Sunday newspaper round-up: Potash, BP, George Osborne...

One of Canada's biggest pension funds is plotting an audacious bid to spoil BHP Billiton's $39bn (£24.5bn) hostile takeover of Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan, the world's biggest fertiliser producer.Ontario Teachers Pension Plan, which controls a C$96bn (£60bn) portfolio that includes Camelot, Britain's lottery operator, is talking to Temasek, Singapore's sovereign wealth fund, about launching a rival offer. It is understood that they also have an industrial partner, thought to be Teck Resources, the Canadian mining giant, the Sunday Times reports.BP is in talks with China's third largest oil company and biggest offshore oil explorer, CNOOC, to sell its Argentinian business for about £6.3bn. It is understood that BP is keen to sell its 60% stake in Argentina's Pan American Energy to pay compensation claims after the Gulf of Mexico spill. Pan American is Argentina's second largest oil producer and CNOOC holds a 20% stake in the company, says the Mail on Sunday.A small group of London's most senior bankers have held a series of secret meetings on banking pay to convince regulators and politicians not to put the UK at a disadvantage on the world stage. The group - led by Marcus Agius, Barclays chairman; John Varley, Barclays outgoing chief executive; and Sir Philip Hampton, chairman of the Royal Bank of Scotland - are lobbying the world's leading financial regulators to reach a workable solution which will not handicap British banks against their international peers, the Sunday Telegraph reports.The Unite trade union and British Airways have held discussions at Acas, the conciliation service, that could lead to resolution of a long-running dispute with the airline's cabin crew. It is understood that preparations for a new strike ballot are well under way at Unite but sources close to the dispute said "substantive progress" had been made in talks last week, the Observer reports. Acas hosted discussions between Willie Walsh, BA chief executive, and Tony Woodley, Unite's joint general secretary, on Friday.The International Monetary Fund on Saturday night failed to reach agreement on tackling mounting global "frictions" over exchange rate policies despite US calls to deal with the issue more forcefully. The IMF policy committee, which has been struggling to agree a consensus on easing currency tensions among key economies including China and the US, said the organisation should instead keep the issue under watch, the Sunday Telegraph reports.George Osborne will make a double attack on pensions this week with a cut to inflation-linked payments and a sharp reduction in the annual tax-free allowance. The changes could cost high earners, long-time members of final salary schemes and state pensioners thousands of pounds a year. The chancellor signalled the moves in his emergency budget in June, saying he would scrap Labour's plans to end higher-rate tax relief on pension contributions for those earning more than £150,000 a year, reports the Sunday Times.A leaked document has shed light on the tactics proposed by an Asda director to get better terms from the supermarket's suppliers. The secret memo, issued in 2009 as a guide for the retailer's buyers, tells them they must "buy for less". In the introduction, commercial director, Phil Briggs, tells buyers to take advantage of the fact that "our suppliers are hungry for volume [growth]. It is the lifeblood of their business", writes the Sunday Independent.Asda will launch a strategic strike at High Street specialists when it begins selling second-hand computer games this week. The supermarket aims to grab a share of the £500million market by starting dealing in 235 of its 377 stores. The move is expected to damage game sellers such as Game and HMV. Asda has been testing the concept in recent months. Fergal Gara, Asda's category director for music, video and games, said his company was aiming to beat the prices being offered by specialists for old games, the Mail on Sunday reports.Claridge's, the Berkeley and the Connaught are expected be put on the market after falling under the control of the Irish government Three of London's finest luxury hotels are set to be put up for sale, triggering a scramble among sovereign wealth fund buyers. Claridge's, the Berkeley and the Connaught are expected be put on the market after falling under the control of the Irish government. City sources estimate that they are worth more than £1bn collectively, the Sunday Times reports.Burberry will report double-digit growth this week on the back of a strong showing in emerging markets and high-flying sales of this season's best-seller, the aviator jacket. The FTSE 100 fashion house is forecast to report a 15% increase in first-half revenues to about £633m. Aviator jackets, which cost between £1,300 and £2,500, have been among the brand's top sellers in the past six months, showing that the luxury market remains in rude health, the Sunday Times reports.Royal Bank of Scotland is preparing to quit two of its London offices as it shrinks its operations in the wake of the financial crisis. The bank, 84% owned by the taxpayer, has drawn up plans to leave part of its City "campus" near Liverpool Street station. RBS will vacate 199 Bishopsgate by Christmas, with 1,300 investment banking and back-office staff moving to other sites. It is also in negotiations to quit its Regent's House premises in Islington, north London, the Sunday Times reports.EMI owner Guy Hands and US bank Citigroup are this weekend believed to be engaged in frantic negotiations to decide the future of the music company before a bitter dispute between them reaches court in New York next week. It is understood that both sides have been in sporadic talks since Judge Jed Rakoff of the US District Court in Manhattan gave the go-ahead for the case to come to trial on October 18, the Mail On Sunday reports.