The FTSE 100 will open at 8am. Among the companies with reports and trading updates today are Co-op, Vodafone, Entain, Ascential, Motorpoint and Ocado Group. Read the Thursday 4 April Business Live blog below.
FTSE Small Cap index ‘will cease to exist’ by 2028 as analysts predict a takeover ‘feeding frenzy’
Entain Chair to exit
Sports betting and gaming group Entain chair Barry Gibson will step down from the role by September-end, the Coral owner told shareholders this morning.
Gibson could even leave earlier if a CEO gets appointed for the group, it added.
Stella David, interim CEO, said: ‘Barry has been a wonderful mentor and source of wise counsel to so many people during his time as Chair of Entain, and I would like to personally thank him for his unwavering support.
‘The fact that we now have a solid platform and a clear plan for future growth is due in no small part to his efforts. I am entirely focused on my role as interim CEO as we work to accelerate our operational strategy, and look forward to taking over the baton from Barry in due course.’
Vodafone-Three merger set for in-depth competition probe
The Competition and Markets Authority will open an in-depth investigation into the merger between Vodafone’s UK operation and Hutchison’s Three UK after the parties did not offer remedies to ease the regulator’s competition concerns.
The $19billion tie-up, which was announced last year, will reduce the number of networks from four to three, challenging the long-held tenet that four help keep prices low.
UK woos Chinese car giant Chery to build new assembly plant despite spying concerns
A state-owned Chinese car firm is hoping to secure subsidies off the UK to build an assembly plant in a move likely to raise fresh security concerns.
Chery is weighing up where to construct a European factory, with Britain a potential option along with Spain, Hungary and the Czech Republic.
It comes amid warnings about the threat posed by China, with the UK and US recently identifying it as the source of a wave of cyber attacks.
Co-op profits slump
Co-op profits fell sharply last year as Britain’s seventh biggest supermarket group suffered stiff competition from discounters and record levels of shoplifting that pushed up costs.
The 180-year-old group, which is owned by its more than 5 million members, has been grappling with intense competition from discounters Aldi and Lidl, and market leaders Tesco and Sainsbury’s.
It ended 2023 with a grocery market share of 5.4 per cent, according to researcher Kantar, down 20 basis points on the year.
Co-op also committed to investing millions of pounds to prevent price rises at the cost of profitability.
The company, which also has funerals, insurance and legal businesses, reported a profit before tax of £28million, down from £268million in the preceding year.
Group revenue dropped by £200million to £11.3billion, as a result of the divestment of its petrol forecourt business in the second half of 2022.
Share or comment on this article:
BUSINESS LIVE: Co-op profits slump; Vodafone-Three merger set for in-depth probe; Entain Chair to exit
Some links in this article may be affiliate links. If you click on them we may earn a small commission. That helps us fund This Is Money, and keep it free to use. We do not write articles to promote products. We do not allow any commercial relationship to affect our editorial independence.
