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☆ UK's Asda to buy EG petrol stations unit in $2.9-bln deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Asda, Britain's third-largest grocer, and EG are both owned by brothers Zuber and Mohsin Issa and private equity group TDR Capital. The unit of around 350 petrol stations and over 1,000 food-to-go locations will be valued at 2.27 billion pounds. The deal will help spur Asda in its drive to overtake Sainsbury's (SBRY.L) and become Britain's No. 2 supermarket as it rolls out the Asda Express across the EG petrol estate. The Issa brothers bought Asda in 2021 and have already converted 166 EG sites to the "Asda on the Move" format.

☆ Meta offers to limit use of ad data to address UK competition concerns
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, May 26 (Reuters) - Britain's competition watchdog on Friday said social media giant Meta (META.O) had offered to limit its use of other businesses' advertising data for its Facebook Marketplace service to address the regulator's competition concerns. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it was minded to accept the commitments, which include advertisers being able to opt out of allowing their data to be used to improve the Facebook Marketplace classified ads platform. CMA executive director of enforcement Michael Grenfell said: "Reducing the risk of Meta unfairly exploiting the data of businesses who advertise on its platform for its own competitive advantage could help many UK businesses who advertise there. "We are now consulting on these commitments which we believe, at this stage, will address our concerns." Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru and Paul Sandle in London; Editing by Rashmi Aich and Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Britain lowers stake in NatWest with $1.6 bln share sale
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The lender returned to majority private ownership in March 2022 after a similar block sale. The government has a target of fully returning NatWest to private ownership by 2026. "Today's sale is another major milestone in returning NatWest to full private ownership as promised," Andrew Griffith, economic secretary to the Treasury, said in a statement. Britain owned 84% of NatWest at the peak of its ownership after it bailed out the bank in 2008. The sale announced on Monday is the government's sixth block sale of NatWest stock to date, the government said.

Within weeks, Della Valle gave them a stark assessment of the problems Vodafone faces. Complicating matters is an investor base with conflicting demands, concerns about Vodafone's dividend outlook and a workforce reeling from the deep job cuts. While many observers in and outside the company had expected a fresh face, Della Valle won over the board. Vodafone's shares are trading at lows last seen in 2002, largely due to a cut to free cash flow forecasts. That may not sit well with Vodafone's other key investors - French telecoms billionaire Xavier Niel, who competes with it in Italy, and Liberty Global, its partner in the Netherlands.

☆ Tesco chair Allan to step down after inappropriate behaviour claims
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( James Davey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

However, prior to Friday's update from Tesco, Allan was due to seek re-election at the June 16 annual general meeting (AGM). Tesco said that pending the appointment of a new chairman, senior independent director Byron Grote will become interim chair and will chair the AGM. Earlier this month, the Guardian newspaper reported that Allan was facing claims of inappropriate behaviour from four women. Three of these allegations are vigorously denied by Allan, and for the other Allan unreservedly apologised for a comment he made, Tesco said. "While we have received no complaints about John's conduct and made no findings of wrongdoing, these allegations risk becoming a distraction to Tesco," Grote said.

☆ UK targets grain theft and energy sector with new Russian sanctions
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, May 19 (Reuters) - Britain announced a new wave of sanctions against Russia on Friday, targeting companies connected to the theft of Ukrainian grain and those involved in the shipment of Russian energy. Britain said in a statement that it was sanctioning 86 individuals and entities as part of a new crackdown on what it called "shady individuals and entities" connected to the theft and resale of Ukrainian grain. The sanctions would also target Russia's major energy and arms shipping companies, including those connected to Russia's state-owned nuclear energy company Rosatom, and the owner of the Russian Copper Company, Igor Altushkin. The designations came after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced new import bans on Russian diamonds and copper, aluminium and nickel. Reporting by Sarah Young; editing by Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ EasyJet confident on summer as bookings soar
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, May 18 (Reuters) - British airline easyJet <EZJ.L> said it was confident ahead of the summer season, when it makes all its profit, helped by strong booking levels, higher ticket prices and the growth of its holidays business. Europe's major airlines including its biggest, Ryanair (RYA.I) plus Lufthansa (LHAG.DE) and British Airways-owner IAG (ICAG.L) have all pointed to robust summer bookings, showing consumers prioritising travel spend despite incomes being squeezed by inflation. For the six months to the end of March, easyJet on Thursday reported a pretax loss of 411 million pounds ($519 million), compared to the forecast it provided in April for a loss of between 405 million and 425 million pounds. Ahead of the key summer season, easyJet noted its operational resilience, suggesting it was ready for the pick-up in travel, unlike last year, when flights across Europe were disrupted by staff shortages and cancellations. For the full-year, analysts currently expect easyJet to post a pretax profit of 345 million pounds according to Refinitiv data.

