Here are the business stories making the headlines locally and across the country this morning.
Ditching SNP-Green deal could smooth path for A96 dualling, says SNP councillor
An SNP councillor says the case for fully dualling the A96 could stand a better chance of becoming reality without Greens in government.
Jérémie Fernandes, who represents Elgin City North, is firmly behind the long-awaited project to dual the route between Aberdeen and Inverness by 2030.
He put a spotlight on the overdue promise at the SNP’s last party conference in Aberdeen in October, where an overwhelming majority of members backed full dualling.
Now, the future of the power-sharing deal between the SNP and Greens is at risk of collapse after a rebellion by party activists over climate policy.
Asda finance chief dismisses talk of sale amid ownership shake-up
Asda’s finance chief has swept aside suggestions that its owners are preparing Britain’s third-biggest supermarket for a sale.
Michael Gleeson, chief financial officer at the Leeds-based grocer, said the track record of the billionaire Issa brothers and co-owner TDR Capital, the private equity company, was “one of growth and investing for the long run”.
He said: “They don’t tend to be in and out of companies — they hold their positions in companies for significant periods of time. So ‘no’ is the answer to that.”
Zuber Issa, his older brother Mohsin Issa, and TDR Capital bought Asda in a £6.8 billion leveraged acquisition in 2021 from Walmart, the American retail group.
PureGym to open more UK sites as expansion drives higher sales
PureGym has said it plans to keep expanding with new gyms after opening 40 across the UK over the past year.
It came as the gym operator said the new sites helped drive a rise in revenues in 2023 amid a “challenging” economic backdrop for the business and customers.
The leisure company revealed that revenues grew 15% to £549 million for the year, compared with 2022.
It said it also benefited from a rise in membership, which increased 11% across the business with 16% growth in the UK.
Royal Mail seeks to fast-track delivery shake-up after shock takeover bid
Royal Mail is pressuring regulators to approve plans for less frequent letter deliveries, as the company scrambles to fend off a £3.1bn takeover bid from a Czech billionaire.
International Distributions Services (IDS), Royal Mail’s parent company, said foot-dragging by Ofcom had “held back” plans to modernise the company.
Keith Williams, chairman of IDS, said: “Reform is in the regulator’s hands and we urge Ofcom to accelerate their review.”
The pressure for the regulator to move quicker comes after Royal Mail last week rejected a shock takeover approach by Daniel Kretinsky, known as the “Czech sphinx”.