Friday newspaper round-up: Tata Steel, Hinckley Point C, Gatwick

A network of agents, payments from a Beijing-backed slush fund and a series of illicit transfers of highly sensitive nuclear knowhow: the case against Britain’s Chinese partner in the controversial Hinckley Point C project could have leapt from the pages of a modern spy thriller. According to the US Department of Justice, the FBI has discovered evidence that China General Nuclear Power (CGN) has been engaged in a conspiracy to steal US nuclear secrets stretching back almost two decades. - The Guardian

July was the busiest month in Gatwick’s 80-year history as growth in long-haul traffic helped to push up overall passenger numbers up by 6.8 per cent over a year earlier. Gatwick said that 4.6 million passengers travelled through London’s second airport last month. Long-haul passenger numbers were up 23 per cent on a year earlier with traffic to Canada and Mexico much higher. - The Times

The Duke of Westminster’s death has led to calls from tax campaigners to reform the system of trusts which has allowed Britain’s wealthiest families to preserve fortunes through generations by avoiding death duties. The 7th Duke of Westminster, 25-year-old Hugh Grosvenor, is now the heir to a legacy worth more than £9bn. Thanks to a series of trusts, which are thought to date to the death of the 2nd Duke in 1953, Hugh and his three sisters will avoid having to pay the 40% levy ordinary families are faced with when parents die. - The Guardian

Demand for gold has rocketed among investors who are looking for sanctuary from Brexit, the US election and negative interest rates. Figures from the World Gold Council show that investment demand for the precious metal soared 127% in the six months to the end of June compared to the same period in 2015, the second highest on record. Regarded as a safe haven asset, the figures show just how nervy investors have become. Appetite for gold was 16% higher than during the financial crisis. - The Daily Mail