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Mars to buy Hotel Chocolat in £534m deal; Burberry hit by luxury spending slowdown
Live  
Mars to buy Hotel Chocolat in £534m deal; Burberry hit by luxury spending slowdown
Rolling coverage of the latest economic and financial news
Headlines
Rail strikes  
Aslef announces industrial action in December
Aslef announces industrial action in December
Energy  
UK to offer higher subsidies for offshore windfarms after crisis talks
Cyprus  
Police investigate how Russian tycoon moved £1bn on day he was put under sanctions
Tata Steel  
Large parts of Port Talbot steelworks could be shut under cuts plan
Inflation  
Jeremy Hunt urged not to use sharp fall in inflation to squeeze benefits
Parcels  
One in three people in UK had problem with last delivery, research shows
Alstom  
Train maker puts more than 1,300 jobs at risk in Derby
Britishvolt  
Owner reportedly faces legal action over unpaid wages
Property  
Average UK house sale price suffers first annual fall for 11 years
Autonomy  
HP and auditors dispute whether Lynch fraud behind $5bn of writedown, filing says
Today's agenda
UK chocolatier Hotel Chocolat has agreed to be taken over by food giant Mars in a £534m deal.

The takeover, announced to the stock market this morning, will help Hotel Chocolat expand internationally, the companies say.

And Mars is paying a steep premium to get its prize. It will pay 375p per Hotel Chocolat share, a hefty 170% premium to last night’s closing price of 139p.

Mars, which employs around 10,000 people in the UK, says the deal will bring a “much-loved brand into its portfolio” and deepen its relationships with consumers.

It adds: "The UK has been an important market for Mars, and it expects this to be complemented by the acquisition of Hotel Chocolat, with its distinctive capabilities in product development, luxury gifting and immersive brand experiences."

Hotel Chocolat’s directors say the offer is fair and reasonable, and are recommending shareholders back it (the directors hold about 54% of the stock).

Angus Thirlwell, chief executive officer of Hotel Chocolat, argues that teaming up with Mars makes sense for his company.

Thirlwell says: "We know our brand resonates with consumers overseas, but operational supply chain challenges have held us back. By partnering with Mars, we can grow our international presence much more quickly using their skills, expertise and capabilities.

"The pillars on which we have built the Hotel Chocolat brand – originality, authenticity and ethical trading, is precisely what brought Hotel Chocolat and Mars together and our intention is to strengthen and invest behind these. I’m excited about the future of the business and in Mars we have found an excellent long-term steward of the Hotel Chocolat brand and everything we stand for.”

The agenda
• 9.30am BST: Latest realtime economic data on UK economy
• 1.30pm BST: US weekly jobless figures
• 2.15pm BST: US industrial production stats for October
• 3.45pm BST: Bank of England deputy governor Dave Ramsden speaks at the 7th Annual Conference of the European Systemic Risk Board on Financial stability challenges ahead: emerging risks and regulation"

We’ll be tracking all the main events throughout the day ...
Nils Pratley on finance
Don’t expect Sunak’s inflation ‘triumph’ to mean good news for energy bills
Don’t expect Sunak’s inflation ‘triumph’ to mean good news for energy bills
 
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Opinion
The government has lost control of the cost of living crisis – here’s how businesses must step in
The government has lost control of the cost of living crisis – here’s how businesses must step in
Editorial  
The Guardian view on Cyprus Confidential: revelations should be a spur to action
Rishi Sunak’s AI plan has no teeth – and once again, big tech is ready to exploit that
Media
Cyprus confidential  
German publisher halts sale of top author’s books after leak reveals he received €600,000 from Putin ally
German publisher halts sale of top author’s books after leak reveals he received €600,000 from Putin ally
US television  
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Spotlight
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Nitrogen wars  
The Dutch farmers’ revolt that turned a nation upside-down
In 2019, a looming crisis over pollution led the Dutch government to crack down on farm emissions. The response was furious – and offers a warning to other countries about protecting the environment without losing public trust
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