The job cuts are the biggest in the history of Vodafone, which employs 90,000 people directly across Europe and Africa. Della Valle was given a mandate to turn Vodafone around when she permanently took on the top job from the role of CFO last month. Della Valle started cutting jobs when she took the helm at the start of the year, targeting Vodafone's central operations in London. Della Valle said the European telecoms market had long delivered a poor return on the capital invested in networks, but Vodafone's relative performance had worsened over time. "It will take as long as it takes to get a good deal," Della Valle told reporters.

☆ UK's competition boss: We do not want a hostile environment for tech
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, May 16 (Reuters) - The head of Britain's anti-trust regulator said it was not seeking to create a "hostile environment" for tech companies with its decision to block Microsoft's $69 billion acquisition of Activision Blizzard. Cardell added that the CMA had engaged widely with companies across the sector. "I don't find that we are operating sort of, broadly speaking, in a hostile environment," she added. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has also filed a complaint to block the deal, which Microsoft has indicated it will fight. Reporting by Sarah Young and Paul Sandle; Editing by Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Vodafone's new boss to cut 11,000 jobs as cash flow to fall
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Paul Sandle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Della Valle said Germany, Vodafone's biggest market, was underperforming, while Spain, which has suffered cut-throat competition in recent years, was under strategic review. Underscoring the pressures on the business, Vodafone said it would generate 3.3 billion euros ($3.6 billion) of cash this financial year, down from 4.8 billion euros in the year to end-March 2023. Analysts had expected 3.6 billion euros. For the year to end-March, pressures in Germany and higher energy costs resulted in a 1.3% decline in Vodafone's group core earnings to 14.7 billion euros, missing its own guidance. Vodafone has already started to cut jobs in its big markets, shedding 1,000 in Italy earlier this year, while a media report said it was looking to cut around 1,300 in Germany.

☆ Change Brexit deal or watch factories close, carmaker Stellantis warns
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Kate Holton | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

May 16 (Reuters) - British car factories will be forced to close with the loss of thousands of jobs if the government does not renegotiate its Brexit deal immediately, automaker Stellantis (STLAM.MI) warned on Wednesday. "Manufacturers will not continue to invest and (instead will) relocate manufacturing operations outside of UK, as seen with previously established UK manufacturers such as Ford and Mini." Under the trade deal agreed when Britain left the bloc, 45% of the value of an electric vehicle must come from Britain or the EU from 2024 to avoid tariffs. "If you don't have a battery capability in the UK, then those car manufacturers will move to mainland Europe." Britain has drawn electric vehicle investment from Nissan and Ford, while other big players are still weighing up where to invest.

☆ Vodafone to cut 11,000 jobs, sees big drop in cash flow
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Paul Sandle | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, May 16 (Reuters) - Vodafone's (VOD.L) new boss Margherita Della Valle said she would cut 11,000 jobs over three years to simplify the telecoms group, which she said "must change", as it forecast a 1.5 billion euro decline in free cash flow this year. "Our performance has not been good enough," said Della Valle, who was appointed permanently last month. Vodafone said it would generate about 3.3 billion euros of cash this financial year, compared with 4.8 billion euros in the year to end-March it reported on Tuesday, and around 3.6 billion euros expected by analysts. Growth in Africa and higher handset sales, however, enabled it to eek out a 0.3% rise in revenue to 45.7 billion euros. Vodafone has recently cut jobs in several of its big markets, shedding 1,000 in Italy earlier this year and a media report said it was looking to cut around 1,300 in Germany.

