Monday newspaper round-up: UK shoppers, Chinese growth, Boeing
Shoppers deserted UK high streets during June as the washout weather and continuing Brexit uncertainty helped drive store visits down to a seven-year low for the month. The “summer slump” took a particularly heavy toll on high streets, with shopping centres also badly affected, according to the British Retail Consortium’s (BRC) monthly footfall tracker for the period from 26 May to 29 June. - Guardian
Chinese growth slowed to its weakest pace in almost three decades in the second quarter with the US-China trade war and weakening global demand weighing on the world’s second-biggest economy, official data showed Monday. The slowdown makes it more difficult for president Xi Jinping to fight back forcefully against the US, which is using tariffs as leverage to try to force Beijing into opening up its economy. - Guardian
The son of billionaire digger tycoon Lord Bamford is plotting a revolution on the buses – by powering thousands with hydrogen. Jo Bamford has set out on his own after 14 years working for JCB. Working behind closed doors he has launched Ryse, a company that provides hydrogen refuelling to buses. - Telegraph
A quarter of investors are stuck with assets they want to sell but cannot easily get rid of, research shows. Unlisted shares are the most commonly held of these “illiquid” assets, followed by debt investments such as loans. Other investors have holdings in digital currencies such as Bitcoin or investments in art, classic cars, motorcycles, boats or yachts. - Telegraph
An “upstart” music streaming business that counts Robbie Williams and Sheryl Crow among its shareholders is tuning up for a stock market float. Roxi Music aims to go public in the autumn at a mooted valuation of £50 million. The four-year-old company has developed a device operated by a handheld controller that it believes will appeal to older, less tech-savvy consumers. - The Times
The Boeing 737 Max is likely to be grounded until January as fixes to the jet at the centre of two catastrophic crashes are yet to satisfy all safety requirements, according to officials and union leaders. The process of developing and certifying new software, then training pilots to use it, has been delayed repeatedly, with airlines struggling to cope with frequent revisions to the timetable during the exceptionally busy summer. - The Times