BUSINESS LIVE: Co-op profits slump; Vodafone-Three merger set for in-depth probe; Entain Chair to exit

Britain’s competition regulatory is launching an in-depth probe of the proposed £15billion merger of UK mobile networks Vodafone and Three/

The Competition and Markets Authority on Thursday confirmed it will launch a so-called Phase 2 probe after both firms told the regulator they would not be offering measures to ease its concerns ahead of the deadline.

Ocado and Marks & Spencer have been named the country’s fastest growing supermarkets as they win back middle-class shoppers.

Sales at Ocado in the 12 weeks to March 23 were 13 per cent higher than a year earlier while M&S was up 11.2 per cent, according to industry group Nielsen.

The chairman of gambling giant Entain intends to stand down later this year after overseeing four transformational years at the company.

Barry Gibson originally joined the Ladbrokes and Coral owner’s board in November 2019 before becoming its chair the following February.

The head of the US central bank last night said the job of bringing down inflation ‘is not yet done’ amid mounting speculation over the outlook for interest rates on both sides of the Atlantic.

Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell said ‘inflation has come down significantly’ but remains above the 2 per cent target – as it does in the UK and Europe.

London-listed stocks have inched higher at the open, supported by a rise in precious metal miners, as caution prevails ahead of a slew of domestic and global economic data for cues on the interest rate path.

Precious metals miners have advanced 0.7 per cent as gold prices reach a fresh record high.

Investors are growing cautiously optimistic after a report showed US services industry growth slowed further in March, while Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell reaffirmed rate cuts are coming if data pans out as the central bank expects.

The UK services PMI data for the month of March is due later today.

Cab Payments has gained 11.6 per cent after the fintech company got a payment service provider licence in the Netherlands.

Disney and its chief executive Bob Iger emerged victorious last night after a long-running battle with activist investors.

In a major vote of confidence, shareholders elected all 12 of the company’s nominees to the board, including Iger himself.

Ocado chairman Rick Haythornthwaite will not stand for re-election at the group’s annual general meeting next year due to his ‘increasing commitment’ as NatWest’s newly appointed chair.

‘Since the announcement of my appointment as group chair of NatWest I have given extensive thought to my workload …it has become evident that pressure on my time is likely to increase over the medium term,’ Haythornthwaite said in a statement.

Virgin Atlantic said it is on course to make its first profit since the pandemic after strong demand for winter breaks in the Caribbean boosted business.

The airline – which is co-owned by Richard Branson’s Virgin Group and US carrier Delta Airlines – yesterday reported losses of £139million for 2023 following a £206million loss the previous year.

Sports betting and gaming group Entain chair Barry Gibson will step down from the role by September-end, the Coral owner told shareholders this morning.

Gibson could even leave earlier if a CEO gets appointed for the group, it added.

Stella David, interim CEO, said: ‘Barry has been a wonderful mentor and source of wise counsel to so many people during his time as Chair of Entain, and I would like to personally thank him for his unwavering support.

‘The fact that we now have a solid platform and a clear plan for future growth is due in no small part to his efforts.  I am entirely focused on my role as interim CEO as we work to accelerate our operational strategy, and look forward to taking over the baton from Barry in due course.’

The Competition and Markets Authority will open an in-depth investigation into the merger between Vodafone’s UK operation and Hutchison’s Three UK after the parties did not offer remedies to ease the regulator’s competition concerns.

The $19billion tie-up, which was announced last year, will reduce the number of networks from four to three, challenging the long-held tenet that four help keep prices low.

A state-owned Chinese car firm is hoping to secure subsidies off the UK to build an assembly plant in a move likely to raise fresh security concerns.

Chery is weighing up where to construct a European factory, with Britain a potential option along with Spain, Hungary and the Czech Republic.

It comes amid warnings about the threat posed by China, with the UK and US recently identifying it as the source of a wave of cyber attacks.

Co-op profits fell sharply last year as Britain’s seventh biggest supermarket group suffered stiff competition from discounters and record levels of shoplifting that pushed up costs.

The 180-year-old group, which is owned by its more than 5 million members, has been grappling with intense competition from discounters Aldi and Lidl, and market leaders Tesco and Sainsbury’s.

It ended 2023 with a grocery market share of 5.4 per cent, according to researcher Kantar, down 20 basis points on the year.

Co-op also committed to investing millions of pounds to prevent price rises at the cost of profitability.

The company, which also has funerals, insurance and legal businesses, reported a profit before tax of £28million, down from £268million in the preceding year.

Group revenue dropped by £200million to £11.3billion, as a result of the divestment of its petrol forecourt business in the second half of 2022.