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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.

Wednesday newspaper round-up: Petrol prices, Facebook, Jes Staley

(Sharecast News) - UK petrol prices are poised to hit a record 150p a litre later this week after the worsening tension in Ukraine added fresh pressure to the cost of living crisis facing households. Crude oil prices reached more than $99 a barrel at one point on Tuesday in response to Vladimir Putin's decision to recognise the independence of two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine. Prices later slipped back after markets viewed the west's initial sanctions response as weak. - Guardian Facebook has launched its short video feature Reels globally, its owner Meta Platforms said on Tuesday, in a move to expand its fastest growing content format after reports that overall user numbers are down. The social media giant, which recently announced a massive pivot into virtual reality products, lost a third of its market value after a dismal earnings report in February. It has highlighted Reels as a key priority to court younger users. - Guardian

Britain's new privacy tsar said he will end the era of "regulations for regulation's sake" in a decisive break from EU data rules. John Edwards, the Information Commissioner, said Brussels' GDPR regime had "imposed a drag" on growth and that he planned to only enforce regulations when it helped individuals. - Telegraph

Barclays is expected to announce today that it has frozen millions of pounds in share awards to its former chief executive as he contests the findings of a regulatory investigation into his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. Directors have decided not to allow a chunk of shares granted to Jes Staley several years ago to vest as scheduled, despite a significant rebound in the bank's performance. - The Times

The Venue Group (TVG) Hospitality has raised $50 million with the backing of tech billionaires, financial professionals and musicians, as it goes ahead with its plans to expand in the US (Shayma Bakht writes). The music venue company was set up by a founding member of the folk- rock band Mumford & Sons, Ben Lovett, and his brother Greg Lovett, the former finance director of Soho House North America, who closed the new funding for its initial financing round yesterday. TVG was founded in 2015 and operates three venues in London - Omeara and Flat Iron Square in London Bridge and Lafayette in King's Cross - with several under development in America. - The Times

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(Sharecast News) - Hargreaves Lansdown's three private equity suitors have until Wednesday to either table a formal bid for the investment platform or walk away. A £4.7bn offer presented in April was rejected. In particular, the bidders have been attracted by the firm's ability to deposit client cash at the Bank of England for a rate of 5.25%, whilst paying just 3% on a cash Isa of up to £10,000. That netted its £269m last year at no risk. - The Financial Mail on Sunday
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(Sharecast News) - The Financial Mail on Sunday's Midas column labelled shares of Oxford Instruments a "long-term buy".
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(Sharecast News) - The UK has seen an "explosion" in insecure, low-paid work in the past 14 years, according to a new report. The TUC said its study had found that the number of people in insecure work had reached a record high of 4.1 million. The analysis of official statistics shows the number of people in "precarious" employment - such as zero-hours contracts, low-paid self-employment and casual or seasonal work - increased by nearly 1 million between 2011 and 2023. - Guardian
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(Sharecast News) - Pensioners and people on disability benefits are the winners from radical changes to the welfare system made by the Tories over the last decade, while working-age families are losing out by thousands of pounds every year, according to a report by the Resolution Foundation. The Conservatives' 14-year overhaul of social security has shifted spending away from children and housing to supporting elderly people, and broken the link between entitlement and need for some of the poorest households in the country, the report says. - 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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