Monday newspaper round-up: Nafta, insolvencies, Barclays, Melrose

The United States and Canada have reached a deal on a “new, modernized trade agreement”, which is designed to replace the 1994 Nafta pact. In a joint statement on Sunday night, the two nations said the new deal would be called the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). - Guardian

British manufacturers are pulling back sharply on investment plans due to mounting uncertainty over Brexit and growing fears of a global trade war, a report has warned. Just one-third of companies said they planned to increase their investment in plant and machinery – a record low in the fifth annual survey carried out by the EEF manufacturers’ body and Santander Bank. - Guardian

Radical reforms to open up trade in services, online commerce and cross-border investment could give the world economy a major boost over the coming years, if governments choose to seize the opportunity. The International Monetary Fund is launching a new campaign to stop the trade war and encourage nations to rediscover the benefits of trade, in the face of higher tariffs and anti-trade rhetoric, particularly as the US builds barriers against Chinese goods. - Telegraph

British exports worth more than £1.9 billion have been hit by President Trump’s trade attacks on the European Union and China, analysis shows. Moreover, economists fear that UK goods worth up £3.4 billion could be affected by the acrimonious trade dispute between the United States and China. - The Times

The collapse of construction group Carillion earlier this year triggered a 20% spike in the the number of UK building firms becoming insolvent, according to a report. In a devastating knock-on effect for the sector, a total of 780 companies in the industry fell into insolvency in the first quarter of 2018 – a one-fifth rise on the same period the previous year – the analysis by accountancy firm Moore Stephens revealed. - Guardian

Barclays is facing a £38.5 million bill to compensate people over solar panel loan mis-selling by businesses that brokered its finance deals. Barclays Partner Finance, a subsidiary of the bank, has reported a 15-fold increase in cash set aside for customer redress after commissioning external solicitors to review its liabilities.

Overseas banks in the UK are pushing for tax cuts to keep the City competitive after Brexit, ahead of Chancellor Philip Hammond’s Budget next month. The Association of Foreign Banks – which represents giants like JP Morgan, Citigroup and UBS – has warned that many of its members are frustrated at what they perceive to be the poor deal offered by Britain, which charges banks a corporation tax surcharge and a levy on assets. - Telegraph

GKN owner Melrose is preparing to cash in on its turnaround of the US air conditioning manufacturer Nortek as part of a string of sales expected to raise up to £6bn. Melrose bosses are exploring a sale of Nortek just two years after theysnapped up the business for £2.2bn. - Telegraph

Aston Martin is hoping that its stock market flotation on Wednesday will value it at close to £5 billion after reports of strong demand from international shareholders. Aston Martin Lagonda’s stockbrokers received bids for the entire 25 per cent of company that they are trying to sell on the first day of an investor roadshow last week, City sources said. - The Times

Digital start-ups are complaining they have been frozen out of the lion’s share of a contest for £775m of funding stumped up by RBS to boost competition in business banking. Tide, the business banking service, said the eligibility criteria had blocked it from bidding for the majority of the package. - Telegraph

Philip Hammond is set to promise reforms to the unpopular apprenticeship levy, the vocational training policy that has been beset by problems since its introduction last year, as the government seeks to repair damage to its relationship with industry. The chancellor will announce a consultation today on improving the levy, the new funding system that was supposed to improve the training of young workers and to help the nation to tackle skills shortages. - The Times

About 10,000 trade specialists will receive training under a government plan designed to avert crippling disruption at ports if Britain leaves the European Union without a deal. Ministers have pledged to fund courses costing £8 million for thousands of customs brokers and freight forwarders. - The Times

Elon Musk has claimed that Tesla is “very close” to profitability after he made a deal with US authorities to stay on as chief executive of the car company, according to reports. Investors breathed a sigh of relief over the weekend after Musk struck a settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the US financial markets regulator, on Saturday night to end a legal spat over his failed plan to privatise Tesla. - Telegraph

Selfridges has defied the high street downturn with a £300 million revamp of its famous store pushing profits to a record for the fifth consecutive year. Anne Pitcher, managing director, said that sales at the chain had jumped by 11.5 per cent to more than £1.75 billion. Operating earnings rose by £1 million to a record £181 million in the year to February 3. - The Times

Backers of mini nuclear power stations have asked for billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money to build their first UK projects, according to an official document. Advocates for small modular reactors (SMRs) argue they are more affordable and less risky than conventional large-scale nuclear plants, and therefore able to compete with the falling costs of windfarms and solar power. Some firms have been calling for as much as £3.6bn to fund construction costs, according to a government-commissioned report, released under freedom of information rules. - Guardian