Thursday newspaper round-up: Airbus, Boohoo, Home Reit

(Sharecast News) - Ministers are considering renationalising British Steel in a last-ditch attempt to save thousands of jobs, amid a standoff between the government and the company's Chinese owners over a £1bn investment. Jonathan Reynolds, the business secretary, is locked in talks with British Steel and its owner, Jingye, to agree how much each party should put into a rescue plan for its main Scunthorpe site. - Guardian The Italian prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, has said her government will try to protect jobs as political tensions mount with Fiat maker Stellantis after the abrupt resignation of its chief executive. Meloni said she would attempt to "defend" employees in the carmaker's Italian operations in the wake of the surprise exit of Carlos Tavares, its longstanding chief executive, who left after the company said "different views have emerged" between the executive and its board. - Guardian

Petrol car sales in Britain have plunged to an all-time low as manufacturers ration supplies to hit tough electric vehicle (EV) targets. Just 29pc of new cars sold in November were petrol vehicles, according to analysis of registration data by New Automotive, down from 42pc a year earlier. By contrast electric vehicles took a market share of 25pc, up from 16pc previously. - Telegraph

Airbus plans to axe almost 500 jobs in Britain as it shrinks a space division that has been haemorrhaging satellite orders to Elon Musk's SpaceX. The company said that 477 positions will disappear in Britain as a result of a Europe-wide restructuring of its space and defence arm, though no compulsory dismissals are planned. - Telegraph

Police are investigating claims of stalking and "corporate espionage" made by executives at Boohoo Group, The Times can reveal. Police forces in Manchester and Kent are examining reports of stalking offences, including those involving "serious alarm and distress", allegedly aimed at several Boohoo directors and senior executives. - The Times

Long-suffering shareholders in Home Reit, the scandal-hit "landlord for the homeless", are being offered a way out by a little-known investor that specialises in distressed assets. Southey Capital has told Home Reit shareholders it will buy their shares for 4p apiece, although they only have until the end of December to accept the offer. - The Times