☆ Britain to send long-range attack drones to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

LONDON, May 15 (Reuters) - Britain will send hundreds of new long-range attack drones with a range of over 200km to Ukraine, the government said on Monday after President Volodymyr Zelenskiy arrived in the country for talks with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. "Today the Prime Minister will confirm the further UK provision of hundreds of air defence missiles and further unmanned aerial systems including hundreds of new long-range attack drones with a range of over 200km," the government said in a statement. "These will all be delivered over the coming months as Ukraine prepares to intensify its resistance to the ongoing Russian invasion." Reporting by Kylie MacLellan; editing by Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Cyber hack to cost UK outsourcer Capita up to $25 mln
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, May 10 (Reuters) - British outsourcing company Capita (CPI.L) warned it would take a 15 million pound to 20 million pound ($25 million) hit after its systems were hacked in a cyber incident earlier this year. Capita, which provides business support services to government and companies, said in a statement on Wednesday the incident had compromised some data from less than 0.1% of its server estate and it was taking steps to recover and secure its systems. The up to 20 million pound cost of the incident was a result of specialist professional fees plus investment to reinforce its cyber protections. "Capita is working closely with all appropriate regulatory authorities and with customers, suppliers and colleagues to notify those affected and take any remaining necessary steps to address the incident," the company said. ($1 = 0.7923 pounds)Reporting by Sarah Young; Editing by Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/6] Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, leaves Westminster Abbey following the coronation ceremony of Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla, in London, Britain May 6, 2023. REUTERS/Toby Melville/PoolLONDON, May 6 (Reuters) - Prince Harry, the younger son of King Charles III, attended his father's coronation in Westminster Abbey on Saturday although he sat in the third row and did not appear on the Buckingham Palace balcony at the pinnacle of the celebration. It had been unclear until early April whether Harry, who now lives in California, would attend the historic occasion following a very public falling out with his family. In his book "Spare", published in January, Harry criticized his father, his stepmother Queen Camilla, and his brother Prince William, and accused the institution of treating he and his wife without compassion. His eldest son Archie was celebrating his fourth birthday on Saturday and Harry was thought to be keen to return as soon as possible.

☆ Smiling Prince Harry arrives at Westminster Abbey
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, walks outside Westminster Abbey ahead of Britain's King Charles' coronation ceremony, in London, Britain May 6, 2023. REUTERS/Dylan MartinezLONDON, May 6 (Reuters) - Prince Harry arrived at Westminster Abbey for the coronation of his father King Charles on Saturday, joining his cousins and aunts and uncles before the more senior members of the royal family entered. It had been unclear whether Harry, the younger son of Charles, would attend the historic occasion following his high-profile falling out with his family. But he said last month he would attend without his wife Meghan and two young children, who will remain in the United States. Harry smiled and nodded to members of the congregation as he joined the 100 heads of state, dignitaries and representatives of the arts, military, charities and sport inside the Abbey.

☆ Prince Harry joins royals at King Charles' coronation, without Meghan
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( Suban Soraia | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/6] Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, leaves Westminster Abbey following the coronation ceremony of Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla, in London, Britain May 6, 2023. REUTERS/Toby Melville/PoolLONDON, May 6 (Reuters) - Prince Harry, the younger son of King Charles III, attended his father's coronation in Westminster Abbey on Saturday although he had to settle for a third-row seat behind other members of the royal family. But his decision to quit royal duties and the rift with his family has divided public opinion. It would be difficult to picture Harry and Meghan on the balcony of Buckingham Palace with King Charles and other members of the royal family, she said. "He'll always be a Prince Harry to many people but for the other royal titles, no (he shouldn't keep them).

[1/4] People wait to watch Britain's King Charles' procession to his coronation ceremony from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey, at The Mall in London, Britain May 6, 2023. From the early hours, people dressed in red, white and blue and clutching union flags lined the streets to watch the crowning of King Charles, the first coronation in Britain for 70 years that will be marked by a vast display of pomp and pageantry. But polls show the public generally approves of Charles as king and a majority still support the monarchy, even if younger people are far less interested. By 7 a.m. (0600 GMT) crowds on the grand Mall boulevard leading up to Buckingham Palace were 20-deep in places, with many wearing paper crowns and waving flags. "I think regardless of his age the king will reach out to younger people, I think he'll be more connected to the youth than the queen," he said.

