Here are the business stories making the headlines across Scotland and the UK this morning.
Stonehaven train derailment inquiry told of 'lives ripped apart'
A fatal accident inquiry into a train derailment which killed three men in the North-east of Scotland has been told lives were "ripped apart" in the crash.
The Aberdeen to Glasgow train came off the rails at Carmont in Aberdeenshire on 12 August 2020 after it hit debris washed from a drain following heavy rain.
Driver Brett McCullough, 45, conductor Donald Dinnie, 58, and passenger Christopher Stuchbury, 62, died in the crash. Network Rail was later fined £6.7m in court for a series of failings.
Read the full story from the BBC.
Energy job losses could leave thousands in Aberdeen seeking charity help
Aberdeen could soon face a surge of sacked offshore workers resorting to support services to make ends meet as the oil and gas crisis deepens.
A new report by the Jobs Foundation lays out the widespread impact of the sector’s rapid decline.
The think-tank study is based on interviews with industry leaders, unions and local charities, who have now united in a new alliance to help save jobs in the north-east.
Read the full story in the P&J.
January snow-clearing in Aberdeenshire cost council £1.6m
Aberdeenshire Council's chief executive has called on individuals and communities to take more responsibility during extreme weather to help keep local areas clear.
Jim Savege revealed to BBC Scotland News that the local authority had spent £1.6m on snow clearing since 1 January - about £500,000 of that has been paid to farmers contracted to use ploughs and tractors.
The north-east of Scotland was hit by very heavy snow during the early parts of January - closing schools and businesses and causing major travel disruption.
Shop price inflation picks up again, dashing hopes it had peaked
Monthly shop price inflation rose in January, driven by a renewed increase in the cost of meat, fish and fruit, defying expectations that it had peaked.
Shop price inflation accelerated to 1.5% on an annual basis this month, a significant increase on growth of 0.7% in December, as higher prices were felt across food and non-food categories such as furniture.
The figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and NielsenIQ follow official data last week showing UK inflation rose for the first time in five months over Christmas, reaching 3.4%, keeping the overall rate well above the Bank of England’s 2% target.
Read more in The Times.
China hacked Downing Street phones for years
China hacked the mobile phones of senior officials in Downing Street for several years, The Telegraph can disclose.
The spying operation is understood to have compromised senior members of the government, exposing their private communications to Beijing.
State-sponsored hackers are known to have targeted the phones of some of the closest aides to Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak between 2021 and 2024.