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In the papers: Lloyds earmarks another £700 mln for PPI payouts

Published: 07:00 29 Oct 2013 GMT

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The Times 

Thameslink fiasco ‘likely to continue for another decade’: The Government’s ability to manage large-scale transport projects will come under withering attack in a critique by MPs of a long delayed upgrade to Thameslink, the busiest train network in Britain.

Mizuho Boss quits over loans to Japan’s underworld: The Chairman of Mizuho has announced that he will resign from Japan’s ­second-biggest bank after admitting that he and other board members knew of hundreds of loans made to organised crime gangs.

‘Master of the World’ seeks to regain honour in court: He called himself the Master of the World and became a symbol of entrepreneurial extravagance with his €17.5 million flat in New York and his attempt at a €18.6 million golden parachute.

Lloyds earmarks another £700 million for PPI payouts: The state-backed bank at the centre of one of Britain’s biggest financial scandals faces further embarrassment as it sets aside hundreds of millions of pounds more for customers who were mis-sold payment protection insurance (PPI).

Britain fails to bridge the red tape for business: Britain has tumbled down the World Bank’s list of best places to run a business despite government efforts to ease red tape.

Another brick in the wall at the Daily Mail: The publisher of the Daily Mail has expanded its property division with the £75 million acquisition of DIIG Europe, a business that provides information on homes and commercial buildings.

Mad Men maker plays the Chello: The U.S. cable company behind hit dramas including Breaking Bad, Mad Men and zombie survival series The Walking Dead has spread its wings into the European market with a $1 billion takeover of Chellomedia.

Shepheards in clover on Daisy deal: Two brothers who set up an IT support company in Worcestershire are celebrating a multimillion-pound payday after selling their business to Daisy, the telecoms group, for £18 million in cash.

The Independent

Pension lifeboat fund at £14.8 billion: Britain’s retirement lifeboat strengthened its financial footing last year by growing the value of the money under its control.

IHG shares take a tumble: Shares in Intercontinental Hotels (IHG) dropped more than 2% after it reported a sharper than expected fall in revenue growth in the U.S. during September.

Small shops ‘to pay as supermarkets save £1 billion on rates’: The Government’s decision to delay a key review of business rates will see the Big Four supermarkets save at least £1 billion while small and independent retailers’ bills would remain artificially high, according to new research.

‘Buy now, pay later’ attitude could put economy at risk, says Begbies: Shoppers across the country could be putting the economy at risk by opting to buy now and pay later, it was claimed. 

Clean up Eurozone banks, urges ECB: The Eurozone must “get its act together” and restructure the bloc’s banks, a senior board member of the European Central Bank has warned.

Big Six energy producers under fire over excessive profits ahead of grilling by MPs: Energy bills are being artificially inflated by a lack of competition in the supply market, according to a damning new report, which argues increased competition could cut £70 off the average annual dual-fuel bill by 2020.

The Daily Telegraph

Business rates policy ‘boosting supermarkets at expense of high street shops’: Bill Grimsey, the former Boss of Iceland and Wickes, has claimed the Government’s decision to postpone a revaluation of business rates will save Britain’s biggest supermarkets £1.3 billion in tax, while small retailers battle for survival.

Union official at centre of Grangemouth crisis quits: The union convenor whose alleged misconduct triggered the Grangemouth dispute has resigned from the plant’s Owner Ineos – just a day before he was due to learn whether he would be fired from the company.

Land Registry: Average house price hits £167,063: The average property in England and Wales is now worth £167,063 following an annual increase of 3.4%, according to the Land Registry.

Airbus: Make economy class seats wider for more comfortable flights: Airbus believes it has come up with a solution to uncomfortable, sleepless long-haul flights in economy class: widen the seats by just an inch.

The Guardian 

Apple shares fall amid investors fears over disappointing iPhone 5C sales: Apple sold 33.8 million iPhones last quarter, 26% more than the same time last year and a record for the quarter, the company said Monday. But the tech giant’s shares wobbled as it announced a third consecutive quarterly decline in earnings.

