Reaction and coverage of Chancellor Philip Hammond’s first Autumn Statement dominates the paper this morning, with little in the way of grocery news to speak of.
The Financial Times sums it up with “Chancellor puts a brave face on brutal forecasts”. The Autumn Statement sets aside a fiscal war chest but additional borrowing will prolong austerity, the paper adds. The Telegraph notes that there was no relief for soaring business rates burden for retailers, with businesses claiming they have been “short-changed” by another missed opportunity to overhaul the system. Allister Heath writes in his Telegraph column that “Brexit Britain needed a radical vision, but timid Hammond played it safe”. The Times leads with the line that Philip Hammond pumped £26bn into the economy yesterday to help it to weather Brexit negotiations and emerge in better shape to cope outside the European Union. The Guardian takes a more negative approach and highlights that the Chancellor conceded that Brexit will blow a £59bn black hole in the public finances over the next five years, as he outlined plans to boost investment in infrastructure and housing to equip the UK economy for life outside the EU.
Outside of the Autumn Statement, The Guardian reports that Walmart has been ordered to pay truck drivers $54m in a law suit after a federal jury decided it intentionally failed to pay hundreds of truck drivers in California the minimum wage.
The Guardian writes that aggressive promotions on everything from 4K TVs to tablet computers and winter coats on Black Friday could be the last hurrah for shoppers before price hikes in 2017.
The Mail reports that Compass chairman picked up 5,000 shares to send the caterer to the top of the FTSE 100 yesterday after the food and support services firm reported an 11.5% revenue rise.
UK winemaker Chapel Down predicts 2016 will be a vintage year saying the grapes were their highest quality yet (The Mail).
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