UPDATE 1-Big banks face probe over NDAs in swaps, clearing businesses, Bloomberg reports

The Telegraph
How Putin’s gas empire crumbled
Vladimir Putin is throwing everything he has got at ramping up Russia’s war machine.
The Telegraph
Gazprom swings to £5bn loss in blow to Putin
Kremlin-owned natural gas giant Gazprom has plunged to its worst loss in at least 25 years in a blow to Vladimir Putin’s war economy.
Bloomberg
BHP’s Biggest Rivals Sit on the Sidelines of Anglo M&A Drama
(Bloomberg) -- Two of BHP Group’s biggest rivals are sitting on the sidelines for the moment as they watch to see how a takeover offer for Anglo American Plc will play out.Most Read from BloombergEverything Apple Plans to Show at May 7 ‘Let Loose’ iPad EventSaudi Arabia Steps Up Arrests Of Those Attacking Israel OnlineApple Rallies Most in 18 Months on Upbeat Forecast, BuybackTrump Auditions VP Picks Before Wealthy Donors in Palm BeachHuawei Secretly Backs US Research, Awarding Millions in Prize
The Independent
‘The decisions you’re making are going to end with a smoking hole in the ground’: Inside the Boeing catastrophe
‘They were always caught flat-footed by some terrible problem that many people in the workplace knew would happen... And that happened over and over and over and over and over again.’ Io Dodds reports on a corporate nightmare
TechCrunch
Fisker stiffed the engineering firm developing its low-cost EV and pickup truck, lawsuit claims
Henrik Fisker stood on a stage last August and proudly debuted two prototypes designed to catapult his eponymous EV startup Fisker into the mainstream. There was the Pear, a low-cost EV meant for the masses, and the Alaska, Fisker’s entry into the red-hot pickup truck market. In the weeks that followed, Fisker stopped paying the engineering firm that helped develop those vehicles, according to a previously unreported lawsuit filed in federal court this week.
AFP
Record loss for Russia's Gazprom as European market closed
Russian energy giant Gazprom said Thursday it suffered a record annual loss last year as the European market was practically shut to its gas exports due to sanctions over Moscow's military operation in Ukraine.Exports to Europe have long been Gazprom's top earnings source, but following the start of the conflict in Ukraine European nations sought to reduce their reliance upon Russian natural gas.
The Telegraph
£7-a-bottle of olive oil ‘unlikely to come down in price’
Britain is at risk of olive oil shortages as the industry is wracked by a production crisis.
Daily Echo
'Do not eat': Popular food sold at Asda and Sainsbury's may contain plastic
Frozen itsu sizzling pork gyoza, sold at Asda and Sainsbury’s, may contain pieces of plastic
The Telegraph
Angela Rayner’s humiliation is a rare gift to Britain
Perhaps it was only a matter of time before Labour’s “New Deal for Working People” went the way of its £28bn “Green Prosperity Plan”. Launched in 2021 to much fanfare – from the unions at least – it promised a revolution in workers’ rights not seen in “decades”.
The Telegraph
North Sea oil drilling to continue for a decade after net zero deadline
Oil drilling in the North Sea is to continue for up to a decade beyond Britain’s net zero deadline after dozens of new licences were granted to fossil fuel companies.
The Telegraph
Post Office lawyer denies ‘big fat lie’ over Horizon inaccuracies
A former Post Office lawyer has denied telling a “big fat lie” over whether he knew of Horizon inaccuracies days before the trial of a pregnant sub-postmistress.
PA Media: Money
UK services sector grows at fastest pace for nearly a year after spending boost
The S&P Global UK services PMI survey scored 55.0 in April, up from 53.1 in March and the highest level since May last year.
Reuters
HSBC has no plans to dispose of further businesses, Chairman says
LONDON (Reuters) -HSBC has no current plans to sell more assets, its chairman Mark Tucker said on Friday at the annual shareholder meeting of the bank, which has scaled back its presence in Western markets in recent years as part of a sweeping overhaul. HSBC shareholders met in London days after the bank's CEO Noel Quinn announced his surprise retirement following a five-year tenure which saw HSBC sell retail banking operations in France and the U.S., and its entire Canadian unit, as it pivots towards Asia. The chairman's comments hint at a likely shift in direction for whomever succeeds Quinn, as the bank turns its focus away from shrinking its global empire to trying to grow its business in its remaining markets.
York Press
York boss is a national wealth management winner
Investment director Lucy Coutts, Head of the York office at JM Finn, has been named Wealth Manager of the Year at the 2024 City of London Wealth Management Awards.
PA Media: UK News
Charity to launch legal action against Home Office over Rwanda policy
Asylum Aid says it is concerned the policy could lead to the Home Office unlawfully denying people seeking asylum from entering the UK asylum system.
Yahoo Finance
Why Trump edges Biden on gas prices
Voters correctly remember that gas prices were cheaper when Trump was president. But that's unlikely to happen again, no matter what Trump might do if he wins a second term.
Associated Press
US employers scaled back hiring in April. How that could let the Fed cut interest rates
The nation’s employers pulled back on their hiring in April but still added a decent 175,000 jobs in a sign that persistently high interest rates may be starting to slow the robust U.S. job market. Friday’s government report showed that last month’s hiring gain was down sharply from the blockbuster increase of 315,000 in March. The Fed has been delaying any consideration of interest rate cuts until it gains more confidence that inflation is steadily slowing toward its 2% target.
My London
Ealing cash and carry fined £30,000 after horrified inspectors step in to protect workers from injury
Four improvement notices were issued to the Southall business before the council took it to court
Reuters Videos
Apple unveils record buyback as results beat forecasts
STORY: Apple announced a record share buyback program on Thursday as the iPhone maker revealed a smaller-than-expected drop in revenue.The company upped its cash dividend by 4%, and is buying back $110 billion worth of stock.It's the largest buyback in Apple's history, fueling a jump in shares after hours.Apple reported a revenue drop of 4% to almost $91 billion in the fiscal second-quarter.That's not as steep a fall as analysts had predicted.A positive forecast came from CEO Tim Cook.He told Reuters the iPhone maker expects "to grow low-single digits" in overall revenue in the current quarter ending in June.Wall Street is predicting closer to 1.3% growth, according to LSEG data.The results and guidance suggest the company may be regaining its footing in the smartphone market, despite stiff competition and regulatory challenges.Long considered a must-own stock on Wall Street, Apple shares have underperformed other Big Tech firms in recent months.It's fallen 10% this year while struggling with weak iPhone demand and tough competition in the Chinese market.Smartphone rivals like Samsung have also introduced competing devices aimed at hosting artificial intelligence chatbots.Though Cook said Thursday that iPhone sales still experienced "growth in some markets, including China."He also said Apple has spent more than $100 billion on AI research and development in the past five years.And that the company would be sharing "some very exciting things" about its AI plans later this year.
Associated Press
The first wrongful-death trial in Travis Scott concert deaths has been delayed
The start of the first civil trial stemming from the 2021 Astroworld festival, at which 10 people were killed in a crowd surge, has been delayed. Jury selection had been set to begin next Tuesday in the wrongful-death lawsuit filed the family of Madison Dubiski, a 23-year-old Houston resident who was killed during the crowd crush at the Nov. 5, 2021, concert by rap superstar Travis Scott. “Unless I hear differently, the trial is stayed,” state District Judge Kristen Hawkins said during a court hearing Thursday.

