PRESS DIGEST- British Business - Feb 4
Feb 4 - The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
The Times
Graham's The Family Dairy is to supply Starbucks Corp with cream and milk in all its Scottish outlets, making the Bridge of Allan company the exclusive supplier to 68 coffee shops. (http://thetim.es/1PVq4Jq)
GlaxoSmithKline Plc claimed yesterday that it would hit a key sales target two years early, saying that its strategy was paying off in defiance of calls for the company to be broken up. (http://thetim.es/1PVqoYI)
The Guardian
Sports Direct has backed down from its legal battle with Rangers football club and abandoned efforts to prevent disclosure of the pair's joint venture, which has made the Old Firm club about 4 pence from every pound spent in its Ibrox store. (http://bit.ly/1PVsMhT)
EasyJet Plc founder Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou's budget food store, which charges just 25p each for everyday groceries, has been forced to close temporarily after less than two days as it has run out of stock. (http://bit.ly/1PVsUhA)
The Telegraph
Tens of millions of mobile phone customers in Britain could see their bills frozen as part of a plan by Hutchison to gain approval for its 10.25 billion pounds ($14.96 billion) merger of Three and O2. (http://bit.ly/1PVs6t4)
Sky News
Ford Motor Co is to shed hundreds of jobs in the UK and Germany as part of a programme to save $200 million a year. The group said it was launching a voluntary redundancy programme as it looked to slash costs across its European business, in the face of mounting regulatory costs. (http://bit.ly/1PVr2VZ)
David Cameron is to pledge an extra 1.2 billion pounds ($1.75 billion)of UK aid to tackle the Syrian refugee crisis as he co-hosts a major international conference in London. (http://bit.ly/1PVshEC)
The Independent
Britons take 12 years longer than they think they will to pay off their debts, according to a report by the Centre for Economics and Business Research. (http://ind.pn/1PVsnMt) ($1 = 0.6853 pounds) (Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
