Thursday newspaper round-up: Brexit, sub-prime warning, M&A, Clarks

Philip Hammond told business leaders that the “threat” of a no-deal Brexit could be taken “off the table” within days and potentially lead to Article 50 “rescinded”, a leaked recording of a conference call reveals. The Chancellor set out how a backbench Bill could effectively be used to stop any prospect of no deal. He suggested that ministers may even back the plan when asked for an “assurance” by the head of Tesco that the Government would not oppose the motion. - Telegraph

More than 170 business leaders, including Terence Conran and Norman Foster, have thrown their weight behind the campaign for a second referendum on Brexit. In a step designed to indicate growing support for a “people’s vote” after Theresa May suffered the heaviest parliamentary defeat in the modern era over her Brexit plan, the letter due to be published in the Times on Thursday asks both main party leaders in Westminster to support a second referendum. - Guardian

Jeremy Corbyn came under fire from Labour MPs and opposition parties last night after he refused to shift his position and support a second Brexit referendum despite failing to trigger a general election. A Labour spokesman said that the party would continue to try to bring down Theresa May’s administration despite losing a vote of no confidence in the government by 325 to 306. - The Times

European Union and World Trade Organization checks would be mandatory on both sides of the Irish border in the event of no-deal Brexit, one of the world’s leading experts on customs has said. Michael Lux, a former head of customs legislation and procedures at the European Commission, said the UK would have to impose customs checks and tariffs on the northern side of the border, despite claims to the contrary by Brexiters. - Guardian

Cabinet divisions over whether Theresa May should soften her Brexit deal to attract Labour support burst into the open yesterday. David Gauke, the justice secretary, broke ranks to urge the prime minister not to be “boxed in” by her red lines. Brexiteer cabinet ministers, however, want Mrs May to offer Tory rebels a way back next week with a vote to limit the length of the backstop and promise to secure a Canada-style trade deal. - The Times

The scale of Theresa May’s challenge in trying to get any deal through parliament is laid bare by analysis showing that her Tory opponents are split six ways. The breakdown of why Tories blocked her deal reveals there is no option which would secure her a majority through Tory votes. - The Times

The US government is pursuing criminal charges against Huawei for the alleged theft of trade secrets, it has emerged. The Department of Justice is in the advanced stage of an investigation into the Chinese telecoms company over claims it stole technology from American companies. - Telegraph

Sub-prime-style lending is back and is raising fears about the state of financial markets only 11 years after the crisis, Mark Carney has warned. Developments in covenant-lite lending and leveraged loan markets “have all the hallmarks” of the mortgage crisis that caused the great recession a decade ago, the Bank of England governor said yesterday. - The Times

The looming threat of Brexit has dragged down the UK property market further, with prices falling at the fastest rate in six years and the outlook for sales the weakest in two decades, according to Britain’s surveyors. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (Rics) said the number of inquiries, agreed sales and new instructions all declined in December. - Guardian

Rising protectionism fueled by heightened concerns about national security will cause a sharp slowdown in takeover activity over the coming year and add to trade tensions, according to reports from the law firm Freshfields and the World Economic Forum. Worries that Chinese companies may be trying to steal intellectual property has resulted in regulators in the US, the UK and the European union applying far more scrutiny to takeover approaches. - Telegraph

The number of American-style landlord-free rental apartments being built in Britain has soared in the past year. Pension funds and developers are pouring money into a new sector viewed by some as a solution to the urban housing crisis. - The Times

Clarks looks set to abandon UK manufacturing for a second time with the closure of an advanced factory in the shoe-maker’s hometown less than two years after opening it. The company founded in 1825 by brothers Cyrus and James Clark in Street, Somerset, is consulting with staff about shutting its robot-assisted “Morelight” plant. - Telegraph

Britain’s statisticians are refusing to correct misleading inflation figures used to calculate student loans, rail fares and about £400 billion of government debt, according to a House of Lords report. Flaws in the calculation mean RPI is overstated by about 0.8 percentage points, costing the taxpayer an estimated £1 billion in debt interest since 2010 and hitting commuters and students. - The Times

A millionaire super-tout and a ticket fraudster’s wife have been revealed as some of the people using the much-criticised ticket website Viagogo to make money from music and sports fans. From midnight on Thursday the site must publish the names of touts who have identified themselves to the platform. - Guardian

The company behind the smash hit smartphone game Pokémon Go has been valued at $4 billion following a funding round led by a Silicon Valley investor. Niantic, which is preparing to launch the hotly anticipated Harry Potter equivalent to Pokémon Go, has secured $245m led by IVP, which has backed Snap, Twitter and Dropbox among other Silicon Valley start-ups. - Telegraph

The scourge of plastic waste in the world’s oceans is the target of a new global alliance of businesses which says it will try to reduce the amount of plastic waste produced and improve recycling. The Alliance to End Plastic Waste, launched on Wednesday, includes companies producing consumer goods and plastic, as well as waste management and recycling firms. - Guardian

Donald Trump will unveil a plan on Thursday for a major expansion in US missile defence that will rely on a new generation of space-based sensors. The administration’s long-delayed missile defence review, which the president will present at the Pentagon, will call for the expansion of the US network of sensors and interceptors designed to identify and shoot down incoming projectiles from “rogue states” such as Iran and North Korea. - Guardian