THE DAILY BRIEFING

NOBEL TRIBUTE nobel prizewinning economist and tax expert Sir James Mirrlees has died at 82. paul Johnson, of the institute for Fiscal Studies, said: ‘As well as being one of the greatest and most influential economists of his generation, and a deserved winner of the nobel prize, Jim was a genuinely decent, kind, and cultured man.’

FUEL RISE The price of fuel has risen for an eighth successive week to a four- year high. A litre of unleaded costs £1.29, with diesel exceeding £1.33, figures show.

APP FLOAT The Chinese owner of gay dating app Grindr is seeking a stock market listing. Beijing Kunlun Tech, plans an overseas initial public offering to bankroll the app’s expansion, potentially in China. grindr has more than 27m users in 192 countries.

RESULTS BOOST Tool company HSS Hire has hammered itself into shape, as the once-struggling chain reported strong half-year results. Revenue crept up 5.8pc to £169.8m, while earnings rocketed by 74.7pc to £29.9m. The loss for the six months narrowed from £14.2m to £0.7m.

TARIFF VOW Shares in European car makers BMW and Fiat Chrysler rose after the EU’s top trade official Cecilia Malmstrom said the bloc was willing to reduce import tariffs on American cars.

MARCO SETBACK Celebrity chef Marco pierre White has been forced to close one of his New York Italian restaurants, in Leeds.

SCHOOL BILL Families are preparing to splash out almost £1bn on back-to- school clothing and stationery for their children, according to research by Mintel.

REVENUE UP haulage firm Eddie Stobart posted a 25.3pc rise in revenues to £359.3m in the six months to May 31 after winning contracts with homebase and Britvic Soft Drinks. profits soared to £1.4m from a loss of £6.3m.

GARDEN SALE garden centre chain Wyevale, owned by tycoon guy hands’ private equity fund Terra Firma, has sold five sites.

CHAIRMAN DIES peter Saunders, 70, the chairman of aviation company Air Partner, has died after a short illness. he was formerly the boss of the Body Shop.