Sunday newspaper round-up: 'Debt timebomb', Rolls-Royce, BAE Systems

Millions of British families are are having to borrow to pay their basic bills and expenses marking a dangerous new phase of the cost of living crisis. And with interest rates set to be hiked again over the coming week, some are warning of a "debt timebomb" among less well off households. Rising rates are in many cases also cutting of access to borrowing. Reports also suggested that struggling single parents were being targeted through social media ads with inappropriate debt repayment schemes. - Guardian

Former Rolls-Royce boss, Sir John Rose, called on government to back the company's drive to develop British nuclear technology. The engineer is leading a project to build a fleet of so-called small modular reactors, which are now part of the country's long-term energy strategy. Yet the government is instead launching a competition to choose a provider that will include foreign rivals. According to Rolls, if it won then by 2050 it could generate 40,000 jobs in the UK and add £52 bn to the economy. - The Financial Mail on Sunday

The military is rethinking from where it sources supplies in the wake of the war in Ukraine and given the need to boost the country's "sovereign capacity" - military speak for making more kit at home. That push could prove extremely lucrative for home-grown outfits such as BAE Systems. Hence the MoD's award earlier in the month to BAE to supply eight times more 155mm howitzer shells. Rolls-Royce, which is also due to report results this week, is another winner in the sector. - The Sunday Times

Technology giants Amazon and Microsoft slammed an Ofcom report accusing them of locking clients into deals that hurt competition. According to the watchdog, the discounts offered by the two companies to clients who rent large amounts of capacity in the cloud keeps them from looking for alternatives, thus hurting smaller competitors. Ofcom was also mulling whether to ask the Competition and Markets Authority to initiate a full-blown investigation. Microsoft also criticised another proposal to setting technical standards in order to facilitate switching. - The Sunday Telegraph

The Universities Superannuation Scheme, Britain's largest private sector pension fund,lost £16bn as an 'unnecessary' debt-driven strategy fell through. The fund had invested heavily in so-called liability-driven investments, despite warnings from Oxford, Cambridge and Imperial College London. The rout came amid the 2022 mini-Budget crisis that triggered a meltdown in the pensions market. - The Financial Mail on Sunday