing in the run up to Christmas according to the latest survey from Lloyds Bank.
Shareholder dissatisfaction with Bosses at Imagination Technologies: Troubled mobile chip maker Imagination Technologies, which counts Apple among its top shareholders, is facing mounting criticism from investors following the firm’s share price tumbling 50% in two months.
State borrowing data to cast light on task ahead for Chancellor: Public borrowing figures this week will partly reveal the size of the boost needed in January to meet the government’s budget deficit target.
