Weekend News Summary

THE SUNDAY TIMES INDICES THIS MORNING

Current (%) 1W% Change Sirius seeks light at end of the tunnel: Work continued at Sirius Value Change* Minerals’ Woodsmith mine in North Yorkshire, even as shares in the FTSE 100 7,415.0 -0.2% 1.1% company fell to new lows amid fears over its future. The company so DAX 30 12,383.8 0.02% -0.7% far has completed just over a mile of a planned 23-mile tunnel to take CAC 40 5,647.2 0.1% -0.9% polyhalite deposits from its site near Whitby to Teesside for export as DJIA** 26,820.3 - -0.4% fertiliser. S&P 500** 2,961.8 - -1.0%

Clipper Logistics delivers warning with higher profit: A logistics NASDAQ Comp.** 7,939.6 - -2.2% company that processes online orders for retailers including John Nikkei 225 21,755.8 -0.6% -0.9%

Lewis and Boohoo.com has posted a strong increase in annual Hang Seng 40 26,092.3 0.5% -1.8% earnings but warned of potential trading turbulence in the year Shanghai Comp 2,905.2 -0.9% -2.5% ahead. Kospi 2,063.1 0.6% -2.0%

Fosun ‘discussing bid’ for Thomas Cook brand name: The Chinese BSE Sensex 38,642.5 -0.5% 2.1% company that was working on a rescue deal for Thomas Cook before S&P/ASX 200 6,688.3 -0.4% -0.2% it collapsed is interested in buying the brand name of the 178-year- Current Values as at 10:15 BST, *%Chg from Friday Close, ** As on Friday Close old tour operator. Fosun Tourism Group, which had planned to invest £450 million in the abortive £900 million rescue, is understood to be ABOUT GOODMAN MASSON discussing a possible acquisition of the Thomas Cook brand and some of its remaining assets. With bases in London, Düsseldorf and New York, Poundland owner rebrands from Pepkor to Pepco: The owner of we are a Finance and Technology recruitment Poundland has changed its name as it prepares to pitch its European company who hold annual revenues exceeding growth potential to investors in a €4 billion-plus sale or stock market £42 million. It’s not all about profits however and listing. The rebranding from Pepkor to Pepco is an explicit effort to boasting one of the highest staff retention rates in link the business with its fast-growing retail chain in central Europe of the city, we’ve been voted Best Workplace the same name and to minimize associations with Steinhoff, its Environment, Best Employee Benefits scandal-hit South African parent. Programme and Best UK Workplace.

PWC may hand power over pay to outside body: Britain’s biggest auditor is considering handing oversight of accountants’ pay and bonuses to an external committee as it seeks to head off political scrutiny of the sector. CONTACT US Whisky galore for Whyte and Mackay: Rising Scotch whisky sales have 120 Aldersgate Street helped to lift annual profit at Whyte and Mackay by 34%. Accounts for London the group, which owns the Jura distillery, show a pre-tax profit in EC1A 4JQ 2018 of £17.3 million, compared with £11.5 million previously, while 020 7336 7711 turnover rose by 11% rise to £159.2 million. [email protected] www.goodmanmasson.com

page 1 of 7 goodmanmasson.com Broker tells Imperial Brands to clear smoke from its statements: The directors of Imperial Brands have been accused of aggressive accounting, losing credibility and operating a questionable bonus scheme.

Merlin Entertainments sets out model for China parks: Merlin Entertainments is set to develop its first Legoland theme park in China after signing a partnership deal with one of the country’s largest tourism companies.

Pennon lifted by move to separate waste business Viridor: A British pioneer in converting rubbish into electricity could be listed on the stock market or put up for sale with a price tag of £3 billion. Pennon Group said yesterday that it was looking at splitting its Viridor waste company from its South West Water business.

CVS Group comes out of shell after growing pains: One of Britain’s biggest veterinary companies is on the mend after issuing a profit warning earlier in the year. CVS Group had suffered from a shortage of vets, leading to above- inflation salary rises and a reliance on costly contractors.