☆ A sumptuous display of pageantry: Scenes from King Charles' coronation
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

LONDON, May 6 (Reuters) - The Archbishop of Canterbury crowned King Charles in a lavish coronation ceremony in London on Saturday, placing the 360-year-old St Edward's Crown on the monarch's head as he sat upon a 14th century throne in Westminster Abbey. Charles, who succeeded his mother when she died last September, was earlier presented with an array of historical regalia from golden orbs and bejewelled swords to a sceptre holding the world's largest colourless cut diamond. Reporting by Kate Holton; editing by Sarah YoungOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

[1/4] People wait to watch Britain's King Charles' procession to his coronation ceremony from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Abbey, at The Mall in London, Britain May 6, 2023. REUTERS/Stephanie LecocqLONDON, May 6 (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of people of all ages, from Britain and across the globe, braved the rain for a glimpse of the newly crowned King Charles in the streets of London and on Buckingham Palace's famous balcony on Saturday. "It was amazing to see them all there in real life, just like you’d see on a postcard." Charles, 74, ascended to the throne in September after the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth. But polls show the public generally approves of Charles as king and a majority still support the monarchy, even if younger people are far less interested.

[1/5] Britain's King Charles speaks to guests during a reception for overseas guests attending his coronation at Buckingham Palace in London, Britain, May 5, 2023. It will be the largest show of its kind in Britain since the coronation of Charles' mother. Once at the abbey, much of the ceremony will feature elements that Charles' forebears right back to King Edgar in 973 would recognise, officials said. Handel’s coronation anthem "Zadok The Priest" will be sung as it has at every coronation since 1727. After returning to Buckingham Palace, the royals will make a traditional appearance on the balcony, with a fly-past by military aircraft.

☆ King Charles' coronation to blend ancient ritual with modern Britain
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

LONDON, May 6 (Reuters) - The coronation of King Charles will seek to blend the ancient ritual of a ceremony that dates back for almost 1,000 years with the modern, more diverse face of Britain and its many faiths, the Order of Service makes clear. Watched by about 100 heads of state and dignitaries, Charles will be crowned on Saturday at Westminster Abbey, which has staged all coronations since William the Conqueror back in 1066. According to the Order of Service, the king will pray for the first time at a Coronation "publicly for grace to be 'a blessing to all ... of every faith and belief'." The king's love of nature will also be reflected in the clothing of his wife, Queen Camilla, who will also be crowned. Reporting by Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

During a historic and solemn two-hour service, which dates back to the time of King William the Conqueror in 1066, Charles' second wife Camilla was also crowned queen. Charles, 74, automatically succeeded his mother as king on her death last September. GREAT AND GOOD[1/20] Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla wave on the Buckingham Palace balcony following their coronation ceremony in London, Britain May 6, 2023. Much of the ceremony featured elements that Charles' forebears right back to King Edgar in 973 would recognise, officials said. Not everyone who came to watch was there to cheer Charles, with hundreds of republicans booing and waving banners reading "Not My King".

☆ Factbox: What will the royal family do at King Charles' coronation?
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File PhotoLONDON, May 6 (Reuters) - All eyes will be on the British royal family this weekend as they are joined by about 100 heads of state and global dignitaries for the coronation of King Charles. KING CHARLESKing Charles became monarch of the United Kingdom and 14 other realms on the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth, in September. QUEEN CAMILLA AND HER CEREMONYCamilla, the second wife of Charles, will go through a simpler, mini-coronation as queen during the service. Their eldest son Prince Archie, the sixth-in-line to the throne, turns four on the day of the coronation. PRINCE ANDREWPrince Andrew, the third child of Queen Elizabeth, will attend the coronation but will not have an official role.

☆ UK competition regulator launches review of AI models
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

LONDON, May 4 (Reuters) - Britain's competition regulator launched an initial review of artificial intelligence models on Thursday, saying it will look into competition and consumer protection considerations in the development and use of AI foundation models. "It’s crucial that the potential benefits of this transformative technology are readily accessible to UK businesses and consumers while people remain protected from issues like false or misleading information," Competition and Markets Authority CEO Sarah Cardell said in a statement. Reporting by Muvija M; Editing by Kate HoltonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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