Sainsbury’s boosts pay as part of £205m inflation package January 4, 2023 Sainsbury’s is investing £185m in pay bumps for staff as the supermarket looks to retain staff during a period of high inflation and rising cost of living. Pay will increase to £11 per hour for retail staff, with London workers paid £11.95. It represents a 10 per cent pay hike over the past year when [...]
GPE boss warns London’s office rebound could hit a wall amid runaway inflation May 19, 2022 The boss of GPE, formerly known as Great Portland Estates, has warned that London’s office leasing rebound could hit a wall as inflation shrinks the appetite for new developments. The capital’s post-pandemic recovery for offices has seen some of the UK’s largest developers – as well as GPE – hail record leasing activity and surging [...]
British Land earnings soar as competition heats up for work campuses May 18, 2022 British Land, one of the UK’s largest property developers, has secured a £251m underlying profit for the last 12 months, as its earnings per share nearly doubles. The FTSE 100 builder’s profit jumped 25 per cent in the period, the equivalent of £50m. Meanwhile, earnings per share have soared from 18.8p to 27.4p over the [...]
Greene King revenues top £2bn as pub chain hopes inflation fears will be drowned out by a boozy Coronation May 2, 2023 Greene King said revenues continued to soar however the chief executive of the group warned that inflation and the cost of living crisis would prove a “tough backdrop” for the hospitality sector. The pub operator, which has over 2,000 sites across the UK, reported a revenue hike of 62.2 per cent for the 52 weeks [...]
Discounting pushes August retail sales to highest level since pandemic began September 4, 2020 Retail sales made a slight recovery last month to the highest level since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic as brands slashed prices ahead of the Bank Holiday weekend. In-store like-for-like sales were down 28.1 per cent in August, from a base of minus 0.1 in the same month last year, which was the best [...]
Arbuthnot profit leaps after rate hikes but bank backs ‘conservative’ model as UK prospects ‘not clear’ March 30, 2023 Arbuthnot Latham saw its profit surge with rising interest rates boosting its coffers, as the lender sought to distance itself from recent difficulties in the banking sector. Pretax profit in 2022 lept to £20m, up from just £4.6m last year as net interest income grew by over £30m. The boutique bank said this increase [...]
Dr Martens says sales of boots are in line with forecasts despite cost of living crunch July 14, 2022 Dr. Martens has assured shareholders its trading this year is in line with expectations, ahead of its AGM in north London on Thursday. In a trading update on Thursday morning, the boots maker said trading was as expected since the start of this financial year. The retailer acknowledged that ‘the early months of our financial [...]
Retail recovery in ‘sweet spot’ last month as cost of living could discourage shoppers March 3, 2022 High street experts were pleasantly surprised at the robustness of retail footfall last month, but have warned the cost of living crunch may soon deter shoppers. Footfall strengthened a little in February over the month as a whole, to -20.7 per cent below pre-pandemic levels, from -20.8 per cent in January, according to retail experts [...]
Moving markets: Five things shaping the FTSE 100 today March 18, 2024 Asian shares climb on strong Chinese data, while oil prices surge amid geopolitical tensions. Vladimir Putin wins 88 per cent of votes in an election devoid of opposition candidates. Major central banks take centre stage this week with pivotal decisions ahead.
Travel abroad is too pricey, so don’t look down on London tourists – join them September 8, 2022 If you live West, then go East. If you live North, travel South. This is a new experience for most Londoners. East Londoners are more likely to visit Rome than Richmond; and Notting Hill residents are more familiar with the Balearics than Battersea.