PRESS DIGEST - British business - May 29

The Times

HEINEKEN GETS ON ITS BIKE FOR A VIGOROUS SHAKE-UP OF ITS BRITISH BEER HOLDINGS

Heineken (HEIO.AS) (HEIN.AS), the owner of Scottish & Newcastle's UK operations, acquired on Thursday 49 percent of the debt of the Globe Pub Company. The move aimed to protect its position should the beleaguered group, which is part of Robert Tchenguiz's ailing business empire, collapse. Globe, which has about 425 pubs in the UK, breached its banking covenants in April after suffering a dramatic drop in trading following the introduction of the smoking ban in 2007. The drinks giant, which commands about 28 percent of the UK beer market, announced last week the departure of Jeremy Blood, the S&N UK managing director, a move described as being for "personal reasons" and not related to performance.

FAO SCHWARZ SOLD

Toys 'R' Us [TOY.UL] has announced the acquisition of iconic American group FAO Schwarz for an undisclosed sum. The group plans to keep using the name of the US toy retailer, its products catalogue as well as outlets on Fifth Avenue in New York and at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. An agreement that put FAO Schwarz stores in 600 Macy's outlets across the US will be terminated in November. The American retailer has struggled for years to compete with Wal-Mart (WMT.N).

ASHLEY SELLS OFF JJB STAKE AFTER FUTURE IS SECURED

Sports Direct (SPD.L), which is more than 70 percent owned by Mike Ashley, is thought to have made about one million pounds after selling its 4.9 percent stake in JJB Sports (JJB.L) , its embattled rival. The move came after JJB secured its immediate future by signing a groundbreaking deal with landlords. A market insider said that the disposal represented an "orderly retreat" for Mr Ashley, who had attempted to scupper JJB's agreement with landlords by disrupting the critical sale of its health clubs to Dave Whelan, the founder of JJB.

The Daily Telegraph

TRAVEL CUTS HURT HOGG ROBINSON

Business travel company Hogg Robinson (HRG.L) saw its revenues drop 8.5 percent in the second half of last year, hit by a decline in corporate travel budgets amid the downturn. The company, whose clients include Barclays (BARC.L), Conde Nast and Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), said it would suspend its final dividend payment, after suffering a 39 percent plunge in pre-tax profits to 15.4 million pounds in the year to the end of March. "People haven't stopped travelling but they are trying to reduce the amount they spend. With the majority of our revenue from client management and advisory fees, these changes were not as damaging as many might have thought," said chief executive David Radcliffe. The group's UK operations were boosted by contracts with the Ministry of Defence and the Foreign Office.

YOUNG'S SALES HOLD UP AS LONDON RIVER PUBS THRIVE

Pub operator Young's (YNGa.L) has managed to weather the financial storm as its London riverside sites and food and wine deals attracted customers. The company, which also brews Courage, Bombardier and Young's Bitter in a joint venture with Wells, posted a 3.2 percent revenue increase to 126.1 million pounds in the year to the end of March, while like-for-like sales at managed pubs remained at the same levels as the year before. The owner of 221 pubs said that its pre-tax profit dropped 64 percent to 4.2 million pounds after it wrote down the value of its sites by 10.7 million pounds to take account of declining property prices over the last year.

CALEDONIA BRINGS INVESTORS GOOD NEWS

Caledonia Investments (CLDN.L) shares rose 13 pence to 14.46 pounds after it raised its annual dividend pay-out by four percent to 33.8 pence, despite a 27.7 percent drop in net asset value last year. The move by the investment trust, which has stakes in Close Brothers (CBRO.L) and AG Barr, came as NAV declined to 15.59 pounds in the year to March 31, a development described by Caledonia's chairman James Loudon as "very disappointing". He added however that the figure outperformed the FTSE All-Share Total Return index by 4.5 percent.

The Independent

ITN'S FUTURE UNDER THREAT AS PENSION DEFICITS SPIRAL BY 75 PERCENT