Morrisons Plans 2,600 Job Cuts In Shake-Up

Morrisons has confirmed plans for 2,600 job cuts as the loss-making supermarket chain battles falling sales and market share.

A statement detailing the changes said the losses, representing 2% of its workforce, would result from cutting tiers of in-store management.

But the company insisted it could improve customer service at the same time as more staff would be focused on serving shoppers.

The announcement was made as the supermarket combats a flight to discounters with a series of price cuts that will cost it £1bn over three years.

Earlier this month, Morrisons reported a 7.1% slump in quarterly sales on the back of annual losses of £176m - a performance which prompted chief executive Dalton Philips to waive his bonus.

Morrisons now has 117 convenience stores

Morrisons has been the worst performer among the big four chains in terms of sales amid tough competition from the discounters, including Aldi and Lidl, though major rivals including Tesco have also endured falling market share.

The chain was slow to launch an online food offering and also lagged behind its biggest competitors on convenience store numbers.

Former chairman Sir Ken Morrison used the supermarket's annual general meeting to publicly criticise the current management's strategy just a week ago - reportedly describing it as "bull****".

Morrisons said that while the changes would be painful for its workforce, trials of its planned new management structures had proved a hit with customers.

The statement suggested that some stores currently had seven tiers between the shop floor and the store manager and it hoped to relocate some of those managers who will lose their jobs to new store and convenience operations.

Mr Philips said: "This is the right time to modernise the way our stores are managed.

"These changes will improve our focus on customers and lead to simpler, smarter ways of working.

"We know that moving to the new management structure will mean uncertainty for our colleagues and we will be supporting them through the process."

The company's share price - which has lost more than a quarter of its value over the past year - rose 3% in the moments after the announcement was made.

The union Usdaw took a different approach to that of investors.

National officer Joanne McGuinness said: "The next few weeks will be a worrying time for our members in Morrisons and we will do everything possible to support them.

"Today marks the start of a 45-day consultation period, where we will look in detail at the company's business case.

"Our priority will be to safeguard as many  jobs as possible, maximise employment within the business and get the best possible outcome for our members affected by this restructuring."

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Blunder Hits Sir Philip Green's Market Return

An apparent pricing mistake has marred the stock market debut of an online flash sale retailer backed by TopShop owner Sir Philip Green.

Sir Philip, the billionaire behind Arcadia Group, ploughed £48m into Australian firm MySale ahead of its flotation on the Alternative Investment Market, giving him a 25% stake.

But analysts said it was priced at 2.26p rather than 226p - in pence rather than pounds - with the broker handling the sale, Macquarie, being blamed.

Shares fell by almost 30% in early trading but later recovered most of the lost ground by late Monday with Sir Philip - known for his ability to deliver a sharp dressing down - apparently shrugging off the blunder.

The Times quoted him as saying: "I had forgotten what fun all this nonsense was".

The listing marked a return to the stock market for Sir Philip after an absence of 20 years.

His Arcadia Group has an interest in the success of MySale, agreeing a deal to flog excess stock to the Sydney-based online retailer.

The listing gained further traction on Tuesday trading - the share price doubling on Monday's close by 1400 BST.

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Smile! Hundreds Of New Emojis To Be Released

They say a picture paints a thousand words - now there are going to be 250 more to choose from when you send a text.

A major release of new Emojis - the symbols and images you can include in texts and emails - is due in July.

The characters are part of an update of Unicode, the standards that regulate how text appears across different platforms.

The 250 new additions will include a hand with a middle finger raised, a sure-fire way to bring some text conversations to a close.

But the release does not just include insults - there are a series of weird and wonderful Emojis to choose from too.

They include a squirrel, a spider web, fax icon, oil drum, ballot box, rolled-up newspaper, a chipmunk, bullhorn and a weightlifter.

The last major Unicode update - which is agreed between Microsoft, Apple and Google - was in 2010.

Other than the middle-finger Emoji, images of the new symbols have not yet been released.

However, a text description of each one can be found on the emoji website.

Emojis are found on Apple and Android products, and Windows 8 PCs and tablets, such as the Surface, among others.

They are also available on applications such as Facebook and Whatsapp.

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China Funds Eye Slice Of £1bn PizzaExpress

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

One of China's biggest private equity firms is weighing up plans to buy a slice of PizzaExpress as the British restaurant chain accelerates its expansion in the world's most populous country.

Sky News has learnt that Hony Capital, which manages roughly $7bn (£4.1bn) on behalf of clients, has approached a number of UK and US-based buyout funds about the possibility of tabling a joint offer for PizzaExpress.

Sources said that Fosun, the Chinese conglomerate which owns a stake in Club Mediterranee, the French holiday company, and Citic Capital Partners, another major Beijing-based fund, were also watching the PizzaExpress auction, although it was unclear whether either would table a formal offer.

