Tuesday newspaper round-up: Business optimism, rail fares, Co-op, Dignity
Global business optimism is at a record high, according to a survey by accountancy firm Grant Thornton, but sentiment among UK companies has fallen in the last year as uncertainty over Brexit continues to weigh heavily on corporate confidence. Its quarterly International Business Report found that optimism among firms around the world is at the highest level since it was started 25 years ago, which is reflected in the widespread expectation that profitability will increase in the next 12 months. - Telegraph
Ministers have been advised to try to negotiate a transition period if talks with the EU end without a deal to give Britain more time to prepare for a hard Brexit. Whitehall believes that Britain could be given additional time by the EU to cushion a hard landing after March 29 next year in the event that talks break down over a future free trade agreement (FTA). - The Times
John McDonnell has accused the government of relying on millions of British families going further into debt in order to meet Treasury targets. The shadow chancellor said families were set to borrow £445bn by the end of the parliament and highlighted official figures showing the ratio between household debt and income had reached a five-year high, with forecasts suggesting it will hit 150% by 2022. - Guardian
Rail commuters face spending a far greater proportion of their income on fares than anyone else in Europe after the biggest price rises since 2013. Research shows that regular travellers will spend as much as 13 per cent of their salary travelling to work by train in Britain from today. This compares with between 2.5 per cent and 5 per cent of workers’ salaries in countries such as France, Germany, Italy and Spain. - The Times
Ministers are considering a crackdown on "rip off" rail fare rises after Tory MPs warned that price hikes are heaping "financial misery" on commuters and could cost the Conservatives at the next election. Chris Grayling, the Transport Secretary, has asked officials to produce plans to peg future increases to a lower rate of inflation in a bid to ease the burden on rail passengers. - Telegraph
Labour’s deputy leader, Tom Watson, has called on Chris Grayling to resign as transport secretary over what he described as a “grubby backroom deal to bail out the East Coast line”. Watson added his voice to that of the Labour peer Andrew Adonis, who resigned as head of the government’s National Infrastructure Commission with a broadside against the minister. - Guardian
Britain’s automotive industry is braced for a 5pc drop in new car sales when annual figures are released this week - but there are warnings that 2018 could see an even steeper decline. New car registrations data due out on Friday is expected to show 2.56m cars were sold in 2017 as a combination of growing uncertainty about the economy’s health, confusion over the government’s stance on diesel and higher vehicle taxes weighed. - Telegraph
French, German and Italian tourists are turning their backs on Britain after the vote to leave the EU. However, overall visits to the UK were up 7 per cent in the first nine months of last year — hitting a record of 30.2 million. - The Times
Richard Cousins, the chief executive of FTSE 100 catering company Compass who was tragically killed alongside his family in Sydney on Sunday, was widely credited as one of the most astute businessmen of his generation. His 11-year tenure at Compass transformed it from a company embroiled in scandal with a stressed balance sheet to a world leader in its field. - Telegraph
Hopes that a “dynamic movement” among small firms could solve the UK’s prolonged productivity crisis have been dashed after business owners said it was not a priority. Just 7pc plan to make it a priority next year, with SMEs citing the state of the UK economy as a much greater concern. - Telegraph
The traditional desire to find a new job in the new year will ease off in 2018 – but bad bosses have become the biggest reason to drive people to the recruitment market. Research by Investors in People (IIP) has found that 47pc of people plan to change job in 2018, a 12pc drop on last year. - Telegraph
The Co-op is intensifying its battle to win more shoppers with a £160m investment on 100 new food stores during 2018, creating 1,600 jobs. The business, which is owned by its members, will also give major makeovers to a further 150 outlets in a bid to counter fierce competition from the budget grocers. - Guardian
Retailers are expected to be lumbered with £2.5bn worth of unwanted presents over the Christmas period. A boom in online shopping means companies are having to deal with increasingly challenging levels of returns, according to logistics consultancy LCP. - Telegraph
Patisserie Holdings, the owner of Patisserie Valerie, is preparing to tap shareholders in a move to buy the company behind the Gail’s Bakery chain. Patisserie, which two months ago revealed it was interested in the 40-shop business, is drawing up plans for a £35 million placing. - The Times
One of Britain’s biggest funeral providers is considering disclosing its prices online and introducing a single national tariff for basic services amid mounting competition and criticism of its business model. Dignity has suffered a 26 per cent slump in its share price since reiterating warnings of rising challenges from rivals in November and a scathing report from Funeralbooker, a price comparison website. - The Times
The Bank of England has set up a research division looking at how it can get involved with digital currencies such as bitcoin and the technology behind them. It is exploring the possibility of launching its own digital currency linked to the rate of sterling, which reports suggest could get the go ahead this year. - Mail
British consumers are being “deceived” over the speed and quality of their broadband by an industry which is exploiting the weakest advertising standards in Europe, according to the chief of the country’s biggest independent supplier after BT and Virgin Media. Greg Mesch, chief executive of Cityfibre, which last month struck a £500 million deal with Vodafone to roll out fast fibre broadband to five million homes, said the rules on advertising standards are confusing consumers, who deserve a clearer choice over the different options available. - The Times
Google launched a midnight attempt to disrupt the record fine it was handed for monopoly abuse, EU documents reveal. A report quietly published by the European Commission in the week before Christmas reveals that Google submitted new evidence at 11:40pm on June 26 less than 12 hours before it was hit with a €2.4bn (£2.1bn) penalty. - Telegraph