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SummaryCompanies Aims for aerospace margin of 15-17%Expects medium-term annual operating profit of 2.8 bln stgShares rise 6.5%LONDON, Nov 28 (Reuters) - Rolls-Royce (RR.L) aims to quadruple profit in the next five years by boosting the performance of its jet engines and bearing down on costs in boss Tufan Erginbilgic's masterplan for Britain's most prestigious engineering company. That would be driven by surge in profit margins at its civil aerospace business to 15-17% from 2.5% last year. Agency Partners analyst Nick Cunningham said the targets implied Rolls-Royce was willing to shed revenues in exchange for better profitability. "If so, that is a deeper culture change from Rolls-Royce’s traditional market share optimisation approach of past decades," he said. "We will capture market share every year, but in a profitable way," he said.

Persons: Tufan, Erginbilgic, Nadja Wohlleben, Royce, Nick Cunningham, Rolls, Paul Sandle, Barbara Lewis, Mark Potter Organizations: Royce, Airbus, Boeing, REUTERS, Agency Partners, Trent, Thomson Locations: widebodies, Royce Germany, Dahlewitz, Berlin, Germany

☆ Nissan invests $1.4 bln to build two new EV models in Britain
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-24 | by ( Nick Carey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Nissan has made its electric Leaf model in Sunderland for years and will continue to do so, with batteries supplied by a small plant at the site. It announced a $1.4 billion investment in 2021 to build a second, 9 gigawatt-hour (GWh) battery plant in Sunderland with Chinese partner Envision AESC. Nissan did not comment on the value of any subsidies or guarantees being provided by Britain. [1/4]Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt attach a Nissan badge to a car as they visit the car manufacturer, Nissan, in Sunderland, Britain, November 24, 2023. But Sunak, who became prime minister a year ago, is having some success turning that around.

Persons: Rishi, Sunak, Nissan's, Alan Johnson, Rishi Sunak, Jeremy Hunt, Chancellor, Makoto Uchida, Brexit, Nick Carey, Sarah Young, Paul Sandle, Sonali Paul, Mark Potter Organizations: Nissan, Investment Summit, Britain, BBC, Britain's, India's Tata Motors, Rover, Thomson Locations: Sunderland, England, Britain, Europe, EVs

SummaryCompanies UK business investment has lagged since Brexit"Largest business tax cut" in modern history-HuntTax break costs 11 bln stg a yearOBR forecasts 3 bln stg a year investment boostLONDON, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Britain's finance minister Jeremy Hunt made a tax break for business investment permanent on Wednesday, aiming to kickstart growth in the country's sluggish economy. Hunt hopes that by making permanent the tax break known as "full expensing", companies will spend more on new kit and technology, lifting productivity. This is the largest business tax cut in modern British history," Hunt said in his Autumn Statement on Wednesday. BT (BT.L), a beneficiary of the tax break as it is investing billions in building a new fibre network, welcomed Hunt's move. British business investment has trailed that of other developed economies, according to research from the International Monetary Fund.

Persons: Jeremy Hunt, Hunt, Hunt's, Philip Jansen, Jessica Taylor, Handout, Stephen Phipson, Robert Forrester, David Milliken, Kylie MacLellan, Sarah Young, Kate Holton, Alex Richardson Organizations: LONDON, BT, Labour, Conservatives, Britain's, REUTERS Acquire, International Monetary Fund, Vertu, BBC Radio, Thomson Locations: Britain, London, British

☆ Russian companies' scaled-down IPOs in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A customer walks in a store of Russian clothing retailer Henderson in Moscow, Russia October 31, 2023. IPO/DPO- Biotech startup Genetico (GECO.MM) raised 179 million roubles in an IPO in April. - CarMoney, a fintech service owned by SmartTechGroup (STG) raised 978 million roubles in a direct public offering (DPO) in July. - Technology company Astra (ASTR.MM) raised 3.5 billion roubles in an October IPO. - Men's clothing chain Henderson (HNFG.MM) attracted 3.8 billion roubles through its IPO in early November.

