Tuesday newspaper round-up: FCA, Tesco, Chinese stocks

8th Dec 2014 08:27

Several senior executives at the Financial Conduct Authority will have to do without their bonuses. The decision was taken in anticipation of a report prepared by Clifford Chance, to be released on Wednesday, which will heavily criticise them for a blunder which hit the share prices of big insurers earlier this year, The Financial Times reports.Recently arrived Tesco chief executive Dave Lewis has managed some progress in his first 100 days on the job at the troubled food retailer. Hence the reason why analysts at the likes of HSBC and Bernstein have recently warmed to the shares. Lewis has pumped extra money into the stores to address his clients' complaints about staffing, product availability and cleanliness. Ultimately, price is the battlefield on which Tesco will have to see off the likes of Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury's, Aldi and Lidl. Nevertheless, well done so far, says HSBC, The Times reports.Chinese stocks are undergoing a boom which is nothing short of an outright mania despite the country's economic slowdown and the threat of a crackdown by authorities. The Shanghai composite has galloped 32% higher over the last six weeks to hit a three-year high and yet corporate earnings are declining steeply. Unfortunately, as Andy Xie from Caixin points out, it will be impossible for China to deflate its epic bubble painlessly, The Daily Telegraph says.Black Friday and cyber Monday saw record orders at Asos over the three months ending in November. UK sales increased by nearly 25%, but trading conditions overseas remained tough. Revenues thus gathered momentum throughout the quarter after a fire hit the on-line retailer's warehouse during the summer. International sales on the other hand were off by 60%, The Daily Telegrpah writes.A lack of skilled workers from the UK is forcing many construction firms in London to turn down bidding opportunities, according to consultancy Manpower. Whereas a bricklayer normally gets paid £500 a week companies are now taking on skilled Portuguese bricklayers at twice that rate. On the upside, the survey results suggest that firms of a bigger size are set to lead a "charge" early on next year, with utilities being the most optimistic. Employers in Northeast England have the brightest outlook for jobs, The Guardian reports.Furniture maker DFS has put its flotation plans on ice as the company opts instead to focus on its plans for international expansion. In fact, just recently it opened shop in the Netherlands. Earlier this year Advent International, its private-equity owner, was reportedly looking at an initial public offering before the end of 2014, The Daily Express says.