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PFZW, one of Europe’s largest pension funds with €250bn in assets, has withdrawn a €14.5bn mandate from BlackRock, citing concerns over the firm’s voting record on sustainability. The decision underscores growing tensions between European and American investors over ESG standards. While US firms have pulled back from sustainability amid shifting political winds, Dutch activists are pressing pension funds to cut ties with managers not backing climate resolutions. PFZW confirmed that BlackRock now manages only a smaller portion of its money market holdings. According to BlackRock, its support for environmental and social recommendations from shareholders decreased from 4% in 2024 to 2% in 2025. The asset manager said many of them lacked economic merit or were unduly prescriptive, which is why they fell.

 

Financial Times

The Times

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Shell has permanently halted construction of its Rotterdam biofuels facility, once slated as one of Europe's largest producers of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable diesel. Originally launched in 2022, the project was paused in 2023 due to weak market conditions, incurring a $780m post-tax impairment. Shell cited poor cost competitiveness as the key reason for canceling the plant, following a full technical and commercial reassessment. “It became clear that the project would be insufficiently competitive to meet our customers’ need for affordable, low-carbon products,” said Machteld de Haan, Shell’s president of downstream, renewables and energy solutions.

 

The Times

Rachel Reeves has faced pressure from leading retailers over planned business rates reforms during talks at Number 11 Downing Street. Around ten major industry figures, including John Lewis chairman Jason Tarry and B&Q chief executive Graham Bell, warned the Chancellor that higher rates for larger premises risked punishing high street 'anchor' stores as well as online warehouses. Businesses fear some 4,000 shops could face increased costs, compounding pressure from recent rises in employer national insurance and wages. The British Retail Consortium said that a meaningful cut in rates was vital to protect jobs, ease prices and bolster growth, though concerns remain that the delayed Budget, set for late November, will dampen consumer spending during the crucial pre-Christmas trading period.

 

Daily Mail

S&P Global's latest PMI shows that the services sector saw the steepest pace on month-to-month growth in four-and-a-half years in August. The composite PMI for August came in at 53.5, with this up from 51.5 in July and marking a 16-month high on a scale where a reading above 50 represents growth. While the manufacturing PMI saw a slowdown, the services sector PMI came in a 54.2. The report also revealed steeper growth in new work, with this driven by rising sales, while business confidence also hit a 10-month high. However, S&P Global said hiring remained "subdued," with firms also noting that costs increased in August.

 

City AM

The Times

Zalando has lost a court fight against European Union online content rules, boosting EU tech regulators' efforts to force online platforms to do more to tackle illegal and harmful content on their platforms. The online retailer sued the European Commission after being designated as a very large online platform (VLOP) under the Digital Services Act (DSA), putting it in the same category as Google and Meta Platforms. It argued that it differs from them in that it offers a hybrid service consisting of both an online shop and an online marketplace, selling its own products as well as those provided by partners. Zalando's challenge is the first by a company against the DSA. The General Court will rule next week on Meta and TikTok's challenges against fees levied on them aimed at covering the Commission's cost of monitoring their compliance with the DSA.

 

Reuters

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has initiated an investigation into the merger of Assura and Primary Health Properties (PHP) and whether the deal could lead to "substantial lessening of competition." The firms are both significant NHS landlords and generated £333m in rental income last year. While there have been concerns about potential rent increases for the NHS, Andrew Saunders, a property analyst at Shore Capital, said: "We continue to believe that the merger will not prove anti-competitive." The CMA aims to complete phase one of its investigation by the end of October, after which it will decide on further action. Between them, Assura and PHP own about one in seven doctors' surgeries in the UK and their combined property portfolio is worth about £6bn.

 

Reuters

The Times

Senior managers at Thames Water could be ousted as part of plans to restructure the firm, with sources linked to a consortium of lenders saying: "If the Government insists we need a management clear-out – we can help with that." The consortium of investors, who are owed £13bn of Thames' £17bn debts, have put forward a rescue proposal that could include £1bn in extra funding through a combination of additional debt write-offs and fresh capital. The consortium have presented a new operational plan to Ofwat but are calling on the regulator to ease targets on pollution and leakage that the company failed to hit in the past. Members have previously called for a "regulatory reset."