Persons: Maxim Shemetov, Uzhuralzoloto, Vladimir Putin's, Softline, Alexander Marrow, Kevin Liffey Organizations: Henderson, REUTERS, Biotech, SmartTechGroup, Technology, Astra, SPO, State, VTB Bank, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Russia, Ukraine, IPOs

☆ Siemens loses London lawsuit over 2 bln stg HS2 contract
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A HS2 high-speed rail logo is displayed on a fence surrounding a construction site at Euston in London, Britain, July 30, 2023. REUTERS/Hollie Adams/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Nov 6 (Reuters) - Siemens (SIEGn.DE) on Monday lost a legal challenge over a 2 billion pound ($2.48 billion) contract to build a fleet of new trains for Britain's beleaguered HS2 high-speed rail project. HS2 said the contract, which includes a 12-year maintenance and services deal, was worth around 2 billion pounds when it was awarded. But Judge Finola O'Farrell dismissed Siemens' case on Monday, saying in a written ruling that Siemens had not established the contract was awarded unlawfully and the company was therefore "not entitled to any damages". Monday's ruling is a rare piece of good news for the controversial HS2 project, which was originally planned to link London to the north of England from 2026.

Persons: Hollie Adams, HS2, Finola O'Farrell, Rishi Sunak, Sam Tobin, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: REUTERS, Siemens, Siemens Mobility, HS2, Bombardier Transportation, France's Alstom, Hitachi, Alstom, British, Thomson Locations: Euston, London, Britain, England, Manchester, Birmingham

☆ GSK lifts annual forecasts on strong launch of RSV vaccine
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-01 | by ( Eva Mathews | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Arexvy, launched in the United States recently, recorded third quarter sales of 709 million pounds ($862 million), trouncing analysts' expectations of 358 million pounds, according to a company-compiled consensus. GSK accounts for close to two-thirds of RSV shots given in the United States since early September, according to IQVIA data. Full-year sales are seen between 900 million pounds and 1 billion pounds for the shot, GSK said. The company faces about 79,000 cases related to Zantac in the United States, with 73,000 of them in Delaware and scheduled for trial starting January 2024. For the third quarter, Shingrix, the company's top-selling drug for shingles, generated 825 million pounds in sales.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Abrysvo, Dani Saurymper, Emma Walmsley, Eva Mathews, Maggie Fick, Tomasz Janowski, Mark Potter Organizations: GSK, GlaxoSmithKline, REUTERS, stg, CVS, Pfizer, Pacific Asset Management, GSK's, Thomson Locations: London, United States, U.S, Europe, Japan, Delaware, Bengaluru

☆ Whitbread's profits jump as Premier Inn-owner enjoys steady demand
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-18 | by ( Eva Mathews | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Shares in the British company, originally a brewer, were up 3.5% to 3,437 pence by 0737 GMT to lead London's blue-chip (.FTSE) index. Leisure and business demand are showing signs of staying, Paul said, adding forward-booked revenue was ahead of last year. Whitbread, which owns restaurant chains such as Bar+Block Steakhouse and Brewers Fayre has also seen signs of food inflation easing. The company announced a further 300 million pound share buyback on Wednesday and proposed an interim dividend per share of 34.1 pence, up 40% on last year. ($1 = 0.8193 pounds)Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; editing by Subhranshu Sahu and Jason NeelyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Lee Smith, WTB.L, Dominic Paul, Paul, Whitbread, Hargreaves, Derren Nathan, Brewers Fayre, Eva Mathews, Subhranshu Sahu, Jason Neely Organizations: Premier Inn Hotel, Brewers, REUTERS, H1, Whitbread, Inn, Thomson Locations: Durham, County Durham, Britain, British, Germany, Bengaluru

☆ Amazon UK to spend 170 mln stg on staff pay rises
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

People take part in a rally in support of Amazon workers' on strike, outside the Amazon warehouse, in Coventry, Britain, January 25, 2023. Pay rates will further increase to between 12.30 pounds and 13 pounds an hour from April next year. The increases mean Amazon’s minimum starting pay will have risen by 20% in two years, and 50% since 2018, it said. Amazon UK also said it has started recruiting for more than 15,000 seasonal roles across the UK for the festive period. Last week, supermarket groups Morrisons and Aldi said they were hiring 3,500 and 3,000 extra staff for the Christmas season.

