Asos chases away blues with record Black Friday performance January 23, 2020 Online retailer Asos beat the January blues with this morning’s trading statement as revenue grew 20 per cent across the group for the final four months of 2019. The fashion firm said that the growth, which was consistent across all of its divisions, was due to record Black Friday sales. Total sales hit £1.1bn, driven [...]
Rory Stewart wants to sleep on your sofa February 11, 2020 Londoners are being given the chance to snuggle up to an unusual house guest this winter, mayoral candidate Rory Stewart. Independent candidate Stewart sent out the surprising invitation to Londoners today, asking to sleep over at people’s houses as a part of his election campaign. The initiative, called Come Kip with Me, will see the [...]
Oil prices fall again as coronavirus continues to weigh on demand January 30, 2020 Oil prices fell again today after a brief respite on Wednesday as the worsening coronavirus outbreak continued to take its toll on economies. Brent crude fell two per cent to $57.68, whilst West Texas Intermediate showed a similar decline to $52.32. The renewed fall came after a Brent crude rallied by 0.5 per cent yesterday, [...]
UK restaurants and pubs hope for festive spending surge December 9, 2019 Restaurant and pub operators are hoping for a surge in festive spending after a slump in dining-out dented restaurant and pub food sales in the run-up to Christmas, according to research analysing sales at some of the UK’s best-known chains. Restaurant groups suffered a 0.1 per cent slump in food sales in November as wet [...]
New store openings drive revenue increase at Card Factory November 14, 2019 Card Factory has reported a jump in revenue this year driven by sales at new stores and a boost in online trading, as sales at existing stores slumped due to falling high street footfall. In the nine months to 31 October revenue increased five per cent as Card Factory grew its store portfolio with 38 [...]
Brexit stockpiling fails to save UK manufacturing from recession November 1, 2019 The UK manufacturing sector looked to be firmly stuck in recession as Brexit stockpiling could not prevent a sixth month of contraction in October, a closely followed survey found today. Jobs, new orders and factory ouput all fell last month, according to IHS Markit’s UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI). Read more: Hong Kong falls [...]
Asian currencies hit by coronavirus outbreak February 7, 2020 While concern over the economic impact of the coronavirus appears to be centred on China, Japan is not immune to the ramifications of the disease. SGD: Ahead of a statement from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the Singapore dollar fell to a four-month low. This came after a period of strength when it has [...]
Unlocking the office could have legal implications for employers June 1, 2020 After ten weeks or so of lockdown, restrictions are beginning to ease and employers and employees alike are beginning to contemplate what this so-called “new normal” will look like. Employees are going to have mixed reactions and each sector and business will have their own needs so there will be no standard approach that suits all. There [...]
Profit tumbles at retirement specialist McCarthy & Stone January 28, 2020 Profit at UK retirement home-builder McCarthy & Stone dropped sharply last year against the backdrop of “a challenging market” and costs related to a new strategy, the firm announced today. Shares in the company were up 0.5 per cent in morning trading at 154.6p, however, indicating that investors were anticipating weak results. The figures Profit [...]
Shoe Zone profit slumps after £3m hit on property valuation January 8, 2020 Budget footwear retailer Shoezone suffered a slump in profit last year after it was forced to take a £2.9m hit on the value of 17 properties. The figures Statutory profit before tax dropped from £9.6m to £6.7m after the company reported a £2.9m writedown on the value of 17 freehold properties. Read more: Retail landscape [...]