Here are the business stories making the headlines across Scotland and the UK this morning.
Chancellor handed £17bn borrowing boost ahead of Autumn Statement
The Government borrowed £16.9bn less than official figures predicted in the first seven months of the year, bolstering hopes that the Chancellor will announce tax cuts in tomorrow’s Autumn Statement.
Public sector net borrowing excluding banks stood at £98.3bn in the first seven months of the financial year, which was £21.9bn more than the same period last year, according to the Office for National Statistics.
However, it was £16.9bn less than the £115.2bn forecast by the Office for Budget Responsibility in March.
The body will deliver revised borrowing figures at the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement on Wednesday.
EU, Germany and Denmark sued by oil firm over windfall tax
A Jersey-based oil-refining company is suing the EU, Germany and Denmark for at least €95m over a windfall tax introduced during the Ukraine war that it sees as a “pretext” for undermining fossil fuel firms, leaked documents show.
Klesch Group Holdings Limited is taking action under a controversial secret court system enabled by the energy charter treaty (ECT), an agreement officials fear will stymie climate action and divert hundreds of billions of euros into the coffers of fossil fuel investors.
The treaty was drafted to protect the interests of energy companies as the Soviet Union broke up in the early 1990s and is being used by companies such as the UK oil firm Rockhopper, which was awarded a £210m payout last year after Italy stopped it from drilling.
In July, Brussels proposed a “coordinated withdrawal” from the pact following domino-style exit announcements by several EU countries including France, Spain and the Netherlands. But the treaty remains in effect for now, and an EU official said there was “no specific timeline” for leaving it.
Peterhead Domino’s pizza plans axed – with Burger King drive-thru to be built instead
Developers have ditched plans for a Domino’s pizza takeaway in Peterhead – opting to build a new Burger King drive-thru instead.
A previously proposed Screwfix has also been dropped as part of the same rethink.
Papers submitted to Aberdeenshire Council explain that the Screwfix and Domino’s scheme never made it to fruition “due to volatility in the retail and restaurant sectors following the pandemic”.
It would have been Peterhead’s first Domino’s branch, with the nearest option 30 miles away in Inverurie.
Abercrombie & Fitch suspends payments to ex-CEO after sex-trafficking claims
Abercrombie & Fitch says it's stopped providing additional retirement income to its former boss following allegations of sex trafficking.
On top of his standard pension, Mike Jeffries had been receiving lifetime bonus payments totalling about $1m (£801k) a year.
But in October, the BBC revealed claims of exploitation by young men recruited for sex events while he was boss.
A lawsuit then accused the US retailer of funding a sex-trafficking operation.
The brand told the BBC it has now suspended these extra retirement payments to Mr Jeffries.