News of the firms' interest coincides with a visit to the UK by the Chinese Premier, Li Keqiang, in an effort to strengthen political and trade ties.

PizzaExpress has been put up for sale with a £1bn price-tag by Cinven, the private equity group which has backed it since 2007.

Several UK funds including Advent International and TPG considered making offers but decided against doing so. It is unclear which Western funds remain in the process and sources cautioned that Hony may not reach an agreement about a joint bid.

The Chinese PM is visiting the UK

Hony has been among the most active of China's private equity firms to examine overseas investments, having participated in deals to buy companies in Hong Kong and Italy in recent years.

It is also backing a new film studio being set up by Hollywood producers Robert Simonds and Gigi Pritzker.

If it does participate in a deal to buy PizzaExpress, Hony would become the latest Chinese entity to own a stake in a major UK consumer brand.

In 2012, Bright Food bought a controlling stake in Weetabix, the breakfast cereal producer, while Hony itself has been linked with a bid for United Biscuits, owner of the McVitie's brand, which will be formally put up for sale later in the year.

At £1bn, analysts believe a deal would value PizzaExpress at roughly ten times its annual profits, although Gondola, its parent, does not provide separate figures about the performance of the chain and its sister businesses, Zizzi and Ask Italian.

PizzaExpress operates from nearly 500 sites in a dozen countries, and has plans to open 200 new restaurants in fast-growing markets such as China and India during the next five years.

Some analysts believe the potential in China, where the menu is dominated by items other than pizzas, is much greater.

Founded in 1965, the chain has been through several changes of ownership, including at one stage being run by Luke Johnson, the restaurants entrepreneur.

The business is now headed by Richard Hodgson, a former Asda and Wm Morrison executive, who joined a year ago.

PizzaExpress declined to comment, while Hony could not be reached.

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Maiden Chinese 'Green Bond' To List In London

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

An arm of the World Bank is to list the first 'green bond' denominated in China's currency in London in a move that will be hailed by ministers as a boost for the City's global status.

Sky News has learnt that the International Finance Corporation (IFC), which is the World Bank's private sector-focused investment arm, plans to raise about RMB 500m (£47m) to invest in climate-related projects.

Although modest in scale, it will represent a milestone as the first renminbi-denominated green bond issued by the IFC, and will see it listed on the London Stock Exchange.

An announcement about its completion is expected to be made by the Washington-based institution on Tuesday to coincide with the visit to the UK by Li Keqiang, the Chinese Premier, City sources said.

The news is expected to be hailed by David Cameron and George Osborne as a vital step in positioning London as the premier offshore centre for financing using the Chinese currency, they added.

That message is likely to be given particular emphasis because of the extent to which the UK's financial markets have come under scrutiny amid probes into manipulation of critical benchmarks such as foreign exchange and Libor.

The IFC is a major global development institution which taps financial markets to invest in projects across the developing world, and was influential in creating so-called Panda bonds in China and Dim Sum bonds in Hong Kong.

In March, it issued a RMB1bn (£94m) bond in London - also the first of its kind - which it said would support the internationalization of the Chinese currency.

At the time, the Chancellor said:

"Nearly two-thirds of all Renminbi activity outside of greater China takes place in London and IFC's decision to issue in London provides yet more evidence that the capital is the western hub for Renminbi.

"The Government will continue to work very closely with the private sector and the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities to build a thriving RMB market in London."

The proceeds of 'green bonds' are set aside to invest in renewable energy and energy-efficient projects, and are designed to help address the vast funding gap for such initiatives.

Sources familiar with the latest IFC deal said there had been significant interest from investors.

The IFC's RMB 'green bond' issue will form part of a package of City-focused deals designed to underpin its pre-eminence as a global financial centre.

China Construction Bank is to be designated as the first offshore clearing bank for the Chinese currency, while Industrial & Commercial Bank of China will be given permission to establish a wholesale branch in London.

UK-based companies are also expected to be given new assistance in financing China-focused transactions through a separate Government deal involving the Export Credit Guarantee Department, sources said.

Other trade and business deals announced during Premier Li's visit will include major projects and supply agreements involving BP and Shell, as Sky News revealed on Monday.

A Treasury spokesman declined to comment.

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Fears As British Company Now 'Controls' Bitcoin

A British-based computer 'mining pool' called GHash has gained unprecedented control over virtual currency bitcoin.

It has amassed nearly half of the bitcoin computing power - which keeps track of bitcoins and creates additional coins.

The value of bitcoins has fallen 6% in a week as the extent of GHash's power became clear and it briefly edged over 51% control.

It could in theory control the flow of transactions, freeze people out of the network and keep all future bitcoins for itself.

