Housing market slump feared as mortgage lending plunges by a third

Good morning. The Government has scrapped a contract with P&O Ferries, criticising its ‘unacceptable behaviour’ in sacking almost 800 workers earlier this year. 

P&O’s contract with UK Border Force will end with immediate effect, the Home Office said.  It comes just days after P&O was criticised for failing to return some of the possessions of employees who had been fired, as part of efforts to cut costs. 

5 things to start your day 

1) Britain lags behind France for foreign investment  Emmanuel Macron has been on a charm offensive to woo international businesses after Brexit 

2) West Midlands to get research hub for next generation electric car batteries  Facility near Birmingham will focus on high-performance car brands such as Aston Martin 

3) Car ownership falls as drivers hit by surging cost of fuel  Motorists ditch their vehicles after severe shortage of new models 

4) Scramble to reopen Rough natural gas storage site  Kwasi Kwarteng in talks with mothballed facility’s owners as part of efforts to ease energy crisis

5) Alexander Lebedev’s charity to shut  Billionaire steps down from Lebedev Foundation following sanctions in Canada

What happened overnight 

Asian markets fluctuated on Tuesday as investors struggled to maintain a global rally, with inflation continuing to niggle owing to a pick-up in oil prices. Hong Kong edged slightly lower after two days of gains that saw it put on around five percent, while Shanghai was also marginally off. Sydney, Taipei and Manila were also in the red, though Tokyo, Seoul, Singapore, Jakarta and Wellington rose.

Coming up today

• Full-year results: B&M, Pennon Group
• Economics: Inflation (EU), manufacturing PMI (China), Nationwide house price index (UK), BRC shop price index (UK), consumer confidence (US), housing price index (US)