Affordable housing builder L&Q hits brakes: One of Britain’s leading builders of affordable homes has said it will stop taking on development projects amid a “serious downturn” in the housing market, prompted by Brexit-related uncertainty, and more than £200 million in costs to meet fire safety regulations.

Sainsbury’s, led by Mike Coupe, hits suppliers with no-deal Brexit bills: Sainsbury’s has warned suppliers that they will be made to foot the bill for the hefty import tariffs that may arise from a no-deal Brexit. Commercial director Paul Mills-Hicks wrote to suppliers last week asking for confirmation that they would continue to serve Sainsbury’s with delivery duty paid (DDP) regardless of whether the U.K. leaves the EU with a deal.

Firefighter Bob Dudley to leave BP after decade: Bob Dudley is preparing to step down from BP after running the oil giant for a decade — a period in which it recovered from the catastrophic Gulf of Mexico oil spill in 2010.

Clarks faces tribunal with ex-Boss Mike Shearwood amid claims of racist and sexist language and allegations of fraud: One of Britain’s biggest private companies is set to be rocked by a whistleblowing case involving allegations of racist and sexist language, financial mismanagement and fraud.

Activists led by Elliott Advisors scent rich pickings at Metro Bank: Activist investors are circling Metro Bank with a view to taking a stake or picking off parts of the business after the troubled bank pulled a bond issue last week.

Troubled Royal Mail seeks U.K. head to deliver turnaround: Royal Mail is recruiting a director to run its British operations as it heads for a showdown with postal workers and battles against slumping volumes in letters.

Ofgem to step in amid energy chaos: The energy regulator could win powers to veto the sales of energy companies to address the turmoil in the market.

Astra’s Lynparza drug offers ovarian cancer lifeline: AstraZeneca has moved to cement its position in oncology by revealing that its top cancer drug Lynparza is capable of extending the life of women with ovarian cancer by almost two years as it moves to cement its position in oncology.

Citi’s Asia hotshot Stephen Bird on shortlist to run HSBC: HSBC has appointed Egon Zehnder to search for a new chief executive after the shock ousting of John Flint.

Green gas buyers face bigger bills: The cost of green gas certificates has shot up amid demand from companies keen to display their environmental credentials.

Domino’s board set for a new topping: Domino’s Pizza has hired headhunters to find a new chairman as it seeks to move on from a bruising dispute with powerful franchisees.

Jaguar Land Rover takes Swedish detour over no-deal Brexit: Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has enlisted the help of an obscure Swedish agency to ensure that it can sell cars in Europe after Brexit.

Atom bomb factory AWE pays out £82 million in dividends: The company that runs Britain’s atomic bomb factory paid out £82 million in dividends last year despite budget blow-ups and delays.

page 2 of 7 City anger at bonuses for Purplebricks: Online estate agent Purplebricks is braced for an investor revolt over bonuses. The shareholder advisory service ISS has urged investors to vote against Purplebricks’ financial statements at its annual meeting, saying Bosses’ incentive awards are not “subject to any performance hurdles” and vest in less than three years.

THE FINANCIAL TIMES

Woodford on the brink of exit as trust results loom: Woodford Patient Capital Trust, was the U.K.’s most successful listed fund launch when it opened five years ago. Its share price has halved this year, while its net asset value has dropped more than 13% in the past few weeks after it was forced to mark down the value of several of its biggest holdings.

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KPMG staff told to hand back work mobile phones: KPMG has told hundreds of its U.K. employees to hand in their work mobiles as part of a cost-saving drive ahead of its latest financial results.

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Credit Suisse board set to back Thiam over spy row: Directors at Credit Suisse are closing ranks around Chief Executive Tidjane Thiam as the Swiss bank attempts to draw a line under a corporate espionage scandal.

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European investors target lavish executive pay in U.S.: Pay deals for top company bosses in the U.S. face mounting opposition from some of Europe’s most influential investors even as their large American counterparts continue to provide solid support for exorbitant executive remuneration packages.

