Good morning. Get ready to refresh your pub quiz knowledge — demographic experts forecast that India will overtake China as the world's most populous country this week.
Big Stories
London has takeover fever
Yesterday a swathe of takeover bids for UK listed companies were announced. US private equity giant Apollo confirmed press speculation that it was in the early stages of a bid for e-commerce business THG. The news sent shares in the owner of Cult Beauty and Myprotein websites, up 45%. Engineering group John Wood has also been approached by Apollo (for the fifth time) in a deal worth £1.7bn. And finally shares in payments firm Network International jumped 20% after announcing it had received a joint bid from two private equity firms valuing the business at £2.1bn. Since the Brexit vote in 2016, British public companies have been the target of foreign investors thanks to their cheap valuations driven by the weak pound.
Hedgehog takes over birds
Sega, the Japanese video game company behind Sonic the Hedgehog, announced it will buy Rovio, the Finnish creator of Angry Birds, for €706m. The deal is the latest in a wave of dealmaking in the gaming industry in recent years and gives Sega a foothold in the increasingly lucrative mobile gaming market. Angry Birds has been downloaded more than 5bn times and been spun off into TV shows, films and merchandise. However Rovio’s profit is heavily reliant on Angry Birds and has struggled to recreate its success with other games.
The price of greener travel
The race to cut carbon emissions will mean that UK air travel will grow slower, according to the industry’s biggest companies. Airlines, airports and aerospace manufacturers have all signed up to a government commitment to reach net zero by 2050, if achieved the UK would decarbonise faster than any other G7 country. Industry leaders say that ticket prices would have to increase 10-20% to fund greener flights. This would help the industry transition away from the reliance on heavily polluting fossil fuels but would "inevitably reduce passenger demand".
China's surprise growth
The world's second largest economy grew at a faster pace than expected in the first three months of 2023 as the end of the strict 'Covid Zero' policy gave way to stronger consumer spending and factory output, a sign the recovery is on track. China's GDP increased by 4.5%, better than the 4% forecast by analysts and higher than the 2.9% growth in the final quarter of 2022. A rebound in consumer spending and a ramping up in government infrastructure investment helped to boost growth in the first quarter.
Elsewhere...
Man U-turn: The value of Manchester United fell following a report the controversial Glazer family would remain owners of the club.
Energy changes: Energy suppliers have agreed to a ban on forcibly installing prepayment meters in the homes of customers over 85.
Cutting back: Accounting giant EY is cutting 3,000 jobs in the US, citing "overcapacity" in parts of the company.
Party over: Party Pieces, the online party goods supplier founded by the Princess of Wales's parents, is considering handing a six-figure sum to a buyer as part of efforts to offload the business.
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Number Of The Day
195,000
The number of NHS appointments cancelled during last week's junior doctors strike.
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