Vodafone planning hundreds of job cuts, mainly in London - report

Vodafone is reportedly planning to make its biggest round of job cuts in five years as it looks to rein in costs and revive its stuttering performance.

The Financial Times cited people briefed on the discussions as saying that the telecoms group is looking to shed several hundred jobs, most of which are located at its London headquarters.

Vodafone, which employs about 104,000 people globally and 9,400 people in the UK, has had a particularly tough year after coming under pressure from a number of investors to simplify its business, shed poorly performing units and decentralise its global operations.

The company said in November that it was planning to cut €1bn of costs by 2026, as it announced a drop in first-half profits, partly due to a weak performance in its largest market, Germany.

Nick Read, who was chief executive at the time, said the savings would "be achieved through streamlining simplification of the group" and could involve job losses.