LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Royal Mail's bosses have admitted that Covid-related disruptions are hampering normal service before Christmas. The company has apologised to customers, blaming the need for self-isolation, high levels of sick absence, resourcing or other local factors brought on by Covid. Last Wednesday a year-high of 32 delivery offices were being impacted and as of last night, 21 offices were still experiencing problems. However, several employees had blamed the delays on revisions to routes, although senior sources had denied that was the case. - Financial Mail on Sunday



Ministers are on alert regarding a possible takeover of BT Group by billionaire investor Patrick Drahi, prompting digital secretary, Nadine Dorries, to call in the company's boss, Philip Janssen, for talks. Under Takeover Panel rules, Drahi was prohibited from buying more shares or taking over the entire company until this weekend. The new National Security and Investment Bill, which will go into effect from January, allows the business secretary to block transactions involving more than 25% of a firm if it poses a risk to national security. - Sunday Times

JD Sports is on the verge of throwing in the towel following its protracted battle with the Competition and Markets Authority over its attempted takeover of Footasylum. JD has criticised CMA's order that it sell Footasylum, pointing to pressure from the likes of Nike and Adidas, who are increasingly selling directly to consumers. For its part, the competition watchdog is looking into whether JD boss Peter Cowgill broke competition rules when he met with Footasylum's chief executive officer at a car park near Bury. - Sunday Times

Top investors in SSE have attacked US hedge fund outfit Elliott, claiming that it is pursuing short-term gains at the cost of longer-term returns and employing "back of a fag packet" calculations. Over recent months, Elliott had taken out a top-five stake in SSE and during the previous week had attacked its strategy. The hedge fund demanded that two new independent directors be appointed and, among other things, called for the sale of a bigger stake in SSE's electricity networks unit and a partial listing or sale of a stake in its renewables arm. Fund managers at Janus Henderson and Columbia Threadneedle were among those opposed to Elliott's move to break up SSE. - Sunday Times

Fund manager Jupiter Asset Management has hired Robey Warshaw to advise it on how to bolster its defences against a potential buyout offer amid the merger frenzy that has gripped the City. Takeovers of UK firms reached a 14-year peak in the first seven months of 2021, tripling in value versus the comparable period of 2020 to reach £149bn. According to one investment banker, Jupiter was on its list of potential targets and there was a private equity outfit which might possibly be interested in a takeover. Analysts at Panmure Gordon and Numis agreed that a bid was now increasingly possible. - Financial Mail on Sunday

Marks&Spencer is on course to become one of the festive period's winners on the UK high street. One source from within the group said that it had hit the past few weeks with "a real spring in its step". Figures from Kantar showed that M&S was the only large food retailer to have grown sales in November on a year-on-year basis, with a rise of 5.6%, while even Aldi and Lidl had clocked in with declines, of 1.1%. Clive Black at house broker ShoreCap concurred, saying the company's strategy of broadening its customer base in food was "undoubtedly" bearing fruit. Fashion was "a longer journey" for the company, Black added, but "the product is better and starting to strike the right chord". - Financial Mail on Sunday

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