Tuesday newspaper round-up: Trade, Brexit, takeovers, banks

European Union officials have denied that Jean-Claude Juncker is set to make a significant concession during trade talks with President Trump tomorrow. The president of the European Commission hopes to “de-dramatise” a simmering transatlantic trade dispute during the White House meeting, in an attempt to avoid steeper American import levies on cars. - The Times

Theresa May has been accused of handing the EU a "blank cheque" after new laws suggested Brussels will be able to determine how much of the £39billion Brexit divorce bill the UK will pay each year. Ministers will on Tuesday publish the Withdrawal Agreement and Implementation Bill which will enshrine Brexit divorce arrangements and any future deal with Brussels in law. - Telegraph

Britain’s largest companies fear being scapegoated by Brexiteers for the consequences of an uncontrolled EU departure without a deal. Industry leaders told ministers at a meeting last week that there was a limit to what preparations they could make for such a scenario. - The Times

Ministers will have the power to block foreign takeovers across all sectors of the British economy on national security grounds under new government proposals designed to protect some of the UK’s most important and technically advanced businesses. The business secretary, Greg Clark, wants to widen the scope of the current system, which is limited to large transactions and certain industries such as defence, to cover all UK firms including small businesses as he seeks to keep vital firms and technologies out of foreign ownership. - Guardian

Wall Street banks are pressing the British government to cut taxes and regulation or risk financial services jobs and assets leaving the UK after Brexit. Senior American executives have warned ministers that the City is less competitive than New York, particularly in the wake of President Trump cutting corporation tax and moving to loosen regulation, according to reports. - The Times

Britain’s poorest 30% of households saw an end to their post financial crash recovery last year as inflation and cuts to in-work benefits outweighed wage rises to leave them as much as £150 worse off. The Resolution Foundation, an independent thinktank, said its audit of income and poverty levels for 2017-2018 found that income growth slowed for all households last year. - Guardian

More than a million public sector workers, including teachers, doctors and police officers, can expect wage increases of up to 3.5% a year as Theresa May moved to drop the government’s pay cap. Downing Street sources confirmed the prime minister was planning to announce that some state-employed staff would get the biggest increases in a decade. However, most would qualify for just 2%, which is below the rate of inflation. - Guardian

Brussels has abandoned the millions of EU citizens living in Britain to an uncertain future, the3Million campaign group for European expats has said in an unprecedented attack on the European Commission and its planning for a no deal Brexit. The3Million was set up after the referendum to fight for the rights of EU citizens and their families who made Britain their home during its decades of membership of the bloc. - Telegraph

The worst Greek forest fires in a decade have raged through holiday resorts near Greece's capital, killing at least 24 people and injuring more than 100. The fire in Mati village, 18 miles east of Athens, was by far the country's worst since blazes devastated the southern Peloponnese peninsula in August 2007, killing dozens. - Telegraph

A hoped-for new era of competition that enables companies, councils and other public sector operations to lower their water bills has provoked a bitter row over switching accounts. Incumbent suppliers have been accused of trying to retrospectively charge customers that are switching, a move that “defies belief”, according to one furious new entrant to the market.- The Times

Shoppers face a shortage of carrots early next year because the combination of the “Beast from the East” and the prolonged dry weather will cause the annual harvest to fall by about a third, farmers’ leaders are warning. Prices for carrots will rise and they may have to be imported from as far as Israel, the British Carrot Growers Association said. - The Times

Orchards in one of Britain’s biggest cider-making regions face being bulldozed because the drinks giant Heineken is pulling the plug on apple-growing contracts. The Dutch brewer – which has owned Herefordshire-based Bulmers since 2008 – uses around a third of all the cider-apples grown in the UK. About 180 orchard owners, mostly based in Herefordshire, supply the fruit. - Guardian

Google owner Alphabet batted off recent clashes with European regulators to post second quarter results which topped expectations, sending its shares surging in after-hours trade. Excluding the €4.34bn (£3.9bn) fine handed down from the European Commission last week, Alphabet's earnings per share came in at $11.75 (9p), up from $8.90 a year earlier. - Telegraph