Restaurant Group (LON:RTN) shareholders approved plans to acquire Wagamama, as part of a £559 million takeover. Restaurant Group already owns culinary chains such as Franke & Benny’s and Garfunkels. Some shareholders had held reservations over the deal, namely the price and the impact on debt levels for the group. The deal is set to be financed in part through a £315 million cash call on group shareholders. Despite some initial opposition, shareholders approved the deal noting Wagamama’s comparatively strong performance in an increasingly difficult trading climate for restaurants. Well-known restaurant chains such as Prezzo and Jamie’s Italian have closed various underperforming sites in recent months, in a bid to streamline costs. Wagamama has 196 restaurants, 133 of which are in the UK. Other locations include The Middle East, New Zealand and Croatia. Back in October, when the deal was announced, Restaurant Group Chief Executive Andy McCue said: “Wagamama is a fantastic brand, with a market leading pan-Asian proposition, which has consistently outperformed the casual dining market in recent years,” “This transaction is an exciting and transformative opportunity to create a business which can pursue a truly multi-pronged growth strategy and create substantial value for our shareholders.” Shares in Restaurant Group are currently down -11.40% as of 11:30AM (GMT).

Adjusted profits at De La Rue fell 36% in the six months to 29 September compared to the same period a year earlier. In the first results since losing the contract to make British passports, the company said it has had to strategically review its operations. Revenues increased by 5% to £257.6 million. The group’s contract for British passports, which it has had since 2008 and is worth £400 million, will end in 2019. Replacing the company will be the Franco-Dutch group Gemalto. Martin Sutherland, the group’s chief executive, said: “Over the last six months we have conducted a thorough review of our strategy and market positions. In the light of the UK passport decision, we have concluded that we will refocus our identity business on the supply of higher margin security features and components.” “We maintain a strong order book and pipeline which provides good visibility for the second half of this year and into next year. With good revenue coverage from the group’s 12-month order book of £365 million and based on the orders planned for production and shipment in the second half, we are confident that we will meet our expectations for the full year.” The decision to end De La Rue’s contract was a controversial one. The group employs 600 people at the printing plant in Gateshead. “We have a very skilled, proud workforce in Gateshead and I am going to have to face those workers, look at them in the whites of the eyes and try to explain to them why the British government thinks it’s a sensible decision to buy French passports not British passports,” said Sutherland when the decision was announced earlier this year. “I would like to invite Theresa May or Amber Rudd to come to my factory and explain to my dedicated workforce why they think this is a sensible decision to offshore the manufacture of a British icon,” he added. Shares in De La Rue are trading +5.74% (1058GMT).    

Philip Hammond has said that whilst all possible Brexit scenarios will leave the UK worse off economically, the prime minister’s deal is the best option. The Chancellor told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Wednesday that after analysing the effects of the proposed Brexit deal, the UK economy will be “slightly smaller”. “If you look at this purely from an economic point of view, yes there will be a cost to leaving the European Union because there will be impediments to our trade,” he said. The deal that will be put to the vote in December will “absolutely minimise those costs.” “The economy will be slightly smaller in the prime minister’s preferred version,” he added. The vote will take place in Parliament on 11 December, where many MPs have said they plan on rejecting the deal. Hammond said that if Theresa May’s deal is voted down, the UK will be in “uncharted political territory”. “We will then have to sit down as a cabinet and a government and decide where to go on the basis of the vote, what we’ve seen in the vote and who has voted in which way because clearly we live in a democracy, parliament is sovereign,” he said. “If parliament makes a decision to reject the prime minister’s proposal, we will have to consider very carefully how to proceed.” “All of the other options have disadvantages and we have to look not only at the economy but also the need to heal a fractured nation. We will not be successful if we remain fundamentally divided and fractured on this issue.” Until the vote, the prime minister will travel to different areas within the UK to persuade MPs and the general public to vote for the deal. She will say during her visit to Glasgow: “We will be free to strike our own trade deals around the world, providing even greater opportunity to Scottish exporters.”

Intertek Group released a trading statement on Tuesday. The quality assurance provider has said it is set to maintain full-year performance and deliver all 2018 targets. The group has announced that revenue saw a sluggish growth in the 10 months through October. This is as a result of weaknesses in the trade and resources division. Group revenue was recorded at £2,315.7 million, which is up 4.8% at constant rates and 0.5% at actual rates.

