The Business Matrix: Thursday 04 July 2013

EE unveils saver deal for families

The Glastonbury sponsor EE has became the first British mobile phone company to offer a "family" price package with a single bill for up to five users or devices in a move that it claims could save customers £38 a month. The phone giant, which owns Orange and T-Mobile, said it would cut a family of four's mobile bill from £150 to £112.

Top British firms bloomed in June

The UK's dominant services sector put in a "stellar" performance last month, with its strongest June growth for more than two years. Services firms, which account for more than three-quarters of growth overall, had their best month since March 2011, according to the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply.

Ofcom to slash switching costs

The media regulator Ofcom plans to slash the wholesale cost of switching a customer from one super-fast broadband supplier to another by up to 80 per cent. BT will feel the brunt of the changes as the minimum length of the wholesale contract between BT and a new supplier will be cut from a year to a month.

Begbies' profits slump by 50%

Annual profits at Britain's biggest insolvency practice, Begbies Traynor, slumped by more than half. Begbies scaled up operations in the early stages of the recession but was forced to change tack as the Bank of England slashed interest rates to 0.5 per cent four years ago.

Toyota recalls yet more vehicles

The Japanese car-maker Toyota has admitted yet another problem with its motors, this time with power steering. The latest recall affects about 174,000 vehicles, including 5,409 UK-registered Yaris models and the Verso-S minivan.

Dell buyout bid is 'not enough'

Michael Dell's $24.4bn bid to take control of the computer firm he founded isn't enough, according to Dell executives. The PC maker's founder has been advised to up his bid ahead of a verdict on the deal from investment advisory firm ISS.

Domino's German outlets losing cash

Domino's sells bratwurst pizza in its new German outlets, but not enough of them: the fast-food chain has warned that losses in Germany for the year will be £3m more than expected. The reason, Domino's said, is down to the branches it wholly owns in the German business.

Phones4U partner is fined £2.8m

The insurer that provides Phones4U's mobile insurance has been fined £2.8m for poor complaints handling. The Financial Conduct Authority said Policy Administration Services failed to record complaints, rejected mis-selling claims, and failed to address the root-cause of complaints.

Carillion bags £122m of contracts

Carillion has landed more work in the capital as Network Rail handed the construction group two Crossrail contracts worth £122m yesterday. Last month, the FTSE 250 builder was asked to lead the £400m first phase of the redevelopment of Battersea Power Station, which includes 866 apartments and 11 penthouses.

Flybe hires former boss of easyJet

Flybe yesterday hired a former easyJet boss to attempt to steer the struggling airline to calmer skies. The regional airline's founder and current chief executive, Jim French, will become non-executive chairman in August, when Saad Hammad, easyJet's former chief commercial officer, will take over as chief executive.