(Bloomberg) -- Here’s the key business news from London-listed companies this morning.

Veolia Environnement SA: The French company agreed to sell Suez SA’s waste activities in Britain to Macquarie Group Ltd. for 2.4 billion euros to resolve antitrust concerns by the UK’s competition watchdog. 

  • The disposal will mark the last step in Veolia’s acquisition of a large part of its smaller French rival Suez. Bloomberg reported Sunday that Veolia was nearing a deal with Macquarie
  • The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority said in May the deal may reduce competition in the water and waste-treatment services and drive up prices at a time when consumers are already being squeezed

PageGroup Plc: The recruitment company said it continues to benefit from the tight labour market and added staff in Germany, the US and India to meet demand. 

  • The firm also said it was aware of uncertainties spurred by rising inflation and noticed a slight slowdown in time to hire in some of its markets in July

Joules Group Plc: The troubled retailer is in talks with clothing and housewares chain Next Plc about a potential minority investment which would raise proceeds of about £15 million for Joules. 

  • Shares in Joules, which is best known for its patterned prints and brightly-colored Wellington boots, slumped last month after the chain said it hired KPMG to advise on how to shore up its cash position

Outside The City

A year ago, Rishi Sunak was the runaway favorite to be the next Tory leader, with Liz Truss polling only a third of his support. Polls now put Truss miles ahead. What happened?

Meanwhile, the UK’s largest electricity distribution business said a hit of £280 million from energy companies failing will be passed on to customers. 

In Case You Missed It 

Fat fees, champagne and yachts — this is how flailing property firm Adler wooed its bankers. 

And in case you’re still looking for a summer read: Here are some recommendations from Bloomberg journalists. 

Looking Ahead

Asset managers abrdn Plc and Legal & General Group Plc are among the companies reporting tomorrow.

On Friday, quarterly GDP data is expected to show a small contraction compared to the start of the year, compounding the grim economic picture painted by the Bank of England last week.

For a news fix when the day is done, sign up to The Readout with Allegra Stratton, to make sense of the day’s events.

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