Persons: Henry Nicholls, BoE, James Davey, Kate Holton Organizations: REUTERS, Bank of, Amazon, Aldi, Thomson Locations: Coventry, Britain, Bank of England

☆ Imperial Brands sticks by forecast, announces $1.3 bln share buyback
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A woman poses with a cigarette in front of Imperial Brands logo in this illustration taken July 26, 2022. The company also announced a share buyback of 1.1 billion pounds ($1.34 billion). Rival British American Tobacco (BATS.L) has lost more than 24% of its share value. In recent years, Imperial Brands has focused on its top five markets and expanding next-generation products deemed less harmful to health. ($1 = 0.8230 pounds)Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Krishna Chandra Eluri and Michael PerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, buyback, Hargreaves, Derren Nathan, Winston, blu vapes, Richard Hunter, Eva Mathews, Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Krishna Chandra Eluri, Michael Perry Organizations: Imperial Brands, REUTERS, FTSE, British American Tobacco, Interactive, Thomson Locations: Bengaluru

A British steel industry worker displays a badge on his Tata Steel work clothing during a protest over jobs, pay and conditions of work, outside of the Houses of Parliament in London, Britain, June 28, 2023. Britain said Friday's deal would help to safeguard 5,000 jobs, but Tata Steel UK currently employs more than 8,000 people, raising the prospect of 3,000 redundancies, as the lower-carbon electric furnaces are less labour intensive. India-owned Tata Steel had long warned that without government help it could close the Port Talbot site. Britain's steel industry directly employs 39,800 people according to figures released by UK Steel in May, and supports a further 50,000 jobs in the supply chain. The government said Tata Steel UK would now inform and consult with staff and unions.

Persons: Toby Melville, Friday's, Kemi Badenoch, Port Talbot, Sharon Graham, Sarah Young, Farouq Suleiman, Elizabeth Piper, Sachin Ravikumar, Jane Merriman Organizations: Tata Steel, REUTERS, Port Talbot Tata Steel, Tata, Tata Steel UK, Business, Company, European Union, Tata Group, British Steel, UK Steel, Trade, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, steelmaking, India, Talbot, United States, England, British, Scunthorpe, Port Talbot

☆ BAE Systems pensions appoint Goldman Sachs to manage 23 bln stg in assets
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

The logo for Goldman Sachs is seen on the trading floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, New York, U.S., November 17, 2021. REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsLONDON, Sept 6 (Reuters) - The trustees of two BAE Systems (BAES.L) pensions schemes have appointed Goldman Sachs Asset Management to manage 23 billion pounds ($28.88 billion) in defined benefit pension scheme assets, the fund manager said on Wednesday. The mandate for BAE Systems Pension Scheme and BAE Systems Executive Pension Scheme is the largest outsourced chief investment officer appointment in Britain to date, GSAM said in a statement. Pension funds are looking at ways to cut costs by outsourcing parts of their business. ($1 = 0.7964 pounds)Reporting by Carolyn Cohn; editing by Jason NeelyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Andrew Kelly, Goldman, GSAM, Carolyn Cohn, Jason Neely Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, BAE Systems, Management, Thomson Locations: New York City , New York, U.S, Britain

Net borrowing, excluding state-owned banks, stood at 4.3 billion pounds ($5.49 billion) last month, less than the median forecast of 5.0 billion pounds in a Reuters poll of economists. In the first four months of the financial year, borrowing stood at 56.6 billion pounds. "As inflation slows, it's vital that we don’t alter our course and continue to act responsibly with the public finances," Hunt said in a statement after the data. Interest costs rose by 1.5 billion pounds compared with July last year to 7.7 billion pounds, the highest for July since records began in April 1997. The public finances were boosted by inflows of self-assessed income tax receipts which are typically strong in July, which stood at 11.8 billion pounds, 2.5 billion pounds more than in July last year.

Persons: Jeremy Hunt, Jessica Taylor, Handout, Hunt, Rishi Sunak, Liz Truss's, Ruth Gregory, Gregory, Gabriella Dickens, William Schomberg, Sachin Ravikumar, Andrew Heavens, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: REUTERS Acquire, Reuters, Bank of England, Conservative Party, Treasury, Capital Economics, Senior, National Statistics, Britain's, Thomson Locations: London, Britain

☆ Private equity bites off mostly what it can chew
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Jonathan Guilford | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Private equity firms notched nearly $300 billion of acquisitions worldwide through Aug. 15, according to Dealogic data. Deals in the $1 billion to $5 billion range are running closest to the same pace as 2022. STG, for example, secured a loan to value of more than 40% from private lenders. With capital tighter, it’s easy to understand why buyout firms are pursuing humbler deals more likely to exceed the minimum returns investors expect. GTCR’s plan to buy 55% of Worldpay at a $17.5 billion valuation requires an equity check equivalent to 15% of the buyout firm’s assets.