 

BBC News

City AM

Browning West, a major shareholder in Domino's Pizza, has urged the company to halt its acquisition plans for six months and return £100m to shareholders. The activist investor, which holds a 5% stake, expressed concerns over the company's multi-brand strategy and suggested that acquisitions should only proceed with a suitable private equity partner. Browning West's founding partner, Usman Nabi, argues that the current economic environment and Domino's low share price necessitate a focus on sustainable growth.

 

The Times

Unilever CEO Fernando Fernandez plans to replace 50 of the firm's 200 top managers to eliminate "pockets of mediocrity" and refocus on growth at the consumer goods group. 

 

Financial Times

M&G returned to net inflows of £2.1bn in H1 2025, driven by a £2.2bn Dutch mandate win, but disappointed investors with a flat adjusted operating profit of £378m, below analysts’ £398m forecast. CEO Andrea Rossi’s turnaround has included £213m in cost savings so far, with international assets now making up 58% of external AUM. Despite improved profitability measures and a raised interim dividend, pre-tax profits rose mainly from investment returns, not core operations. Apollo Global Management reportedly eyed M&G as a takeover candidate but no talks are ongoing.

 

The Times

Bakkavor, a major supplier of prepared meals to Tesco, has warned that rising commodity prices and higher labour costs could deliver a £65m financial hit. The company said increases to employers' national insurance and the national living wage alone would add £15m to its annual bill, though it expected inflation recovery and efficiency measures to offset much of the pressure. Bakkavor reported a 0.9% rise in revenue to £1.08bn but saw pre-tax profit fall from £41.8m to £24.6m. Bakkavor is in the process of merging with food-to-go rival Greencore, a deal backed by shareholders and now under review by the competition regulator.

 

The Standard

The Times

Hilton Foods has warned that sharp quota cuts and soaring raw material costs have driven seafood inflation of around 60% in the UK, leading to a mid to high single-digit drop in demand. The supplier, which works with Tesco, said it is turning to alternative fish species and reformulating products to offset higher costs, while meat sales have helped steady overall performance. Despite revenues rising 12.4% to £797.3m, pre-tax profits fell 5.3% to £24.3m amid inflationary pressures and supply chain disruption.

 

Daily Mail

Sky News reports that Bodycare could appoint administrators from Interpath Advisory as soon as tomorrow, putting 1,500 jobs at risk. Founded in 1970, the health and beauty retailer operates nearly 150 stores across the UK. The chain was profitable before the pandemic, but lost millions of pounds in the financial years immediately after it hit.

 

Sky News

Lush closed its UK shops, factories, and website yesterday to protest against starvation in Gaza. Lush co-founder Mark Constantine estimated the closure cost the company £300,000, stating: "It would be nice to be able to pay for food to go into Gaza rather than just sacrificing [profits]." The company called on the UK Government to end arms sales to Israel and highlighted its fundraising efforts for Palestinian mental health services. Staff were compensated for the closure day.

 

Daily Mail

The Guardian

A US federal judge has ruled that Google will not have to sell its Chrome web browser but must share information with competitors. It was also ruled that the tech giant will not have to sell off its Android operating system. Google has been barred from entering or maintaining exclusive contracts relating to the distribution of its products including Chrome, Google Assistant and the Gemini app. The US Department of Justice had argued that Google should have to sell Chrome and possibly Android, having won a judgement that the tech company had an illegal monopoly in online search.

 

Financial Times

BBC News

The Guardian

Perry Carpenter, Chief Human Risk Management Strategist at KnowBe4, discusses the transformative role of AI agents in cybersecurity. These agents function like a virtual security team, monitoring networks and responding to threats with unprecedented speed. However, they raise concerns about autonomy and control. Carpenter emphasises the need for a balance between agent autonomy and human oversight to prevent errors. He states: "If AI systems are developed through the integration of transparency, monitoring and ethical safeguards, they can accelerate innovation." The future of cybersecurity relies on this collaboration between AI and human professionals.

 

Forbes