Good morning.
OneWeb has confirmed it is being taken over by French rival Eutelsat in a deal valuing the British satellite champion at $3.4bn (£2.8bn).
Shareholders of OneWeb, which was bailed out by Boris Johnson in 2020, will own 50% of Eutelsat, which will continue to trade in Paris and apply to be listed on the London Stock Exchange.
The companies said the tie-up will give Eutelsat a “unique position” in the market and that the combined business will generate revenues of 1.5 billion euros.
The acquisition marks a setback for Britain’s efforts to compete in the space race. However, the Government will retain a gold stake over the future of OneWeb, which will remain based in London.
5 things to start the day
1) ‘traffic light’ restrictions may not have stopped Covid, says watchdog New report questions whether £500m invested in travel policies was worth disrupting holidays
2) Greenpeace accused of siding with Putin against North Sea gas field Green campaigners are putting British security at risk with legal challenge, Whitehall source says
3) Owner of Welsh microchip maker accused of ‘misleading’ MPs China-backed Nexperia bought UK’s biggest semiconductor plant for £63m last year
4) Sunak was “the driving force” behind the push for closer ties with China. The politician sought friendly relations as chancellor despite attacking Beijing in the Tory leadership race, an insider says.
5) How infighting and chaos slowed the race to build a Paris-listed UK space champion Eutelsat is poised to take over rival satellite company OneWeb
What happened during the night
Hong Kong stocks opened higher this morning with the Hang Seng index up 0.6%.
The Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.1%, while the Shenzhen Composite Index on China’s second bourse rose 0.08%.
Tokyo’s key Nikkei index zigzagged between positive and negative territory at the open.
It arrives today
- Corporate: Games Workshop (full year results); Bridgepoint, Drax Group, Informa, Reach, Tyman, Unilever (interim), Compass Group, EasyJet, Greencore, Mitie (commercial update)
- Economy: BRC Shop Price Index (UK), House Price Index (US), New Home Sales (US), Consumer Confidence (US)