Persons: Simon & Schuster, STG, Clayton, Rice, Banks, Ares Capital’s, hasn’t, Jeffrey Goldfarb, Sharon Lam Organizations: KKR, New York Stock Exchange, Reuters, Avid Technology, GTCR, TPG, Francisco Partners, Bain Consulting, Thomson, & $ Locations: New York, U.S, can’t, Dubilier

REUTERS/Henry NichollsNEW YORK, Aug 9 (Reuters) - Private equity firm Symphony Technology Group (STG) is nearing a deal to acquire media editing software maker Avid Technology Inc (AVID.O) for close to $1.4 billion, including debt, according to people familiar with the matter. Palo Alto, California-based STG is a mid-market private equity firm focused on technology investments. Earlier this year, STG struck a deal to take Momentive Global Inc, the parent company of SurveyMonkey, private in a $1.5 billion deal. STG currently manages about $10 billion of assets and has invested in more than 50 companies in the technology industry. Reporting by Milana Vinn and Anirban Sen in New York; editing by Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Tom Cruise, Jennifer Connelly, Henry Nicholls, STG, Milana Vinn, Anirban Sen, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: REUTERS, Technology, Avid Technology Inc, Avid, Reuters, Impactive, Momentive, Inc, Thomson Locations: London, Britain, Burlington , Massachusetts, Palo Alto , California, New York

NEW YORK, Aug 3 (Reuters) - Symphony Technology Group (STG) and Francisco Partners are among the private equity firms competing to acquire media editing software maker Avid Technology Inc (AVID.O), according to people familiar with the matter. Avid, Goldman and Francisco Partners declined to comment. Palo Alto-based STG is a mid-market private equity firm focused on technology investments. Francisco Partners is a prolific tech investor, which has raised over $45 billion to date. Earlier this week, Francisco Partners teamed up with TPG Inc (TPG.O) to acquire New Relic (NEWR.N) for $6.5 billion.

Persons: Goldman, STG, Palo, Francisco, Milana Vinn, Anirban Sen, Sharon Singleton, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Symphony Technology, Francisco Partners, Avid Technology Inc, Avid, Goldman Sachs, Reuters, Momentive, Inc, TPG Inc, Impactive, Thomson Locations: Burlington , Massachusetts, Palo Alto, New York

Davies said he intended to stay on at the bank for now - after also facing calls to resign - and confirmed for the first time that political pressure forced the board's hand in Rose's exit. "The political reaction to that was such... that her position was then untenable," he told reporters. Britain's finance ministry said the decision for Rose to depart was made by her and the bank's board. "The NatWest board is responsible for the bank's strategic and operational management," a Treasury spokesperson said. ($1 = 0.7820 pounds)Reporting by Iain Withers and Lawrence White, editing by Sinead Cruise and Tomasz JanowskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Davies, Nigel Farage's, Rose, Howard Davies, Alison Rose, Nigel Farage, Coutts, Peter Flavel, We've, Alison, Travers Smith, Paul Thwaite, Iain Withers, Lawrence White, Sinead Cruise, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: NatWest, Rose NatWest, BBC, Treasury, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Britain's, Rose's, Britain

[1/2] A man walks past ATM machines at branch of the NatWest bank in Manchester, Britain September 21, 2017. Davies said he intended to stay at the bank for now and confirmed for the first time on Friday that political pressure had played a part in Rose's exit. "The political reaction to retaining Alison as CEO was such that her position was untenable," he told reporters. NatWest reported pre-tax profit of 3.6 billion pounds ($4.6 billion) for the period, compared to 2.6 billion pounds the prior year and above the 3.3 billion pound average of analyst forecasts compiled by the bank. NatWest booked a 233 million pounds charge for potential loan defaults - compared to the release of 54 million pounds last year - and lowered its net interest margin forecast for the year to below 3.2%, with an expectation of it hitting 3.15%.

