Business

Blackstone Group Inc., Carlyle Group Inc. and other buyout firms are bidding for U.K. publicly listed companies at a faster rate than they have in years. The reason: Post-Brexit Britain is one of the few markets where investors think big assets are going for cheap.

Downing Street has defended Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal with the EU, after Donald Trump said it may hinder a future trade deal between the US and UK. Number 10 says leaving the EU customs union will mean the UK is free to strike trade deals around the world which will benefit every part of the UK.

The British government said on Friday it wanted to hear from businesses and members of the public what their priorities were for a post-Brexit trade deal with Japan. Japan is one of Britain’s biggest foreign investors, encouraged by successive British governments who have promised a business-friendly base from which to trade across Europe.

A planned trade mission to introduce South West businesses to Gibraltar post-Brexit has attracted so much interest from around the country it is being widened into a national visit. Devon-based International Trade Matters (ITM) was looking to organise the mission to the Rock for November 2019 but has moved it until early 2020 after receiving inquiries from across the nation after Business Live ran the story.