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Live Reporting

Chris Johnston

All times stated are UK

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  1. Good night

    That's all we have time for today on Business Live - thanks for reading. We're back at 06:00 tomorrow - do join us then.

  2. US stocks fall as global growth fears weigh on Wall Street

    Wall Street traders

    Wall Street stocks closed down, joining most European and Asian markets in retreating on fears of weakening global growth. 

    Weak Chinese manufacturing data and a downgrade to eurozone growth projections by the European Union weighed on markets, analysts said.

    The Dow Jones lost 0.8% to end at 17,750.91 points, while the broad-based S&P 500 fell 0.9% to 2,063.37. The Nasdaq dropped 1.1% to 4,763.22. 

  3. Vice and ESPN in deal to produce sports series

    Fast-growing, youth-focused Vice Media, which operates a popular YouTube channel, has reached a deal to produce "short-form" programmes about the world of sport for ESPN.

    ESPN, a sports cable channel controlled by Disney's ABC network, said the tie-up would allow collaboration on "brand new short-form series" that "will take audiences around the world to look at dominant athletes, fascinating characters and championship events that reside outside the mainstream".

    Vice includes the Murdoch family's 21st Century Fox among its investors.

  4. Norway's new EU deal

    Norwegian flag

    Business correspondent Jonty Bloom writes:

    Norway and the EU have signed a new agreement on its contributions to the poorest parts of the EEA - the EU plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. Norway's payments will increase from €360m a year to €391m from 2014 to 2021.  The money is paid to various schemes in Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.

    In parallel, Norway has negotiated an agreement on better market access in the EU for Norwegian seafood. The figures are important as Norway is often held up as a possible model for the UK's relationship with the EU after a possible vote to leave. 

  5. WhatsApp back in Brazil

    WhatsApp icon

    A Brazilian judge has overturned a temporary ban on WhatsApp in the country - the second such freeze in five months. On Monday, a judge in the northeastern state of Sergipe had ordered Brazil's five main wireless operators to block access to WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook, for 72 hours. 

    The reason for the order was not made public due to legal secrecy in an ongoing case before the state court. 

    The chat app has some 100 million users in Brazil.   

  6. Bowers & Wilkins sold to Silicon Valley start-up

    B&W factory

    Bowers & Wilkins, the British loudspeaker maker that has some 1,100 employees, is being bought by a tiny Silicon Valley start-up with just 40 workers, Bloomberg reports. Eva Automation was set up two years ago by Gideon Yu, a former Facebook chief financial officer and co-owner of the San Francisco 49ers NFL team. 

    Joe Atkins, chief executive officer of B&W who holds a 60% stake, will run the combined company, while Mr Yu will be executive chairman. No financial details have been disclosed.

    B&W was founded in Sussex in 1966 and has a factory in Worthing (pictured above).

  7. 'Serious questions'

    Iain Wright, chair of the Business, Innovation and Skills select committee, says: “The sale and acquisition of BHS raises serious questions about the stewardship of the business both before, during, and after the sale. We welcome this opportunity to question the key players and we will also be keen to quiz advisers on their role in this process”.

  8. More BHS witnesses

    BHS store

    Frank Field has asked Sir Philip Green if Wednesday 15 June at 9:30am is a "suitable time" to give evidence to the joint hearing of the Work and Pensions and Business select committees. 

    The three other groups of witnesses the Work and Pensions Committee intends to call ahead of Sir Philip are the Pensions Regulator and the Pension Protection Fund (on 9 May), the BHS pension trustees; and Retail Acquisitions owner Dominic Chappell.

  9. No questions for Lady Tina

    Philip and Tina Green

    While Sir Philip Green will give evidence to MPs on the Work and Pensions select committee, his wife Lady Tina will not be asked to do the same.

    Committee chairman Frank Field writes that he believes Sir Philip "will be able to answer all of our questions on the operations of BHS’s pension fund”.

    That saves the Greens one air fare back from Monaco at least.

  10. Liberty House submits Tata bid

    Port Talbot

    Liberty House has formally submitted its bid to buy Tata Steel's UK assets, which include the Port Talbot works employing about 4,000 people (pictured). 

    Liberty, headed by Sanjeev Gupta, was first to express an interest in the assets when they were put up for sale earlier this year. 

  11. Class warfare

    Reader Jarrod Glover has taken me to task for being - in his words - "classist" about smokers in my earlier post. If I have offended any working class smokers, sincere apologies. Use a vape instead. 

    View more on twitter
  12. Bookmakers' pain

    Leicester fans

    The betting industry is licking its financial wounds in the wake of Leicester City winning the Premier League.

    "In the history of betting, certainly since it was legalised in 1961, a [single event] winner with odds of 5,000-1 has never happened," says Simon Clare from the betting firm Coral. "Every bookmaker is crying out in pain. That's a barometer of what Leicester have done and just how amazing this win is."

    Read more from Emily Young here.

  13. BreakingMPs to quiz Sir Philip Green

    Ross Hawkins

    Political correspondent

    MPs will question the former BHS owner Sir Philip Green, it has been confirmed.

    He has accepted an invitation to appear before a joint session of the Work and Pensions select committee and the Business, Innovation and Skills select committee.

    The invitation was reported at the weekend but no date for his appearance has yet been released.

  14. Oil falls again

    Oil pump

    Oil prices have fallen as much as 3% for a second consecutive day on Tuesday on renewed oversupply fears, a rebounding dollar and weaker stock markets. "There are enough supply stories out there to slow or temper any gains," said Energy Aspects analyst Richard Mallinson.

    Brent crude was down $1.10, or 2.4%, at $44.73 a barrel, while US oil shed $1.40, or 3.1%, to $43.38. 

  15. FTSE takes a tumble

    The FTSE 100 has ended the day down 0.9% at 6,185 points, while in Paris the CAC 40 retreated 1.6% and in Frankfurt the DAX tumbled 1.9% to fall below the 10,000 points level.

    Anglo-American fell 12.8%, while RSA Insurance was the biggest riser, up 2.8%.

  16. Misconduct 'will be taken very seriously'

    BHS store

    Back to BHS and business secretary Sajid Javid says he had asked the Insolvency Service not to wait the usual three months for the administrators to report before opening their inquiry into the retailer's collapse. 

    "This investigation will look at the conduct of the directors at the time of insolvency and any individuals who were previously directors. Any issues of misconduct will be taken very seriously.

    "Should the investigation conclude that one or more present or former directors have been involved in any misconduct, an application may be made to a court to ask that they be disqualified from acting as a director for a period between two and 15 years depending on the nature of their misconduct.  

    Where conduct for which a person was disqualified took place subsequent to 1 October 2015 and caused a loss to creditors, an application could also be made to a court for an order that compensation be made for losses incurred." 

  17. Another bid for Tata Steel UK

    Port Talbot

    Earlier today Liberty House confirmed it was making a formal bid to Tata Steel's loss-making UK assets that include Port Talbot. 

    Now Excalibur Steel UK - the vehicle founded to mount a management buy-out, said it has also registered its formal interest with Tata.

    Stuart Wilkie, chief executive of Excalibur and previously the hub director of Tata Steel’s UK Strip Products business, said: 

    Quote Message: We believe we have a large number of the pieces in place required to make this a success, including a management team with vast experience of steel making and processing. We are confident we can turn the business around and sustain profitable steel-making in the United Kingdom.”
  18. Savills to advise

    Meanwhile, the administrators of BHS have appointed Savills to advise on the failed retailer’s property portfolio, reports Property Week.