May 8 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.
The Times
Defence officials warned the government that backing a European ban on palm oil could jeopardise a deal to sell British-built fighter jets to Malaysia, documents have revealed. bit.ly/2K49pCf
City dealmakers are on track to rake in their biggest fees since the financial crisis after billing more than half a billion dollars since the start of January. bit.ly/2I6AmEQ
The Guardian
The BBC, Channel 4 and ITV have held discussions about joining forces to create a British streaming service to combat the increasing power of Netflix Inc and Amazon.com Inc in the UK. bit.ly/2JXVQ7d
Britain's manufacturers have called on the government to make faster progress on its industrial strategy to help address a slump in productivity in key sectors. bit.ly/2rmGtyn
The Telegraph
Virgin Money is mulling a proposed takeover bid from the owner of Clydesdale Bank and Yorkshire Bank which would value the challenger bank at 1.6 billion pounds ($2.17 billion). bit.ly/2I0Y4WP
Team17, the British company behind the classic video game series Worms, has plans for a float which could value the company at 230 million pounds. bit.ly/2wsx1hE
Sky News
Paragon Banking Group has begun exclusive negotiations to buy Titlestone Property Finance from the giant private equity firm Oaktree. bit.ly/2jESdIf
BT Group Plc has sparked a legal fight with ministers over pension reforms which it claims have increased the burden of one of the biggest retirement scheme liabilities in corporate Britain. bit.ly/2rslIRG
The Independent
More than 100 flights between the UK and Italy were cancelled on Tuesday ahead of a strike by air-traffic controllers and ground staff. ind.pn/2jGMO3x ($1 = 0.7369 pounds) (Compiled by Bengaluru newsroom; Editing by Sandra Maler)