Intertek also announced that its Alchemy acquisition was integrating well.

CEO of Intertek, André Lacroix, commented on the results: “Intertek is going from strength to strength, making consistent progress on strategy and performance. We are on track to deliver our 2018 targets of good organic revenue growth at constant rates with moderate group margin progression and strong cash conversion.” “We are benefiting from higher demand from our customers for Intertek global Total Quality Assurance solutions in our Products, Trade and Resources sectors. In the last four months, we have seen broad-based revenue growth acceleration with 4.5% organic revenue growth at constant rates with continuing robust performance in our Products sector and performance improvement in Trade and Resources. The recent acquisitions in high margin and high growth areas performed well.” “The $250 billion global quality assurance industry has attractive structural growth prospects driven by an increased focus of corporations on risk management, global trade flows, global demand for energy, expanding regulations, more complex sourcing and distribution operations, technological innovations, government investments in large infrastructure projects, and increased consumer demand for higher quality and more sustainable products.” “We are uniquely positioned to seize these exciting growth opportunities thanks to our Total Quality Assurance differentiated value proposition. We provide our clients with a superior customer service based on the depth and breadth of our technical expertise, our global network of over 1,000 state-of-the-art facilities in over 100 countries, our industry-leading Assurance, Testing, Inspection and Certification solutions, and our customer-centric culture fuelled by our passionate colleagues around the world.” Tuesday’s other stock market news includes Thomas Cook shares plunging 30% on a profit warning. Additionally, shares in the UK’s leading bakery retailer Greggs jumped after the company announced a positive outlook. Elsewhere, Pets at Home revealed its first-half results, including an 81% decrease in profits. At 16:35 GMT today, shares in Intertek Group plc (LON:ITRK) were trading at +2.28%.

Following comments by Donald Trump suggesting that the Brexit deal might affect trade with the US, the pound fell to a low of 1.274 against the dollar. The US President said on Tuesday the withdrawal agreement “sounds like a great deal for the EU” and may, therefore, mean that the UK and US might not carry out any trade deals. “Right now if you look at the deal, [the UK] may not be able to trade with us. And that wouldn’t be a good thing. I don’t think they meant that” he said outside the White House. The government has insisted that the UK will be able to carry out deals with countries around the world. Connor Campbell from SpreadEx said: “The pound remained shaken by Trump’s suggestion that Theresa May’s Brexit deal was so favourable to the EU that it might prevent the UK from being able to trade with the US. Against the dollar it dropped half a percent, leaving cable lurking around $1.275, while against the euro it was down 0.4%, sitting just under €1.126.” Theresa May is taking part in a two-week bid in order to persuade MPs and the British public that her Brexit deal is the right way forward. Earlier this week, the director of the Confederation of Business Industry (CBI) has that businesses in Northern Ireland will not be able to cope with a no-deal Brexit and were, therefore, backing the current agreement. Angela McGowan said that leaving the EU without a deal is not an option and “no country in the world will want to invest in Northern Ireland if it is thrown out of Europe.” Many have warned to vote against the deal, with the DUP’s Arlene Foster accusing the prime minister of “giving up” on getting a better deal. MPs will vote on the deal in December.  

John Lewis has reported a record week of sales thanks to Black Friday deals. In the week to 27 November, sales increased by 7.7% compared to the year previously. Sales in the fashion and beauty department saw the biggest increase at 13.1%, with the deals pulling customers in. Electrical and homeware sales were up by 6%. John hailed it as the “biggest sales week in our history” “While it is encouraging to see headline retail sales growth strengthen in November after a weak outturn in October, the quarterly survey continues to paint a gloomy picture of the sector. Business sentiment remains poor, investment intentions are flat, and headcount continues to decline,” said Anna Leach, the CBI head of economic intelligence. Sales in Waitrose were not as promising as the department store. Sales of non-food items fell by 6.9%, whilst food sales were down by 1.6%. However, in the run-up to Christmas shoppers did splurge on mince pies and mulled wine, sales were up 43% and 17% respectively.