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Wednesday newspaper round-up: Reckitt, Tesla, Virgin Atlantic...

(Sharecast News) - Reckitt is under pressure from top shareholders to revisit a sale of its nutrition business, following litigation and a series of other setbacks at the division that have sent the company's share price to decade lows. The FTSE 100 consumer giant acquired the Mead Johnson infant formula business in 2017 for $17bn - its largest-ever acquisition - and it has been plagued by mishaps ever since. Meanwhile, the wider group, which makes Lysol detergent and Durex condoms, has underwhelmed investors as it struggles to build back sales volumes following a period of high inflation and suppressed consumer demand. - Financial Times

Earnings at Tesla almost halved as discounts and price cuts pile pressure on the electric carmaker's profit margins. Elon Musk, the company's CEO, blamed "a bit of a hangover" after rivals cut prices "very substantially, which has made it a bit more difficult for Tesla". Tesla has sought to drum up interest in its plans for robotaxis, artificial intelligence and "genuinely useful" humanoid robots as deliveries slipped amid cooling demand. - The Guardian

Virgin Atlantic is to charge passengers a green levy on every flight as it seeks to cover the costs of using sustainable aviation fuel (Saf). Shai Weiss, the chief executive of the UK airline, confirmed plans for the environmental surcharge, which he said will come into force over the next 18 months. It comes as airlines gear up for the mandated use of Saf, which costs three times as much as kerosene. - The Telegraph

Informa is in advanced discussions to acquire Ascential, its rival events specialist, for £1.16 billion, providing a further boost to deal activity in the City. Ascential's board said it is minded to accept the 568p-per-share offer from the FTSE 100 owner of the Miami Boat Showand World of Concrete. - The Times

Sir Keir Starmer's plans for a housebuilding revolution risk breaching human rights laws, lawyers have said. They say the Government will face a string of legal battles over its proposal to reduce compensation to landowners forced to hand over their assets under compulsory purchase order (CPO) powers. As outlined in the King's Speech, the Government wants to reduce how much money is paid to owners and developers for use in housebuilding, saying it wanted to make the payouts "fair but not excessive". - The Telegraph

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(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
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(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

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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