U.K. retailers suffer sharp slowdown in sales, says CBI: Retailers suffered a sharp slowdown in sales this month, according to an industry survey that has cast doubt on the pace of the wider U.K. economic recovery.

HMRC confirms Google investigation during committee hearing: Top HMRC officials effectively confirmed they were investigating the U.K. tax affairs of Google, giving evidence to the indomitable Margaret Hodge and her public accounts committee. 

Auditors must rotate, urges Olympus whistleblower Michael Woodford: Michael Woodford, the former Olympus President turned whistleblower, has attacked the decision of the Competition Commission not to seek automatic rotation of company auditors.

Rabobank faces £600 million fine as Libor scandal resurfaces: The Libor rigging scandal could be reignited when Dutch mutual Rabobank is expected to become the fifth financial institution to be hit with a huge fine for attempting to rig the benchmark interest rate.

Daily Mail

Sports car manufacturer Caterham burned up a £600,000 net loss last year as revenue reversed 6.4% to £18.2 million: Sports car manufacturer Caterham burned up a £600,000 net loss last year as revenue reversed 6.4% to £18.2 million.

Publish a review of how Co-operative Bank was allowed to develop £1.5 billion black hole in its accounts, say MPs: Regulators should publish a review of how the Co-operative Bank was allowed to develop a £1.5 billion black hole in its accounts, MPs on the influential Treasury committee are expected to say.

Infrastructure group Balfour Beatty wins two contracts worth £73 million to help Blackpool defend itself against stormy seas: Infrastructure group Balfour Beatty will help Blackpool defend itself against stormy seas after winning two contracts worth £73 million, writes Peter Campbell.

Daily Express

Economy recovery fear as sales stall: Fears the economic recovery may be faltering rose as high street sales stalled after three consecutive months of growth but economists said it could be a pre-Christmas blip.

G4S will not cash in on £1.6 billion offer for ATM: Beleaguered outsourcing giant G4S rejected a £1.6 billion offer for its cash security arm from private equity outfit Charterhouse Capital Partners.

Private Jet operator Hangar8 adds to air ambulance fleet in Africa: Private jets operator Hangar8 has boosted its fleet of air ambulance aircraft in Africa on hopes of soaring demand from ex-pats, tourists and foreign investors.

Recovering economy boosts British firms’ confidence as they shed fears of going bust: British businesses are recovering their confidence as shoppers and ­restaurant diners open their wallets to help drive the economic recovery.

City A.M.

FTSE Bosses lose faith in high speed 2: Leaders of the country’s biggest companies are losing faith in the planned High Speed 2 railway, a poll out showed, in spite of a renewed push by the government to convince businesses that the project will benefit the economy.

Banks too scared to be honest with regulators: Banks are wary of being honest with the authorities for fear of immediate reprisals, Barclays’ Chairman said, warning that relationships between lenders and supervisors have broken down dangerously.

US  factory and housing data suggest economy losing steam: U.S. manufacturing output barely rose in September and contracts to buy previously owned homes recorded their largest drop in nearly three-and-a-half years, the latest signs the economy’s momentum ebbed as the third quarter ended.

Luxury goods sales are up but hit by weak yen: Spending on luxury goods this year is expected to top last year’s sales, with growth in the Americas overtaking that of China, a worldwide study revealed.

Council house sells for record £2.96 million: A council house near London’s South Bank was sold at auction for a record £2.96 million, making it the most expensive ever sold in the U.K.

Europe’s banks identify another €100 billion in non-performing loans: Europe’s banks are sitting on more than €1.2 trillion (£1 trillion) in non-performing loans (NPLs), and the level is set to increase as they comb through their portfolios next year, PwC analysts said.

Solid revenue rise for Jones Lang LaSalle: Property giant Jones Lang LaSalle reported solid third quarter results, with revenue up 19% to $1.1 billion (£682 million) from the same period last year.

Aggreko shares soar on strong trading update: Temporary power generation firm Aggreko surged to the top of the FTSE 100 morning, after a strong-third quarter update which showed trading is in line with expectations.

BT revamps TV offering with a la carte bolt-ons: BT IS stepping up its efforts to win television subscribers from rivals by giving customers the ability to build their own TV packages. 

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