July 17 (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

- The FTSE 250 precision instruments company Spectris ( SEPJF )

has struck a deal to buy U.S.-based Micromeritics for an

upfront 485 million pounds($629.14 million)in its latest bolt-on

acquisition.

- Ofwat has opened cases against four more water companies,

including Severn Trent and United Utilities , as

the regulator expands its investigation into sewage spills.

The Guardian

- Harland & Wolff, the owner of the Belfast shipyard

that built the Titanic, has insisted that it is still awaiting a

government decision on a 200 million pounds ($259.44

million)intervention despite signs that Labour is due to reject

the financial lifeline.

- Britain's competition regulator The Competition and

Markets Authority (CMA) has launched a full investigation into

Microsoft's ( MSFT ) deal with AI startup Inflection.

The Telegraph

- Octopus Energy is poised to build hundreds of onshore wind

turbines across the countryside as Labour pushes ahead with its

manifesto promise to double production.

- The new owner of Royal Mail has vowed to keep delivering

letters six days a week in an attempt to quash concerns that the

service could be reduced.

Sky News

- Cineworld has opened talks with some of Britain's

biggest commercial landlords about its plans to axe up to a

quarter of its British cinema estate.

- Tiger Global, one of the world's most prolific investors

in technology companies is in talks to lead a new investment

round at Revolut, the British-based fintech.

The Independent

- The UK's Labour government is taking its first steps to

build greater trading links with EU members as new business

secretary Jonathan Reynolds meets international counterparts in

Italy.

($1 = 0.7709 pounds)

(Compiled by Bengaluru newsroom)