Strikes Would Push Royal Mail Into a Loss: The London Rush

(Bloomberg) — Here’s the key business news from London-listed companies this morning.

Deliveroo Plc: A tougher consumer environment slowed quarterly gross transaction value growth for the food delivery company, despite inflation raising the prices of products.

• The company’s founder and CEO  Will Shu is still focused on “driving the business to the milestone of adjusted Ebitda profitability,” and is starting a consultation on whether it should close its operations in the Netherlands
• Next Plc’s CEO Simon Wolfson said he will resign from Deliveroo’s board to spend more time on other commitments

Royal Mail Plc: The delivery company’s UK operations would be “materially loss making” this year if four days of strikes by the Communications Workers Union take place.

• The business said the CWU “failed to engage meaningfully” on required business changes and said the strikes would only make pay rises “less affordable and could put jobs at risk”

Hostelworld Group Plc: The low-cost travel agent said there was an 8% net reduction in the number of hostels listed on its platform compared to pre-pandemic levels.

• Coronavirus lockdowns and travel restrictions hit the company’s earnings, although it expects to return to profitability next year

Outside The City

The government is planning for several days over the winter when cold weather may combine with gas shortages, leading to organized blackouts for industry and even households. Under the latest “reasonable worst-case scenario,” Britain could face an electricity capacity shortfall totaling about a sixth of peak demand, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg.

Meanwhile, UK households are already a record £1.3 billion in debt to their energy suppliers ahead of winter, when bills are set to surge yet again.

In Case You Missed It 

UK finance firms are struggling with its worst job vacancy rates on record, underlining the skills shortage caused by digitization in banking, investing and insurance.

And here’s how Roman Abramovich’s London empire has been unravelling since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Looking Ahead

Gambling company Entain Plc will report tomorrow alongside Chilean miner Antofagasta Plc and estate agents Savills Plc. 

Antofagasta is one of the top four companies leading Bloomberg Intelligence’s Carbon scores for metals and mining firms — that indicates the company is better prepared for a low-carbon transition than some of its peers. 

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