Friday newspaper round-up: Deutsche Bank, Brexit, BHS, tobacco
Deutsche Bank has become the latest big company to be hit by investor ire over executive pay after shareholders voted down its new remuneration plan for top managers. The vote follows pay rebellions at Citigroup and Renault, and capped a shareholder meeting full of criticism for Deutsche, which made a €6.8bn loss last year, and is battling to restore its fortunes and reputation after years of poor returns and high legal costs. – Financial Times
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Bookmakers have cut the odds on Britain voting to remain in the EU, as a flurry of bets suggests the result may not be as finely balanced as the polls show. William Hill cut its odds on a Remain vote for a third day running on Thursday to 1/5, giving an implied probability of 83 per cent, and it was joined by a host of other high street bookies. – Financial Times
Two of the world’s biggest tobacco companies have vowed to continue to fight plain packaging in the UK, after the High Court today rejected a bid by the cigarette industry to prevent the introduction of the new law. Plain packets of cigarettes will be officially imposed tomorrow after Mr Justice Green dismissed a challenge against the measure by four industry giants: British American Tobacco (BAT), Japan Tobacco International (JTI), Imperial Tobacco, and Philip Morris International (PMI). – Telegraph
BHS’s administrators have lined up a trio of liquidators should talks over a sale of the failed retailer come to nothing. Restructuring firms Alteri, Hilco and Gordon Brothers, experts in high street liquidations, have been asked to assess how much BHS would be worth if all its assets including existing stock were sold-off piecemeal. – Telegraph
Households will be paying £100 more for their annual bills within five years to fund four government policies designed to keep the lights on and support low-carbon electricity, according to a review. Independent consultancy Cornwall Energy said energy subsidies will have risen by 124% by 2020-21 due to the cost of the capacity market, renewable obligations, contracts for difference and feed-in tariff schemes. – Guardian
A top Bank of England policymaker has warned that even if Britain votes to stay in the EU, underlying weakness in the economy could mean that more support is required from the Bank. Jan Vlieghe, one of the nine policymakers who vote on interest rates, has previously floated the idea of them being cut below zero. Speaking on Thursday, he again raised the prospect of rates coming down further from their record low of 0.5%, when he said the economy could require “additional monetary stimulus” if it does not rebound after a remain vote in the EU referendum on 23 June. - Guardian