Wednesday newspaper round-up: Sainsbury, Facebook, Santander, EDF

J Sainsbury is close to securing the support of its largest investor for a renewed bid for Home Retail Group as pressure mounts ahead of a looming takeover deadline. The Times understands that the Qatar Investment Authority, which owns 25 per cent of Sainsbury’s, has indicated that it could support the grocer if it makes a renewed offer of more than £1 billion for the owner of Argos. – The Times

Facebook is resisting attempts by Britain’s tax authorities to reclaim back-taxes, a stance likely to heighten public anger over aggressive avoidance by US technology giants. Although it is not known how much Facebook has set aside, the world’s leading social media site is being audited by HM Revenue & Customs over taxes that may have fallen due between 2010 and 2014. – Financial Times

The cost of compensating UK customers for mis-selling payment protection insurance and a rise in Brazilian bad debts caused Spain’s Santander to miss analyst expectations with only a 2.6 per cent rise in annual profits. Spain’s largest bank said on Wednesday that it had put aside an extra £450m (€600m) provision to cover an expected increase in claims over the next two years from British customers who were allegedly mis-sold PPI policies. – Financial Times

Chinese state media has stepped up a salvo of biting commentaries againstGeorge Soros and other currency traders as the yuan comes under pressure, with the billionaire investor accused of “declaring war” on the unit. At the annual World Economic Forum in Davos last week, Soros told Bloomberg TV that the world’s second-largest economy – where growth has already slowed to a 25-year low according to official figures – was heading for more troubles. – Guardian

Former employees of collapsed yacht builder Fairline Boats are “queuing at the gates” for jobs under its new Russian owners but only 100 positions will be available, according to its managing director. Alexander Volov and Igor Glyanenko, low-profile UK-based businessmen with a background in media, have bought Fairline’s assets in a deal understood to be worth £4m. - Guardian

EDF has delayed its final investment decision on the Hinkley Point new nuclear plant yet again, amid claims it is still struggling to finalise funding for the £18bn project. The French energy giant had been scheduled to take the long-awaited decision at a board meeting on January 27, but is now thought unlikely to do so until its annual results on February 16 at the earliest. - Telegraph

The European Commission mishandled government bail-outs in the wake of the financial crisis, imposing harsher conditions on member states as contagion spread across the continent, the EU's Court of Auditors has found. In the first major assessment of the Commission's role in "Troika" of international creditors, the ECA said Brussels was unprepared for Europe's spiralling debt crisis as it failed to spot dangerous deficit levels in member states. – Telegraph

A former treasurer of the Conservative Party is set to see his stake in the spread-betting firm he founded in the late 1980s valued at more than £600 million when it lists on the London stock market next month. Peter Cruddas, the founder of CMC Markets, is expected to sell shares worth about £200 million when the company floats. – The Times