WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING
FINANCIAL TIMES
LEASE FEARS FOR OFFSHORE WIND FARMS
Wind farm operators building offshore risk having their leases terminated without compensation if oil and gas companies decide they need the seabed plot for exploration, drilling or pipelines. Industry executives are warning that the lease terms, issued by the Queen’s Crown Estate, could threaten the funding of future projects and undermine the pledge by David Cameron, prime minister, to be a “world leader” in the industry.
PET SHOP BUYS
Cognetas, a London-based private equity group, will announce its first new deal for more than two years today with the purchase of Arca Planet, Italy’s leading pet accessories store. Cognetas has suffered a string of setbacks in recent years, losing control of several companies that fell victim to the economic downturn.
DEFENCE GROUPS URGE FRANCE-UK TIE-UP
Leading defence contractors in Britain and France want today’s summit between David Cameron, the UK premier, and Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, to boost bilateral industrial collaboration to help create a new generation of surveillance and combat aircraft. BAE Systems and Dassault have told both leaders collaboration is essential if both countries are to develop the aircraft.
DEMAND FOR BOLTON FUND DRIVES PREMIUM
Demand for Anthony Bolton’s new fund has been so strong that the board has said it is considering ways to make the shares less expensive. Shares in the Fidelity China Special Situations fund hit a premium of nearly 13 per cent to their net asset value in trading on Monday.
THE TIMES
DEAR VINCE, WE HAVE A SERIOUS GROWTH PROBLEM
A flagship coalition policy to promote economic growth could be a “failure in large parts of England”, a leaked letter from the minister in charge has warned. The introduction of local economic partnerships (LEPs) has caused “strong concerns” among business leaders and could be “in danger of failing to aid economic growth”, according to Mark Prisk, the Business and Enterprise Minister.
PREMIUMS ARE RISING, BUT NOT ENOUGH FOR THE CAR INSURERS
Britain’s car insurers are set to suffer a second year of heavy losses, despite pushing up some premiums by as much as 20 per cent. In a report published today, Deloitte predicts the industry will continue to haemorrhage cash until 2011 because it is not raising premiums quickly enough.
The Daily Telegraph
PICKENS BACKS $4BN BUY-OUT OF BG PARTNER EXCO
T Boone Pickens, the Texan oil billionaire, is one of three major shareholders backing a $4.4bn (£2.7bn) management buy-out at Exco Resources. The US shale gas giant last year formed a partnership with Britain’s BG Group, but its share price has fallen 30 per cent since then on weak prices.
TRADE CREDIT INSURANCE FOR SMALL BUSINESSES LAUNCHED
Towergate is offering trade credit cover aimed at small businesses and is letting them self-police customers over late payment. The insurance designed specially for small businesses product costs almost half the typical annual premium and covers up to £350,000 of turnover from the risk that a customer becomes insolvent and cannot pay.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
GM IPO TO CUT US STAKE BELOW 50%
General Motors . plans to sell $10 billion worth of stock, or 24 per cent of its total shares, in its initial public offering later this month. The plan would see the US Treasury sell $7bn of its shares in the car maker. That would cut the government’s stake, which it obtained in last year’s bailout, below the symbolically important 50 per cent from its current 61 per cent.
PROBE IN TURKEY FOLLOWS TV REMARKS
Turkey’s stock market watchdog opened an investigation yesterday into Mark Mobius, a major investor in Turkish assets, after his remarks last week predicting a sharp correction in the Turkish market. In the interview, he said Turkish assets faced a correction by the end of the year amounting to 15 per cent to 20 per cent. The next day shares fell 3.1 per cent.