Persons: Phil Noble, Davies, Nigel Farage's, Rose, Howard Davies, Alison Rose, Nigel Farage, Coutts, Peter Flavel, Alison, We've, NatWest's, Paul Thwaite, Thwaite, Iain Withers, Lawrence White, Sinead Cruise, Tomasz Janowski Organizations: NatWest, REUTERS, Rose NatWest, BBC, Reuters, Rivals Barclays, Lloyds, Barclays, Thomson Locations: Manchester, Britain, Britain's, Rose's

☆ Ocado jumps after return to first-half underlying profit
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( James Davey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Ocado also said its Ocado Retail business, the online supermarket joint venture it operates with Marks & Spencer (MKS.L), returned to profitability in the second quarter. Shares in Ocado jumped 14.6% in early trading after what Jefferies analysts called a "solid" performance. It maintained its guidance for Technology Solutions to deliver "positive" EBITDA over the full 2022-23 year, with Ocado Retail making "marginally positive" EBITDA, and Logistics making "stable" EBITDA. "Speculation is speculation, I have nothing to say," Tim Steiner, Ocado's founder and chief executive, told reporters on Tuesday. ($1 = 0.7641 pounds)Reporting by James Davey; Editing by Kate Holton, Jason Neely and Mike HarrisonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Ocado, Spencer, Jefferies, Tim Steiner, James Davey, Kate Holton, Jason Neely, Mike Harrison Organizations: Marks, Kroger, Casino, Technology Solutions, Ocado, Logistics, Times, Thomson Locations: Ocado, United States, Japan, France, U.S

☆ Ocado keeps guidance after return to first-half underlying profit
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( James Davey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummaryCompanies First half underlying profit 16.6 mln stgLosses at pretax level widen to 289.5 mln stgShares surged last month on takeover speculationLONDON, July 18 (Reuters) - Ocado (OCDO.L), the British online supermarket and technology group, kept its financial guidance for the year as it reported a return to underlying profit in its first half. However, at the statutory level Ocado's pretax loss widened to 289.5 million pounds from 211.3 million reflecting depreciation, amortisation and exceptional items. Ocado said there was no change to the financial guidance given at its full-year results in February. In the first half Technology Solutions was EBITDA positive, Logistics was flat and Ocado Retail made a small loss. The group maintained its guidance for Technology Solutions to deliver "positive" EBITDA over the full 2022-23 year, with Ocado Retail making "marginally positive" EBITDA, and Logistics making "stable" EBITDA.

Persons: Tim Steiner, Ocado, Spencer, James Davey, Kate Holton, Jason Neely Organizations: Times, Amazon, Ocado, Marks, Logistics, Technology Solutions, Kroger, Casino, Thomson Locations: U.S, United States, Japan, France

☆ Ocado jumps on return to first-half underlying profit
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-18 | by ( James Davey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The group swung to a profit for the six months to May 28, posting core earnings (EBITDA) of 16.6 million pounds ($21.7 million), ahead of a consensus forecast for a loss of 16 million pounds, and reversing a loss of 13.6 million pounds in the year-earlier period. Ocado (OCDO.L) said its Technology Solutions division made a profit for the first time, while its Ocado Retail business, the online supermarket joint venture it operates with Marks & Spencer (MKS.L), returned to profit in the second quarter. Shore Capital analyst Clive Black, a long term Ocado sceptic, focused on Ocado's losses at the pretax level, which widened to 289.5 million pounds. It maintained its guidance for Technology Solutions to deliver "positive" EBITDA over the full 2022-23 year, with Ocado Retail making "marginally positive" EBITDA, and its UK Logistics unit making "stable" EBITDA. The group's shares soared much as 47% on June 22 after the Times newspaper reported possible takeover interest from more than one U.S. suitor including Amazon (AMZN.O).

Persons: Spencer, Jefferies, Goldman Sachs, Tim Steiner, Ocado, Clive Black, Steiner, James Davey, Kate Holton, Jason Neely, Mike Harrison Organizations: Technology Solutions, Marks, Kroger, Casino, Shore Capital, Ocado, UK Logistics, Times, Thomson Locations: Ocado, United States, Japan, France, U.S

Thames Water, weighed down by 14 billion pounds of debt and under pressure over its environmental record, had told shareholders it needed 1 billion pounds to help fund its turnaround. British ministers have been monitoring Thames Water amid fears it could need a government rescue if shareholders refused to invest more. "Shareholders have also acknowledged that delivery of the turnaround plan is likely to require the provision of further equity support," Thames Water said. The 750 million pound investment is subject to Thames Water improving the business plan underpinning its turnaround, it said. Core earnings (EBITDA) fell 3% to 1.1 billion on revenue which grew 4% to 2.3 billion pounds.