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VW gears up for Germany’s largest collective legal claim: Volkswagen is gearing up to fight the largest legal claim of its kind in modern German history, opening the latest chapter in the diesel emissions saga that has already cost the company more than $30 billion.

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DWF sets targets to address gender imbalance: DWF, the U.K.’s largest listed law firm, is aiming for a third of its board to be women by 2022, in the latest sign that firms are working to address the gender imbalance in leadership roles.

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AB InBev Asia unit’s shares rise on Hong Kong trading debut: Shares in Anheuser-Busch InBev’s Asia-Pacific business rose as much as 2.2% above their offer price on their Hong Kong trading debut, following a revived listing after the world’s biggest brewer pulled out of its first attempt earlier in the year.

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Bulgarian telecoms group Vivacom eyed in buyout battle: Two private equity bidders are vying to buy Bulgaria’s largest telecoms company despite a vicious ownership dispute.

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page 3 of 7 THE MAIL ON SUNDAY

Vivienne Westwood's fashion house heads for a restructuring as it plunges £2.5 million into the red: Dame Vivienne Westwood's eponymous fashion house is heading for a restructuring after it plunged £2.5 million into the red. New accounts show that Westwood's firm slipped to a loss in 2018 after a £1.9 million profit the previous year. Turnover fell almost 5% to £38 million and the company closed two stores.

RBS 'doctored date' on wealthy customer's £10 million business loan: Newly appointed RBS head, Alison Rose faces seeing the bank dragged into court over allegations that staff illegally altered a date on a wealthy customer's £10 million loan and then accused him of fraud.

Oil firm Energean sizes up bidders for a £162 million North Sea sell-off: Oil and gas company Energean is sizing up bidders for a $200million (£162 million) portfolio of assets as it focuses on becoming the biggest gas producer in the eastern Mediterranean.

Cornish Lithium gets £1.4 million funding boost in bid to power electric cars: A mining company that aims to support the British car industry by producing a domestic supply of lithium for electric car batteries has raised a further £1.4 million.

Sir Philip Green's Miss Selfridge slumps to £17.5 million loss as sales plummet: Sir Philip Green’s Miss Selfridge chain slumped to a £17.5 million loss last year in the latest blow to his struggling Arcadia empire. Sales fell by more than 15% to £102 million in the year to September 2018 while pre-tax losses quadrupled from £4.3 million in 2017.

LSE takeover faces setback after £2 billion black hole in Hong Kong's bid: An audacious swoop on the London Stock Exchange Group by its Hong Kong rival faces a setback after a shortfall of nearly £2 billion emerged in the funding for the offer.

Branson set to pocket £178 million from Virgin Galactic's listing on the New York stock exchange: Sir Richard Branson will pick up a £178 million windfall when his space tourism firm Virgin Galactic becomes a public company.

THE INDEPENDENT

Elon Musk and Tesla illegally threatened employees, judge rules: Elon Musk's electric car company, Tesla committed a series of violations of the United States’ National Labour Relations Act in 2017 and last year, a has judge ruled. The electric-car maker illegally threatened and retaliated against employees, according to Amita Baman Tracy, an administrative law judge in California.

Thomas Cook: Former staff prepare legal action against failed firm over redundancy process: More than 100 former Thomas Cook employees are preparing to launch legal action against the collapsed travel firm over the way they lost their jobs.

Johnson’s expensive tax cuts for higher earners are hard to justify, think tank says: The tax cuts promised by Boris Johnson, which would cost billions and benefit mostly higher earners, are hard to justify, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has suggested, proposing a different way to help people on low incomes.

THE GUARDIAN

Hubris of a high-flyer: how investors brought WeWork founder down to earth: Adam Neumann was poised to become one of the world’s richest people this year, crystallising a personal fortune of as much as $14 billion (£11.3 billion) from the flotation of WeWork. But in a bruising fortnight Neumann has been forced to pull the float, quit as Chief Executive, halt all of company’s lease expansion plans, and seen the company’s credit rating cut to “junk” status.

page 4 of 7 Thailand PM considers moving capital as Bangkok congestion takes toll: Thailand could be the next nation in south- east Asia to relocate its capital after Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha hinted such a move could be a “possibility” under his government.

