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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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Sunday newspaper round-up: Rentokil, Ukraine, Crowdstrike
(Sharecast News) - BT's former chief executive officer, Philip Jansen, is plotting to takeover Rentokil Initial with the help of private equity. As part of the acquisition, Jansen would take over as executive chairman. In particular, the corporate dealmaker and his financial supporters would focus on making Rentokil's 2022 purchase of US peer Terminix work. In a second phase, the company would move on to acquiring other US companies in the same sector. - Sunday Times
Thursday newspaper round-up: Aslef, unemployment, Microsoft
(Sharecast News) - The co-founders of Silicon Valley's most prominent venture capital firm have announced their support for Donald Trump's bid for re-election, and plan to make substantial donations to back him further. Ben Horowitz and Marc Andreessen, the heads of Andreessen Horowitz, commonly known as A16Z, revealed their plans in a sprawling 90-minute podcast, in which they argued that the future of "American innovation" required a Trump victory. - Guardian
Wednesday newspaper round-up: Harland & Wolff, Octopus Energy, Microsoft
(Sharecast News) - Local councils will have to adopt mandatory housing targets within months under planning reforms to be unveiled on Wednesday as part of Keir Starmer's first king's speech, which the prime minister says will be focused on economic growth. Starmer will introduce a package of more than 35 bills on Wednesday, the first Labour prime minister to do so in 15 years, as he looks to put the economy at the centre of his first year in office. - Guardian
Tuesday newspaper round-up: Elon Musk, Julian Dunkerton, SSE/TotalEnergies
(Sharecast News) - Elon Musk has said he plans to give $45m a month to a Super Pac focused on electing Donald Trump, starting in July, the Wall Street Journal has reported. The tech billionaire, who endorsed Trump two days ago, has already donated what was described as "a sizable amount" to the America Pac, though the actual amount of the donation will not be made public in election filings until 15 July, Bloomberg reported. - 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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