Here are the business stories making the headlines across Scotland and the UK this morning.
Jim Ratcliffe’s Grenadier joins race to replace army’s Land Rovers
Sir Jim Ratcliffe, the billionaire tax exile and arch-critic of the Labour government, is to formally enter the race to bag a multibillion-dollar deal to replace the British Army’s fleet of ageing Land Rovers.
The Times has learned that the chemicals tycoon and part-owner of Manchester United has engaged with the Ministry of Defence, offering his Ineos Grenadier, the off-road 4×4 he created, to become the military’s vehicle of choice in a tender which gets under way shortly.
Ratcliffe will be pitching against his old rival, Jaguar Land Rover, which has also confirmed that it too is bidding for the MoD contract with a military version of its best-selling new Defender, a modernised reworking of the old Land Rover.
UK economy grew 0.6% between January and March
The UK's economy grew by 0.6% in the three months to March, according to the latest official figures.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said growth had picked up in the first three months of the year, led by the dominant services sector.
Monthly figures show that the economy grew by 0.3% in March, which was stronger than analysts had expected. It was also the first full month since the outbreak of the Iran war covered by the figures.
HMRC to use AI from British tech firm to spot fraud and tax return errors
HM Revenue and Customs has announced a 10-year, £175million deal with the British tech firm Quantexa to provide AI-powered technology to help improve its performance.
Quantexa says its systems will combine data collected by HMRC with external sources to help the tax office identify incidents of fraud and fix unintentional errors more quickly.
Its tasks will include helping HMRC to assist customer service staff, as well as to identify hidden networks of companies and individuals masking fraudulent activity.
Warning higher Europe air fares 'inevitable' due to Iran war
Higher ticket prices for air travellers in Europe are "inevitable" because of the high cost of jet fuel, according to the head of the International Air Transport Association.
Although some airlines have cut their European fares recently because of a lack of demand, Willie Walsh said there was no way airlines could absorb the extra costs over time.
He told the BBC there was still concern the industry in the UK could face shortages of fuel over the summer, although he insisted there was no need to panic.
WhatsApp launches totally private 'incognito' conversations with its AI chatbot
WhatsApp has introduced private chats with its AI chatbot which not even the tech company will be able to read in a new "incognito" mode.
It means neither the user nor the AI's responses will be monitored if the feature is activated, and past conversations will disappear from the chat for the user.
Will Cathcart, the head of WhatsApp, said he felt people wanted to have private conversations with AI on sensitive subjects including health, relationships and finances and didn't want them to be accessible.