But CEX.IO, the company behind GHash, said in a statement: "Our intention is to help protect and grow the broad acceptance of bitcoin and categorically in no way harm or damage it."

It said it recognised the "concerns and possible threat posed by an entity with malicious intent taking control of enough mining power to exploit the 51% scenario."

However it said any exploitation or attack would be obvious and "pretty easy to defend against".

It is now arranging a "round table" meeting of key players in the Bitcoin system in July "with the aim of discussing and negotiating collectively ways to address the decentralisation of mining as an industry".

But Ittay Eyal, a Cornell University researcher who studies bitcoin vulnerabilities, warned: "The entire premise of bitcoin relies on the fact that no single authority would control the majority of the mining power."

Bitcoins are sequences of numbers produced by computers which churn through millions of calculations.

They are recorded in a virtual public ledger known as the blockchain.

Miners are in charge of maintaining the blockchain, and as their computers perform the calculations to do that, the process rewards them with newly minted bitcoins.

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GM Car Ignition Fault Recall Soars To Six Million

General Motors (GM) has confirmed a new recall of over three million cars for ignition switch problems - more than doubling the number of vehicles dogged by the issue.

GM said it was to repair 3.36 million mid-size and full-size cars - on top of the 2.6 million Chevrolet Cobalt models and other small cars already recalled following 13 deaths.

More than half a million Chevrolet Camaros were added to the list last Friday taking the total for ignition faults past 6.5 million.

Mary Barra has apologised for past failures

The company said its latest recall was aimed at correcting a fault that meant ignition switches could be jarred out of the "run" position, potentially affecting power steering, power brakes and air bags.

The issue - which will require keys to be replaced or reworked - has been linked to eight crashes and six injuries.

GM engineers first noted the Cobalt problem more than a decade ago, and GM's slow response to the switch issue triggered investigations within the company, by Congress and federal agencies - piling pressure on the brand and its chief executive Mary Barra.

It was last month fined by the US government for its failure to urgently address the crisis.

The latest recall takes to around 20 million the number of cars recalled for work this year alone by GM - with 6.5 million of them related to the ignition switch scandal.

It means the company's total bill for recall-related charges will top $2bn for the year to date, GM said on Monday.

The latest recall includes Buick LaCrosse, Chevrolet Impala, Cadillac DeVille and several other models from the year 2000 through to 2014.

The ignition switch fault has been linked to eight crashes and six injuries

Mrs Barra is due to return to Congress to testify about the earlier Cobalt recall on Wednesday alongside Anton Valukas, the chairman of GM's outside law firm Jenner & Block, who conducted the investigation that detailed deep flaws in GM's internal decision-making processes.

The so-called Valukas report triggered the departures of 15 GM employees including several high-ranking executives in the legal, engineering and public policy groups.

Among them was the engineer who has been blamed for designing the defective Cobalt switches, Ray DeGiorgio.

GM said he also designed the switches on the latest batch of recalled cars.

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'Supermarket Price War' Helps Inflation Ease

The first annual fall in food prices since 2006 has helped the rate of inflation tumble to a four-and-a-half year low of 1.5%.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS), which also published figures highlighting further gains for UK house prices, said the dramatic easing in the annual rate of price growth in May could be largely explained by a supermarket price war.

The ONS had measured CPI inflation at 1.8% the previous month.

The major "big four" supermarket chains of Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury's and Morrisons are scrapping for market share in a bitterly contested fight for business that has seen heavy discounters like Aldi and Lidl gaining ground.

The ONS charted an annual 0.6% fall in food prices in May.

It said a broad range of goods including drinks and clothing fell in value.

Air fares, which were lower due to the timing of Easter, had a significant downward effect though petrol pulled in the other direction as pump prices crept up.

The figures were announced days after Bank of England governor Mark Carney signalled that the first hike in the base rate of interest could come sooner than thought - with speculation pointing to this autumn.

While continued low inflation - below the Bank's 2% target - appears to ease any pressures on the Bank to lift rates, Mr Carney has highlighted stronger economic growth and falling unemployment as factors to consider in raising the rate from its historic low of 0.5% - a level that has not changed since March 2009.

An area of concern for Mr Carney and the bank's Financial Policy Committee, which monitors risks to financial stability, is UK house price inflation which soared ahead at an annual rate of 9.9% in April.

The ONS measured year-on-year growth of 18.7% in London though more recent reports from the likes of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and Rightmove have charted an easing in price growth in the months since - citing new controls on mortgage lending as a factor.

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Tory Grandee Spicer To Quit As EnergyUK Chair

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

The former chairman of the Conservative 1922 Committee is to step down from the helm of the energy industry's principal lobbying group, leaving a vacancy at a critical time for the sector.

