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Important information: The value of investments can go down as well as up so you may get back less than you invest. Investors should note that the views expressed may no longer be current and may have already been acted upon. This is a third-party news feed and may not reflect Fidelity’s views.

Tuesday newspaper round-up: Electric cars, Twitter, Aviva chief, Rightmove

(Sharecast News) - Drivers are scrambling to buy secondhand electric cars, more than doubling sales in the past year as demand for zero-emission vehicles surges. Figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) show that the number of transactions for electric cars increased from 6,600 in the first three months of 2021 to almost 14,600 in the first quarter of this year, an increase of 120%. - Guardian A US firm known for betting against companies' share prices has said Elon Musk could submit a lower bid for Twitter, owing to a slump in tech stocks and a weak financial performance at the social media platform. Hindenburg Research said there was a "significant chance" that the Tesla chief executive will seek to pay less than the agreed bid price of $54.20 (£43.90) a share, which values Twitter at $44bn and has been accepted by the company's board. - Guardian

Rail chiefs are on the cusp of privatising thousands of miles of trackside phone lines in a move that will pave the way for commuters to get faster on-board internet coverage. Some 10,000 miles of phone cables running next to railway lines are to be sold off under proposals also intended to boost broadband speeds for millions of households. - Telegraph

The chairman of Aviva said he was "flabbergasted" after female board members suffered a torrent of sexist abuse at the company's annual general meeting. George Culmer hit out at "simply inappropriate" comments by shareholders including one investor who said that Amanda Blanc, chief executive, is "not the man for the job". He said that her speech did not match with Aviva's share price performance over the past decade. - Telegraph

It is often the case that success breeds resentment and so it has proved with Rightmove. The company's success is undoubted. It dominates Britain's online property search market, with its site attracting 2.5 billion visits last year. The group's business model is also highly profitable, with an operating margin of 74 per cent last year, one of the highest in the FTSE 100. Yet it is not without its critics in the property industry. Three years ago analysts at Jefferies, the investment bank, described Rightmove's relationship with estate agents as akin to a "psychological chokehold". - The Times

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Monday newspaper round-up: Service charge, BP, Heathrow, Elon Musk
(Sharecast News) - An increasingly complex tax system is burdening the government and businesses with hundreds of millions of pounds more in administration costs, Whitehall's spending watchdog has warned. The report by the National Audit Office (NAO) also said "poor levels of service" meant some taxpayers and their representatives were "finding it more difficult to deal with their tax matters and are losing trust in HM Revenue & Customs [HMRC]". - Guardian
Sunday newspaper round-up: Etihad float, Shein, Thames Water
(Sharecast News) - Abu Dhabi based carrier Etihad is planning to float a stake of up to 20% on the Abu Dhabi Stock Exchange. Sources indicate that it could command a valuation of $5bn (£4bn). It would be the second such transaction for its boss, Antonoaldo Neves. In 2017, the former McKinsey partner floated Azul, Brazil's third-largest airline, on the New York Stock Exchange. For Neves, any airline that aspires to be "relevant" needs to tap into different sources of capital. Its goal is to fly 170 jets by 2030, up from 93 at present. - The Sunday Times
Friday newspaper round-up: Gambling sector, FOS, Amazon
(Sharecast News) - The gambling regulator has accidentally handed over more than 4,000 sensitive documents to lawyers acting for the media tycoon Richard Desmond, in an "unprecedented" blunder during its legal battle over the £6.4bn national lottery contract, the Guardian understands. Northern & Shell (N&S), the investment group owned by Desmond, is suing the Gambling Commission for £200m in damages over its handling of the lottery licence award process. - Guardian
Thursday newspaper round-up: CMA, Riverford, Lloyds, Arm Holdings
(Sharecast News) - The appointment of the former boss of Amazon UK to lead the competition watchdog poses a threat to its independence and pledge to hold big tech to account, according to a group including tech companies and the former business secretary Vince Cable. The group - which includes the News Media Association, the Firefox developer Mozilla, the consumer group Which? and the Future of Technology Institute - has written to the chancellor, Rachel Reeves, to raise concerns about the appointment of Doug Gurr as the interim chair of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). - 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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