The 10 biggest business stories on Thursday February 25

BT told to open up its cable network by Ofcom; Lloyds profits fall on PPI claims; Foxconn to acquire Japan's Sharp

Lloyds Banking Group has reported a 7% fall in annual pre-tax profits to £1.6 bn compared with £1.8 bn a year earlier (AFP/Getty)

1. BT has been told to open up its network, allowing competitors to connect fibre to homes and offices, to improve superfast broadband in the UK.

2. Sharp, the struggling Japanese electronics giant has accepted a multi-billion dollar takeover bid by Taiwanese multinational Foxconn. The company, which assembles most of the world's iPhones, initially offered about $5.3 billion to take over Sharp before raising its offer to $5.9 billion.

3. AB InBev's, the world’s largest brewer by market capitalisation, share price fell more than two per cent this morning, as it revealed it had missed expectations for its fourth quarter results, despite the Belgian-Brazilian group raising its dividend. But its takeover of London rival SAB Miller is on track to be completed in the second half of the year.

4. Lloyds Banking Group has reported a 7 per cent fall in annual pre-tax profits to £1.6 billion compared with £1.8 billion a year earlier. The announcement comes as the bank increased provisions for payment protection insurance (PPI) compensation.

5. Profits at theme parks operator Merlin Entertainments have edged up despite last summer's Alton Towers accident which left five people injured. The company, which also owns Legoland and the London Eye, said group pre-tax profits rose 0.3 per cent to £250 million from 2014, the BBC reports.

6. The Flying Scotsman, a steam locomotive seen as a jewel of British industrial heritage, left King's Cross Station in London Thursday on its first official journey after a 10-year restoration project.

7. Chinese shares were down more than six per cent in afternoon trading, their biggest fall since the end of January, as oil lost gains made in recent days. The key Shanghai Composite Index closed down 6.40 per cent to 2,741.25 at the end of the day’s trade, nearly doubling losses from the morning session’s 3.6 per cent plunge. The benchmark Hang Seng index fell 1.49 per cent to 18,905.68.

8. British American Tobacco, the world's second-biggest tobacco company, reported a lesser-than-expected fall in 2015 revenue, as it gained market share and saw a smaller decline in cigarette volumes even as more smokers stub out the habit.

9. France is seeking €1.6 billion (£1.2 billion, $1.76 billion) in back taxes from Google, a source at the finance ministry said on Wednesday.

10. Apple CEO Tim Cook compared helping the FBI hack an iPhone used by a terrorist to "the software equivalent of cancer" and said it would be "bad for America" during an interview with ABC News that aired on Wednesday evening.