New Zealand's airspace shuts down after fire alarm in radar centre: A fire alarm in New Zealand’s radar centre effectively shut down the country’s airspace, halting planes from taking off for a short time on Monday afternoon.

Arrests and rising tension as Hong Kong prepares for protests on China's national day: Authorities have arrested at least two high-profile activists as Hong Kong prepares to mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

Australia hid documents about submarine deal to avoid offending Japan: The Australian government kept documents about its multibillion-dollar submarine project secret from the public to avoid offending a foreign power, and spent $150,000 over four years to stop their release.

page 5 of 7 THE WEEK AHEAD

Key Economy Releases Key Corporate Releases

Monday, UK: Lloyds Business Barometer, Gross Final Results: Byotrol, Grit Real Estate Income Domestic Product s.a. (QoQ), Total Business Group Limited NPV (DI) 30 September 2019 Investment (QoQ), Net Consumer Credit, Interim Results: Altitude Group, Ariana Mortgage Approvals, Current Account Resources, Bidstack Group, Creo Medical US: Chicago PMI, Dallas Fed Manufacturing Group, Etalon Group GDR (Reg S), Nasstar, Business Index President Energy EU: Unemployment Rate

Tuesday, UK: Nationwide House Prices n.s.a. (YoY), Final Results: Ferguson, James Halstead, Nationwide House Prices s.a. (MoM), Markit Revolution Bars Group, SCS Group 1 October 2019 Manufacturing PMI Trading Announcements: Greggs US: Markit Manufacturing PMI, Construction Spending (MoM), ISM New Export Orders, ISM Manufacturing PMI, ISM Employment EU: Markit Manufacturing PMI, Consumer Price Index (YoY)

Wednesday, UK: BRC Shop Price Index (YoY), Markit Final Results: Ceres Power Holdings, Kin and Construction PMI Carta 2 October 2019 US: MBA Mortgage Applications, ADP Interim Results: Inspiration Healthcare Group, Employment Change Tesco EU: ECB Balance sheet Trading Announcements: Topps Tiles

Thursday, UK: Markit Services PMI, Markit Composite PMI, Final Results: Genedrive Official Reserves (Changes) 3 October 2019 Interim Results: Arcontech Group, Ted Baker US: Initial Jobless Claims, Markit Services PMI, Trading Announcements: CMC Markets, Markit Composite PMI, Factory Orders (MoM), Moneysupermarket.com Group, Photo-Me ISM Non-Manufacturing PMI International EU: Markit Composite PMI, Markit Services PMI, Retail Sales (MoM)

Friday, UK: New Car Registrations (YoY) Trading Announcements: Audioboom Group 4 October 2019 US: Average Weekly Hours All Employees, Trade Balance, Unemployment Rate, Labor Force Participation Rate

page 6 of 7 DISCLAIMER

This report has been prepared using non-independent research material available from public sources, which are believed to be reliable as at the date of this report. However, Goodman Masson Recruitment Services Limited (“GMRS”), its employees and its independent third party provider make no representation as to the accuracy or completeness of this report. This report should therefore not be relied on as accurate or complete. The facts and opinions on this report are subject to change without notice. GMRS, its employees and its independent third party provider have no obligation to modify or update this report in the event that any information on this report becomes inaccurate. This report is prepared for informational purpose only, with no recommendation or solicitation to buy or to sell. The background of any individual or other investor has not been considered in providing this report. Individuals and other investors should seek independent financial advice which considers their specific risks, objectives and specific constraints, and make their own informed decisions. Individuals and other investors should note that investing in shares carries a degree of risk and the value of investments can go up or down. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Investments should be made with regard to an investor’s total portfolio. GMRS, its independent third party provider and its employees make no representation or guarantee with regard to any investment noted on this report, and shall therefore not be liable with regard to any loss. For further clarification or details, please contact Goodman Masson, [email protected]

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