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Monday newspaper round-up: Tax increases, Lloyds bankers, Virgin Group

(Sharecast News) - Business leaders plan to cut costs and rein in hiring in response to government tax increases set out in the autumn budget, with employment expectations taking the sharpest tumble since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. A net two-thirds of finance directors said they did not expect to increase hiring levels this year, a four-year high, with a net 26% feeling more pessimistic about the prospects for their business than three months ago, the first time sentiment had slipped into negative territory in 18 months, according to the latest survey by the accountancy firm Deloitte. - Guardian Senior bankers at Lloyds could be at risk of having their bonuses docked if they fail to follow company orders to be in the office at least two days a week. Lloyds Banking Group - which owns the Halifax, Lloyds and Bank of Scotland brands - has confirmed it is reviewing office attendance as part of performance-related bonus targets for its most senior employees. That includes hybrid staff who, in 2023, were ordered to be in the office at least 40% of the time, which typically amounts to two days a week for those on full-time contracts. - Guardian

Commuters are really kicking up a stink at my local train station, fed up with constant delays and cancellations as more of them are summoned back to the office. The local MP has been contacted on a daily basis by furious constituents, prompting her to tell rail bosses that their service in the area is "unacceptable". It will be the same story across the country. My station isn't even up there as a worst offender (for punctuality, rather than cancellations, it is actually slightly better than the national average). - Telegraph

Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group is preparing an order for a dozen high-speed trains as it bids to break Eurostar's monopoly on services through the Channel Tunnel. Virgin aims to sign a contract for the trains as early as this quarter to get ahead of startup Evolyn, which is also putting together plans to run trains from London to the continent. - Telegraph

Britain's chemicals industry is heading for "extinction", Sir Jim Ratcliffe has warned as the petrochemicals tycoon blames high energy prices and carbon taxes for forcing the closure of Ineos's synthetic ethanol plant at Grangemouth. The facility at the vast complex in Scotland, which mainly supplied the healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors, closed on Wednesday, resulting in a net loss of 80 jobs and affecting more than 500 indirect roles in the wider economy. - The Times

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Friday newspaper round-up: Barclays, BP, JPMorgan
(Sharecast News) - The UK government will "wait and see" whether tariffs announced by Donald Trump "actually come to pass", a senior minister said. The US president announced what he called "reciprocal tariffs" on all other countries on Thursday evening, claiming it was "fair to all". But it was unclear how this would apply to the UK, especially as Trump suggested his policy regarded VAT as a tariff. - Guardian
Thursday newspaper round-up: Solar panels, OBR, Chevron
(Sharecast News) - California's home-insurance safety net does not have enough money to pay all of the claims from damage caused by the Los Angeles wildfires and has asked private insurers to contribute $1bn toward those claims. All private insurers operating in California are required to contribute to the Fair plan, a plan of last resort established so all Californians would have access to fire insurance. More than 450,000 California homeowners got their insurance through the Fair plan in 2024 - more than double the number in 2020. As of 4 February, the plan had received more than 4,700 claims from the Palisades and Eaton fires, almost half of which were for "total losses". - Guardian
Wednesday newspaper round-up: British economy, Heathrow, FOS
(Sharecast News) - The British economy is on course to expand by 1.5% this year after the budget gave a boost to public spending but could be blown off course if Donald Trump goes ahead with threatened tariffs, a leading economic thinktank has warned. In a boost to Rachel Reeves after a bruising month of negative economic figures, the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) upped its annual growth prediction from 1.2% to 1.5%. - Guardian
Tuesday newspaper round-up: OpenAI, EVs, gas prices
(Sharecast News) - Elon Musk escalated his feud with OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman on Monday. The billionaire is leading a consortium of investors that announced it had submitted a bid of $97.4bn for "all assets" of the artificial intelligence company to OpenAI's board of directors. The startup, which operates ChatGPT, has been working to restructure itself away from its original non-profit status. OpenAI also operates a for-profit subsidiary, and Musk's unsolicited offer could complicate the company's plans. The Wall Street Journal first reported the proposed bid. - Guardian

Important information: This information is not a personal recommendation for any particular investment. If you are unsure about the suitability of an investment you should speak to one of Fidelity’s advisers or an authorised financial adviser of your choice. When you are thinking about investing in shares, it’s generally a good idea to consider holding them alongside other investments in a diversified portfolio of assets. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future returns.

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