Sky News understands Lord Spicer, who has been chairman of EnergyUK since the body was formed in 2012, notified its board earlier this year that he wanted to retire.

A search is under way for his successor, with an appointment expected by the end of the year, sources said on Tuesday.

Lord Spicer, a former Parliamentary Under-Secretary at the Department of Energy during the premiership of Margaret Thatcher, was on the board of the Association of Electricity Producers prior to it being subsumed into EnergyUK.

His replacement will take up the post at a turbulent time for Britain's energy industry, with the Big Six retailers under intense public and political pressure over prices and a string of mis-selling scandals.

The sector has consistently argued the scale of environmental levies and transmission costs have inhibited their ability to pass on falls in wholesale gas prices.

Last week EnergyUK responded to a letter from the head of Ofgem, the industry regulator, which had asked the major suppliers to justify the fact that they had not passed on recent wholesale price falls to customers.

"There are now 24 domestic energy retailers in the UK. They buy gas and electricity months and even years in advance to smooth out the swings in the market. When wholesale prices fall it can take time for bills to catch up as the gas and power may have been bought at a higher price some time ago," EnergyUK said.

"The suppliers also have to take all manner of risks and wider costs into account, including political and regulatory issues. The industry is committed to openness and will be answering the questions on wholesale prices to their customers and to the authorities."

Ed Miliband, the Labour leader, has vowed to introduce a 20-month price freeze if he wins next year's General Election, while Ofgem is due to set out the details of a full competition inquiry into the sector in the coming weeks.

Lord Spicer's successor as chairman of EnergyUK will work alongside Angela Knight, the former head of the British Bankers' Association, who took over at the energy lobbying group two years ago.

A spokeswoman for EnergyUK declined to comment.

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China Talks Secure £14bn In Trade Deals

Commercial deals worth £14bn have been signed between the UK and China after David Cameron held Downing St talks with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang.

Speaking at a news conference following the talks, Mr Cameron hailed the strong trade links between the two countries, saying they were "central" to Britain's economic future.

"Today we have signed deals worth more than £14bn, securing jobs and long-term economic growth for the British and Chinese people," Mr Cameron said.

"Ours is truly a partnership for growth, reform and innovation."

Anti- China protests have been held in Whitehall

The Chinese leader has been accompanied by a delegation of more than 150 business leaders and top level Communist Party officials for his UK visit.

The visit is the first by a Chinese leader in more than three years.

Mr Li was given a guard of  honour and an audience with the Queen at Windsor Castle in a move which angered critics of China's record on Human Rights and political freedoms.

Campaign group Free Tibet had written to Buckingham Palace requesting the meeting with the Queen be cancelled.

Britain's Deputy Prime Minister also used unusually direct language and risky timing to describe China's people as being "politically shackled to a doctrine which is a one party state, a communist state".

Mr Li met the Queen ahead of talks with Mr Cameron

"Of course we can't agree on large scale and systematic human rights abuses which still continue in China to this day: the many journalists who are persecuted, the very widespread use of the death penalty," Nick Clegg said at his weekly press conference on Monday.

Mr Clegg added that despite these concerns, he hoped to have "very productive discussions" with the Chinese leadership.

His comments were said by members of the Government to be "not very helpful".

The commercial deals, which Sky News understands have been under negotiation right up until the last minute, were expected to cover trade and investment across a variety of sectors including energy, transport, finance, health and education.

Mr Li during his visit to Windsor Castle

China's sovereign wealth funds could help to finance major British infrastructure projects including the HS2 high speed rail link and the next generation of nuclear power stations. China is understood to be putting its largest share of European investment into the UK.

Britain's two biggest oil companies are unveiling deals - with BP confirming a Sky News exclusive of a contract to supply liquefied natural gas, saying it would be worth £12bn over 20 years.

An arm of the World Bank is to list the first "green bond" denominated in China's currency in London.

Britain has also announced a new streamlined visa service for Chinese travellers.

The UK is not part of the visa agreement which allow overseas visitors to travel to twenty six countries in Europe which means that 90% of Chinese tour operators say they leave the UK off their itinerary every year.

The visit is Li Keqiang's first to the UK since he became China's Premier

The visa application process will now be simplified, allowing tourists to apply using the same form as other European countries. Chinese visitors will also be able to use an Irish visa to travel to the UK.

China's growing middle class and the rebalancing of its economy from export to domestic consumption also presents Britain with huge opportunities.

British fashion giant Burberry opened its largest Asian store in Shanghai in April. The company's China strategy has helped boost global revenues.

In the automotive sector, Jaguar Land Rover has seen staggering success across China with 130 dealerships in 90 cities. The company is now Indian-owned, but the cars are made in the UK.

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