Barclays Share News (BARC)

(ShareCast News) - Britain's leading business group has defied government demands to downplay its campaign for the UK to remain in the European Union. In a move that will escalate tensions between the CBI and Sajid Javid, the business secretary, the group publishes a dossier today stating that most of its members "want to remain in a reformed EU". - The TimesDavid Cameron has been urged to challenge the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, over job losses in the British steel industry following the announcement of 1,200 redundancies by the UK's largest steelmaker. Tata Steel said 900 jobs would be lost at Scunthorpe and 270 at two sites in Scotland as it blamed cheap Chinese imports, the strong pound and high electricity costs for its decision to stop production of steel plate. - The GuardianThe apparently unstoppable march of Britain's peer-to-peer lenders has taken a step into Germany with the acquisition by Funding Circle of Zencap, a continental rival. Samir Desai, a co-founder and the chief executive of Funding Circle, said that the deal would lead to it becoming the "first truly global marketplace lending platform".- The TimesBarclays appears to be considering ways to defy the strict separation of its high street operations from its investment bank, in a move likely to inflame the debate over whether rules designed to prevent a second banking crisis are being watered down. The bank, which is poised to name ex-investment banker Jes Staley as its next boss, is considering a plan that would put its retail banking arm under the ownership of its investment bank. Although temporary, the arrangement could last years. - The TimesGreece's international creditors arrived in Athens today for the first time in two months to decide on whether to release the latest tranche of bail-out cash to the struggling economy. Representatives of the "Quartet" - made up of the European Commissions, European Central Bank, European Stability Mechanism and International Monetary Fund - will carry out their latest assessment of the government's progress on implementing reforms needed to unlock the rescue money. - The Daily Telegraph