Friday newspaper round-up: Aviva, Petrol, Rio Tinto

9th Apr 2010 05:48

Aviva, the UK insurance group, is to re-enter the Asian general insurance market in the second major move in the region by a British insurer in two weeks. The group, which has a substantial Asian life insurance business, will announce on Friday that it plans to re-enter the general market five years after selling its Asian general insurance business to Japan's Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance for $450m, says the FT.Average petrol prices hit an all-time high of 120p a litre yesterday, surpassing the previous peak of 119.7p in July 2008. The unwelcome new record came a few days after the Government raised fuel duty by 1p a litre. A further 1p rise is due in the autumn, with a 0.76p increase planned for next January, writes the Independent.Rio Tinto said on Friday it had moved to quarterly pricing of iron ore contracts, becoming the latest large miner to dump annual price-fixing, in spite of widespread opposition from buyers worldwide, reports the FT.Gordon Brown pushed through next year's planned rise in national insurance against the advice of senior Treasury officials who argued instead for an increase in VAT, the Times has learnt.The Telegraph added that Gordon Brown has pledged to crack down on inflated bank bonuses and stop City workers from taking risks which put the economy in danger. David Cameron's efficiency chief has told him to cut the public payroll by up to £2bn within a year of the general election, a saving that could lead to the loss of up to 40,000 jobs across the public sector. In an interview with the Financial Times, Sir Peter Gershon, the former government adviser who has provided the blueprint for the Conservative leader's efficiency plans, disclosed for the first time how the party's proposed £12bn savings should be achieved.Germany's Bundesbank has fired a warning shot at Chancellor Angela Merkel, attacking the joint EU-IMF rescue plan for Greece as a threat to economic stability and probably illegal, according to the Telegraph.Kraft Foods has thrown its support behind a national chain of Cadbury-branded cafés that will offer afternoon teas and a dedicated chocolatier service to compete with high street coffee shops, says the FT.One of London's biggest hedge funds has quit the UK for tax purposes as the Government continues to fight for the confidence of corporate Britain. BlueCrest Capital Management, which manages about $18 billion (£11.8 billion) and employs 350 staff, said in a letter to investors yesterday that it has relocated its tax headquarters to the low-cost jurisdiction of Guernsey, writes the Times.