Monday newspaper round-up: Growth fears, trade war, IPOs, WPP

Brexit has fallen into second place as the most significant risk facing company bosses for the first time since the EU referendum, as weak domestic growth saps demand for their goods and services. According to a Deloitte survey of chief financial officers (CFOs) at some of the UK’s biggest businesses, companies are now less pessimistic about Brexit after ministers agreed the terms of a transition period with Brussels to smooth Britain’s exit from the EU. - Guardian

Donald Trump has sought to allay fears of a trade war with China by predicting that “a deal will be done” that defuses the tit-for-tat tariff battle that sent markets reeling last week. The world’s two largest economies have threatened each other with tens of billions of dollars of tariffs as relations between the countries appeared to plumb a new low. - The Times

Britain's listed companies are being targeted by ­foreign firms in a global deal-making boom as US companies splash out in the wake of Donald Trump’s huge ­corporate tax cuts. A surge of takeovers in the first quarter saw the number of UK companies targeted from abroad reach its ­highest level since 2015. - Telegraph

European flotations have made a strong start to the year despite the current market uncertainty brought on by a possible trade war between the US and China, rising interest rates and the prospect of tougher regulation on tech firms. Across Europe, the first quarter of the year recorded 67 initial public offerings (IPOs) raising a total of €12.5bn (£10.8bn), up from 54 and €4.6bn in the same period in 2017, according to PWC’s latest survey of flotations. - Guardian

London remains an attractive global hub for initial public offerings, despite concerns about Brexit and trade wars, with a number of large flotations already in the pipeline. Achintya Mangla, at JP Morgan, said 2018 looks likely to be “the year of the IPO”. The head of equity capital markets for Europe, the Middle East and Africa said: “There is activity across all sectors and all geographies. There is a good pipeline with sponsor exits, corporate carve-outs and family-owned businesses lining up to come to market. - The Times

Investors are exploiting turmoil at WPP to push for a break-up of the firm’s sprawling global empire, it is claimed. They are said to be calling for bosses to offload Kantar, its £3.5bn market research arm, and use the cash to pay down debt, launch share buybacks and focus on its core businesses. - Mail

Potential successors to Sir Martin Sorrell, the besieged chief executive of WPP, have been identified in preparations for life after the long-serving boss. Internal candidates have attended board meetings as part of the succession planning and are in contention along with a “constantly refined list of external candidates”. - The Times

A German has been lined up to be the new chief executive of Royal Mail. It is understood that Moya Greene, who has led the privatised national postal company since 2010 and took it through its flotation in 2013, is to step down sooner rather than later. - The Times

A senior private equity executive was approached about taking the job of US budget director a year before his company agreed to loan Jared Kushner’s private family business tens of millions of dollars, according to two sources who spoke to the Guardian. Joshua Harris, the billionaire co-founder of Apollo Global Management, was considered to be a candidate for the job of director of Office of Management and Budget (OMB) shortly after Donald Trump won the 2016 election, according to the sources, who had knowledge of the situation and spoke on the condition of anonymity. - Guardian

Deutsche Bank has ousted its British boss John Cryan and promoted Christian Sewing, the head of its retail arm, to chief executive following boardroom clashes over the lender’s struggling turnaround effort. Mr Cryan will leave at the end of this month, Deutsche Bank announced last night after a meeting of its supervisory board in Frankfurt. Mr Sewing has become chief executive with immediate effect. - Telegraph

High street retailers and restaurants are being targeted by short sellers, with almost a third of the total positions on the stock market in the consumer sector, research has found. The businesses have also been on the end of a 66 per cent rise in the number of short positions over the past three years, while 38 per cent of the top 50 shorted companies last year were consumer companies. - The Times

Facebook and YouTube have been given the cold shoulder by the industry body that measures television audiences, a blow to their attempts to lure advertisers away from traditional broadcasters. The Broadcasters Audience Research Board (BARB), which measures viewing across channels and online video services, said the internet giants were unable to guarantee reliable viewing figures or that adverts would not appear next to offensive videos. - Telegraph

Nationwide and Virgin Money dipped deep into cheap Bank of England ­funding in the final months before the taps turned off on a £127bn scheme. The final figures for the Term Funding Scheme (TFS), which Bank governor Mark Carney launched after the Brexit vote in an effort to help keep interest rates low in the real economy, show how some banks relied on it. - Telegraph

The Government’s effort to bring down the cost of energy by upgrading Britain’s draughtiest homes is under attack after it emerged that cuts to the scheme mean it would take 400 years to complete. Under new plans ministers intend to slash the pace at which the least efficient households will receive insulation upgrades. Better heat conservation can knock hundreds of pounds off a year of electricity and gas bills. - Telegraph

More than half of the world’s reserves of cobalt — a key mineral used in the manufacture of electric vehicles and smartphones — lies beneath the Democratic Republic of Congo. The contest is pitting some of the world’s biggest companies — from Apple of the United States to Volkswagen of Germany, Glencore of Switzerland and Samsung of South Korea — against Chinese groups eager to tie up supplies as they attempt to become world leaders in clean technology. - The Times

North Sea oil bosses will later today face disgruntled rig workers following an unofficial strike at the weekend over working conditions on a multi-billion pound Statoil project. The management of services ­company Aker Solutions will travel ­almost 100 miles off the coast of ­Shetland to the Mariner platform. - Telegraph

The AA chairman sacked for hitting a colleague had earlier faced a police investigation for allegedly punching a woman in the street. Bob Mackenzie struck Catherine Dodkin in the face, splitting her lip, and pushed her against a wall splitting her head open, it is claimed. During the fracas, Mackenzie also allegedly broke his leg after being knocked over by the woman’s boyfriend who tried to protect her. - Mail

Former BHS owner Dominic ­Chappell plans to sue Sir Philip Green and contest a proposed boardroom ban in a bid to repair his “tarnished ­reputation” and resurrect his career. The thrice-bankrupt businessman has lashed out at Insolvency Service plans to stop him from serving as a company director while taking no action against Sir Philip, saying the authority has “not got the guts to go after Green”. - Telegraph

Manor Racing, the failed Formula One team bankrolled by the multimillionaire boss of Ovo Energy, is launching a new venture offering driver experience days. Stephen Fitzpatrick pulled the plug on Manor Racing early last year after the team finished too low in the 2016 championship to secure adequate funding for the 2017 season. - The Times

Marvel films have had an heroic ­impact in Britain, according to ­accounts that show Disney has spent more than £1.3bn to produce elements of the series here over the years. Avengers: Infinity War, the latest blockbuster in the series, is due out this month and filming included ­locations in Glasgow and Durham. - Telegraph