Persons: Ian Marchant, Sarah Young, Kate Holton Organizations: Water, Thames, China Investment Corp, Thomson Locations: Ontario

Philip Meeson, who built Jet2 into Britain's biggest seller of package holidays, will step down as executive chairman and leave the board later this year, the company also said. The Leeds-based company overtook former package holiday market leader TUI last year, and said it was confident of future demand despite the pressure on disposable incomes from high inflation and rising interest rates. "The end-to-end package holiday is a resilient and popular product, particularly during difficult economic times," Jet2 said. For the 12 months to the end of March, Jet2 posted pretax profit before foreign exchange revaluation of 390.8 million pounds ($497 million), within its guidance range of 387-392 million pounds. ($1 = 0.7865 pounds)Reporting by Sarah Young Editing by James Davey, Mark Potter, Elaine HardcastleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Philip Meeson, Meeson, TUI, Jet2, Mark Simpson, Sarah Young, James Davey, Mark Potter, Elaine Hardcastle Organizations: Channel, Thomson Locations: British, Britain, Leeds, Jet2

Under the terms, Vodafone will own 51% and Hutchison 49% of the combined group, which will be led by current Vodafone UK boss Ahmed Essam. The finance chief of Hutchison's Three UK, Darren Purkis, will take the same role in the new group. The combined operator will have about 27 million customers, overtaking BT's (BT.L) EE and VM O2, jointly owned by Telefonica (TEF.MC) and Liberty Global (LBTYA.O). Vodafone, which is currently Britain's third-biggest mobile operator, and fourth-placed Hutchison will have options which would allow Vodafone to acquire the Hong Kong-based conglomerate's 49% stake in the future. Shares in Vodafone, which fell to a 25-year low of 71 pence on Tuesday, rose 3.6% after the deal was announced.

Persons: CK Hutchison, Canning Fok, Ahmed Essam, Darren Purkis, Hutchison, Vodafone's Essam, Robert Finnegan, Gail Cartmail, Paul Sandle, Clare Jim, Kate Holton, Sharon Singleton, Kirsten Donovan Organizations: Vodafone, CK, HK, Hutchison, Hutchison's, BT's, VM O2, Telefonica, Liberty Global, Britain's Competition, Markets Authority, CMA, Unite, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, Britain, Hong Kong, China, London

Novo's inability to keep up with a burst in U.S. demand for Wegovy has effectively delayed the launch in Britain and elsewhere in Europe. A company spokesperson would not comment on any commitment to supply its drug for the British pilot. The British government said that only 35,000 people would have access to Wegovy under the specialist hospital services, but tens of thousands more could be eligible. Duane Mellor, a dietitian and senior lecturer at Aston University's medical school, told Reuters drugs like Wegovy were a tool, not the solution. Wegovy works by mimicking a hormone called glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) that triggers the feeling of fullness in the body after eating.

Persons: Jim Vondruska, Sunak, Eli Lilly's, Eli Lilly, Phil McEwan, Novo, Keen, Wegovy, Duane Mellor, Simon Cork, Ludwig Burger, Maggie Fick, Anusha, Helen Reid, Lincoln, Mark Potter Organizations: REUTERS, National Health, Novo, British, NHS, NICE, National Institute for Health, Care, Wegovy, Nordisk, ., Heor Ltd, Reuters, Aston, Anglia Ruskin University, Thomson Locations: Chicago , Illinois, U.S, Britain, England, Europe, United States, British, Cardiff, Denmark, Norway, Frankfurt, London, Bengaluru

☆ Loving trainers: JD Sports' profit to top 1 billion pounds
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( James Davey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies Underlying profit in 2022-23 was 991.4 mln stgSales up over 15% in first 13 weeks of new yearLONDON, May 17 (Reuters) - JD Sports Fashion (JD.L) said on Wednesday it expected profit to exceed 1 billion pounds ($1.3 billion) for the first time this year as demand for trainers, joggers and hoodies from its younger shoppers keeps growing. For the first 13 weeks of its new year, JD posted organic sales growth of more than 15%. Shares in the group have increased 30% so far this year, giving it a market capitalisation of 8.8 billion pounds, more than the market value of supermarket Sainsbury's and Marks & Spencer - two stalwarts of British retailing. For its last financial year ending Jan 28, it reported profit before tax and exceptional items of 991.4 million, up from 947.2 million pounds in 2021-22. For 2023-24 it forecast 1.03 billion pounds.

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