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Wednesday newspaper round-up: BT Group, Water bills, CAB Payments

(Sharecast News) - The telecoms regulator has issued a warning to the chief executive of BT over his comments that the group's Openreach network expansion would "end in tears" for rivals and has opened an investigation into its performance. Ofcom said Philip Jansen's comments were of "significant concern" and that it "would be extremely concerned to see similar comments in future and will be keeping this under close review". - The Times Water companies are drawing up plans to increase household bills by up to 40 per cent to pay for the cost of tackling the sewage crisis and the consequences of climate change. In a move that has alarmed ministers, England's privatised utilities said that they needed the extra money to meet strict pollution targets. - The Times

Britain's financial technology sector received a double boost as payments firm Wise said its profits have more than trebled, while another confirmed plans to list on the London Stock Exchange next week. Wise, which specialises in international money transfers, posted a profit of £146.5million for the year to the end of March, up from £43.9million in 2022. And CAB Payments revealed that its shares would list on the London market next Thursday with a projected value of around £851million. - Daily Mail

Britain risks missing out on more than £100bn worth of electric car production, unless ministers use "every policy, every fiscal and regulatory lever" to compete with the EU, automotive chiefs have said. Industry leaders warned over the cliff-edge faced by looming post-Brexit tariffs on electric vehicles, saying ministers needed to urgently improve science education and secure tax-free deals to avoid a drop-off. - Daily Telegraph

Boots, Britain's biggest high street chemist, is to pull down the shutters on 300 shops over the next year as part of a cost-cutting drive by its American owner. The company will reduce its estate from 2,200 to about 1,900 stores amid speculation that the business could be put up for sale. - The Times

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Friday newspaper round-up: Amazon, Barclays, Epstein
(Sharecast News) - Amazon announced plans to spend $200bn on artificial intelligence and robotics this year, the latest tech giant to vow fresh enormous investments in the artificial intelligence arms race. The news of the investment comes one day after the Washington Post, owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, announced it was cutting approximately a third of employees. - Guardian
Thursday newspaper round-up: Bond markets, Nike, ElevenLabs
(Sharecast News) - A government minister has defended long delays to a military spending plan that are also stalling the UK's next-generation Tempest fighter jet programme, but refused to say when it will be complete. The defence investment plan (DIP), originally expected last autumn, has faced repeated postponements amid warnings that the military faces a £28bn funding gap over the next four years. - Guardian
Wednesday newspaper round-up: Migration, women in tech, mini-nukes
(Sharecast News) - The UK economy would be 3.6% smaller by 2040 if net migration fell to zero, forcing the government to raise taxes to combat a much bigger budget deficit, a thinktank has predicted. The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) said falling birthrates in the UK and a sharp decrease in net migration last year had led it to consider what would happen if this trend continued to the end of the decade. - Guardian
Tuesday newspaper round-up: Riverford, US investment, Publicis
(Sharecast News) - Consumers searching for healthy food from trusted sources have fuelled the UK organic market's biggest boom in two decades, according to vegetable box seller Riverford. The delivery business, which sells meat, cheese, cookbooks and recipe boxes alongside vegetables, recorded a 6% increase in sales to £117m in the year to May 2025, as the UK organic food and drink market grew by almost 9% in that year, according to new figures from the Soil Association. The strong growth, significantly outpacing the wider food market, helped the employee-owned business give a £1.1m bonus to workers. - 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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