BUSINESS LIVE: Berkeley signals problems in the housing market

Ken Hanna, owner of Wagamama-owned Restaurant Group, will step down after months of pressure from activist investors to change management and improve profitability.

Hanna, who took over as chairman of the group in early January 2022, will remain chairman until a successor is named.

He had also held the role of chairman at car dealership Inchcape and rental company Aggreko.

The Restaurant Group’s management has come under fire from activist shareholders Oasis Management and Irenic Capital Management seeking change at the company, whose shares lost two-thirds of their value last year.

Melrose boss Simon Peckham boasted that his controversial takeover of GKN helped create a British ‘aerospace champion’ – when he announced plans to step down.

Peckham said the £8bn purchase of the historic manufacturer five years ago has given new life to a “disappearing British industrial icon”.

However, he did not rule out selling the company, raising the prospect of a foreign takeover.

The UK competition authority has said it provisionally supports the Civil Aviation Authority in most of its decisions on how much Heathrow Airport can charge airlines over the 2024-2026 period, after both the airlines and the airport have appealed.

The Competitions and Markets Authority, the CMA, stepped in to review the CAA’s decision after the cost cuts it proposed for the next three years angered both parties.

Britain’s Heathrow said lower fares would hurt investment, while the airlines, British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, said the cuts didn’t go far enough.

The CMA now has until Oct. 17 to decide whether to uphold or dismiss the appeals, the CMA said in its statement Friday.

“Overall, we provisionally believe that the CAA was not wrong in most of the decisions appealed to us,” the CMA said.

The crackdown on cryptocurrency has been postponed.

The Financial Conduct Authority said stricter regulations on cryptocurrency marketing would come into effect next month, but companies can request more time to comply, such as a 24-hour cooling-off period.

It said that companies could be given until January 8. The rules would come into effect from October 8.

Berkeley Group has joined industry peers in highlighting the gloomy trading environment in the face of rising interest rates and broader macroeconomic concerns, but the luxury homemaker has maintained its earnings expectations.

The FTSE 100 builder reported a 35 percent decline in underlying retail sales reservations in the first four months of its current fiscal year, which begins May 1.