The Times - UK (2022-04-28)

the times | Thursday April 28 2022 2GM 35

Business

Callum Jones
US Business Correspondent

The owner of Facebook and Instagram
has suffered its slowest quarterly sales
growth in a decade but the number of
users exceeded Wall Street forecasts
sending the stock sharply higher.
Shares in Meta Platforms rose by
18.9 per cent in late trading last night as
the world’s largest social media group
revealed a rise in activity and posted
stronger than forecast profits.
Revenue at Meta rose 7 per cent to
$27.91 billion in the three months to the
end of March, shy of analysts’ expecta-
tions, as advertisers cut their spending
plans amid economic uncertainty.
Net income fell by 21 per cent to
$7.47 billion, a smaller decline than
anticipated on Wall Street.
Usage of the group’s platforms also
continued to grow despite heightened
competition from fast-growing rivals
such as TikTok, the video sharing app.
The group’s network of apps finished
March with 2.87 billion daily active
users, up by 6 per cent on the year.
Facebook had 1.96 billion users, an
increase of 4 per cent.
The group’s stock rallied $32.99, to
$207.61 last night. The shares almost
halved in value this year after a drop in
daily users and its gloomy outlook
raised alarms in February.
Meta, based in Menlo Park, Califor-
nia, was founded by Mark Zuckerberg
in 2004 and has nearly 78,000 staff. It
owns Facebook, the social network,
Instagram, the photo and video sharing
app, and messaging services WhatsApp
and Messenger. It went public in New

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Gold

$1,888.27 (-14.16) $

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world markets (Change on the day)

Brent crude (6pm)

$103.93 (-1.35)

Mar 25 Apr 4 12 22 Mar 28 Apr 5 13 22 Mar 28 Apr 4 12 22 Mar 28 Apr 5 13 22 Mar 24 Apr 4 12 22 Mar 24 Apr 4 12 22

Coal-fired power stations are in line to
receive tens of millions of pounds of
subsidies from consumers to stay open
next winter after the government asked
them to delay plans to close this year
because of the energy crisis.
Ministers have requested that EDF,
Drax and Uniper consider extending
the life of coal plants that were due to
shut in September because of fears of a

Coal-fired power stations could keep the lights on next winter

Emily Gosden Energy Editor Europe-wide gas shortage if Russian
supplies are curtailed.
Talks have begun with National
Grid’s Electricity System Operator over
how much the plants would need to be
paid to remain available for back-up
generation. It is understood that would
probably cost tens of millions of
pounds, with these costs being levied
on consumers’ energy bills.
Coal, the most polluting form of
power generation, was Britain’s biggest

source of electricity in 2013 but provid-

ed only 2 per cent of the mix last year.

Gas provides the biggest share of elec-

tricity supplies, with only three power

stations still burning coal in Britain.

EDF’s West Burton A plant in Not-

tinghamshire and the coal-fired units at

Drax in Yorkshire are both due to shut

in September. Uniper is also ready to

close part of its Ratcliffe-on-Soar coal

plant in Nottinghamshire in September

with the rest to run until 2024, when the

government plans to end coal genera-

tion as part of its climate strategy.

The Times revealed last month that

the government was exploring whether

the coal plants that are due to close this

year could stay open. The units could

generate electricity for about 4 million

homes when running full tilt.

Kwasi Kwarteng, the business secre-

tary, wrote to the chief executives of

EDF, Drax and Uniper this month to

ask if they could stay open, given the

“perceived risk of disruption to Russian

gas supplies to Europe”.

“Maintaining our remaining coal-

fired stations would provide us with ad-

ditional back-up security whilst we pur-

sue more enduring solutions,” he wrote.

EDF, Drax and Uniper all confirmed

they had received the request.

A spokeswoman for the government

said it remained committed to ending

the use of coal power by October 2024.

Alistair Osborne, page 37

Facebook owner’s shares increase by 18 per cent

Meta soars

despite slow

sales growth

York in 2012 and has a market value of

$475 billion.

Digital advertising, which generates

almost all of the company’s sales, has

come under pressure from rising infla-

tion, supply chain disruption and

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Zuckerberg, 37, said: “We made

progress this quarter across a number

of key company priorities and we

remain confident in the long-term

opportunities and growth that our pro-

duct roadmap will unlock. More people

use our services today than ever before,

and I’m proud of how our products are

serving people around the world.”

The group changed its corporate

name from Facebook to Meta as part of

an expensive bet on the “metaverse,” a

virtual realm where users interact with-

out being physically together.

Meta had previously sounded the

alarm over the impact of Apple’s priva-

cy changes and a broader slowdown in

advertising revenues. Alphabet, the

owner of Google, highlighted the strain

on advertising budgets on Tuesday

when it posted a steeper-than-antici-

pated decline in profits.

Software changes by Apple last year

on popular devices such as the iPhone

allowed users to control tracking of

their activity online. The updates made

it more difficult for advertisers that rely

on data to develop new products and

understand their market.

6 Shares in Pinterest rose 10.4 per cent,

or $1.94, to $20.61 after higher advertis-

ing sales enabled it to beat expecta-

tions. Revenue at the social media

group rose by 18 per cent in the first

quarter to $575 million.

Fraud office raids Gupta companies

Ben Martin

The Serious Fraud Office has intensi-

fied its inquiry into the business empire

of metals magnate Sanjeev Gupta after

its investigators raided sites across his

GFG Alliance to obtain documents.

The co-ordinated and unannounced

operation yesterday involved GFG

trading sites in England, Scotland and

Wales. Investigators used Section 2

notices to demand the immediate pro-

vision of documents including “com-

pany balance sheets, annual reports

and correspondence” related to the in-

vestigation, the fraud office said.

It added: “Investigators spoke with

executives at multiple addresses, who

co-operated with the operation.”

The raids come almost a year after

the fraud office announced its investi-

gation into GFG. Last week, French

police undertaking a separate investi-

gation visited GFG’s office in Paris to

access documents and files.

The GFG group spans international

businesses including Liberty Steel and

Alvance Alumunium that are owned by

Gupta and his family. It employs about

30,000 people worldwide.

Greensill Capital, the supply chain

finance group that collapsed last year,

had been GFG’s main financial backer

and its failure threw Gupta’s empire

into turmoil.

Greensill has faced scrutiny of its

financing techniques and became

embroiled in scandal when it emerged

how David Cameron, the former prime

minister and adviser to the company,

had lobbied politicians and officials on

Greensill’s behalf.

The fraud office revealed last May

that it was “investigating suspected

fraud, fraudulent trading and money

laundering in relation to the financing

and conduct” of businesses in GFG,

including its financing arrangements

with Greensill.

GFG declined to comment on yester-

day’s fraud office operation.

However, in a memo to staff the

group said that the document gather-

ing was “expected” and that it “will

comply with the information request

orders and will continue to co-operate

fully in all manners”. GFG told employ-

ees that it had “consistently rejected

any wrongdoing on our part” since the

fraud office investigation began.

Liv Garfield, CEO, Severn Trent Susan Davy, CEO, Pennon Group Louise Beardmore, CEO, United Utilities

Christine Hodgson, chair, Severn Trent Gill Rider, chair, Pennon Group David Higgins, chair, United Utilities

Odd man out

With Louise Beardmore replacing Steve Mogford as chief executive at United

Utilities, five of the six top bosses at the UK’s quoted water companies are women