Here are the business stories making the headlines locally and across the country this morning.
Labour pledges to renationalise most rail services within five years
Labour says it expects to renationalise most passenger rail services within five years, if it is elected.
The party says it will meet the pledge by bringing passenger services into public control as the contracts expire - but there will still be a role for the private sector.
Automatic refunds for train delays and improved internet connections are among a series of other railway pledges.
Rail Minister Huw Merriman said the plans were "pointless" and "unfunded".
Equinor first-quarter profit down 37% on lower gas prices
Equinor posted a sharp fall in first-quarter profit on Thursday, hit by tumbling natural gas prices in Europe, though strong energy trading and rising output limited the decline.
The Norwegian oil and gas producer's adjusted earnings before tax for January-March fell almost 37% to $7.53 billion but beat the $7.2 billion forecast in a poll of 22 analysts compiled by Equinor.
"Production on the Norwegian continental shelf was high, and the international portfolio contributed with solid production growth," Equinor CEO Anders Opedal said in a statement.
Attacks on Red Sea shipping forces 66% decline in Suez Canal traffic - ONS
Shipping traffic through the vital Suez Canal artery in Egypt has plunged by 66% since cargo was forced to divert due to attacks on vessels, according to official figures.
The data, from the UK's Office for National Statistics (ONS), covered the period from mid-December to the beginning of April.
It is important as it represents the scale of disruption to supplies through the artificial channel linking the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea since Iran-backed Houthi fighters started firing on ships in the run-up to Christmas last year.
There are fears that soaring costs for insurance, fuel and wages risk stoking a fresh wave of inflation as the diversion to Europe from destinations such as manufacturing powerhouse China, around the southern tip of Africa, adds up to 14 days to transit times.
New life for tired old office building in Bridge of Don
An old office building in Bridge of Don, Aberdeen, is being renovated and turned into social housing, creating six new affordable homes in the city.
Osprey Housing said its £850,658 Ellon Road regeneration project, which is due for completion in September, was helping preserve part of the city’s rich granite heritage.
The major upgrade is also badly needed for the partly derelict building – at one time a bank – to meet today’s higher energy standards, the association added.
For Aberdeen Osteopathy Clinic (AOC), which is also located in the property, it is business at usual throughout the renovation.