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UPDATE 1-Big banks face probe over NDAs in swaps, clearing businesses, Bloomberg reports

Latest stories

How Putin’s gas empire crumbled

Gazprom swings to £5bn loss in blow to Putin

BHP’s Biggest Rivals Sit on the Sidelines of Anglo M&A Drama

‘The decisions you’re making are going to end with a smoking hole in the ground’: Inside the Boeing catastrophe

Fisker stiffed the engineering firm developing its low-cost EV and pickup truck, lawsuit claims

Record loss for Russia's Gazprom as European market closed

£7-a-bottle of olive oil ‘unlikely to come down in price’

'Do not eat': Popular food sold at Asda and Sainsbury's may contain plastic

Angela Rayner’s humiliation is a rare gift to Britain

North Sea oil drilling to continue for a decade after net zero deadline

Post Office lawyer denies ‘big fat lie’ over Horizon inaccuracies

UK services sector grows at fastest pace for nearly a year after spending boost

HSBC has no plans to dispose of further businesses, Chairman says

York boss is a national wealth management winner

Charity to launch legal action against Home Office over Rwanda policy

Why Trump edges Biden on gas prices

US employers scaled back hiring in April. How that could let the Fed cut interest rates

Ealing cash and carry fined £30,000 after horrified inspectors step in to protect workers from injury

Apple unveils record buyback as results beat forecasts

The first wrongful-death trial in Travis Scott concert deaths has been delayed