Investors ignore growth abroad to focus on UK woes June 14, 2011 MAYBE Tesco should move its primary listing to Hong Kong. Then investors might pay more attention to Asia, where sales grew by 11.4 per cent at constant exchange rates in the first quarter. The region accounted for around 17 per cent of sales and trading profit last year, a figure that will only grow. Or [...]
HSBC drags FTSE back as investors eye inflation forecasts May 11, 2011 Banking giant HSBC sapped some of the confidence from the blue chip index today as it announced that it was aiming to slash costs by £2.1bn. The news followed a bruising start to the week for banks who have already earmarked billions for potential payouts over dubious insurance protection sales. HSBC fell 1.3 per cent [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS May 9, 2011 GREAT PORTLAND UBS has downgraded the property firm from “neutral” to “sell” and has raised its target price by 40p to 390p. The broker thinks the current share price is forward-looking, and does not allow for much execution risk in Great Portland’s ambitious development plans in the City and West End. However, it thinks strong [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS May 9, 2011 GREAT PORTLAND UBS has downgraded the property firm from “neutral” to “sell” and has raised its target price by 40p to 390p. The broker thinks the current share price is forward-looking, and does not allow for much execution risk in Great Portland’s ambitious development plans in the City and West End. However, it thinks strong [...]
Morrisons is leading race for Iceland May 22, 2011 SUPERMARKET chain Morrisons is being touted as the frontrunner in the race to buy into rival Iceland, after majority owner Landsbanki officially launched a sales process for its holding in the company. The Resolution Committee for Landsbanki said last week that according to advisers UBS and Bank of America Merrill Lynch, “market conditions are currently [...]
CITY GRANDEES DEBATE FUTURE OF UK BANKING July 25, 2011 MAGIC circle law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer’s Fleet Street offices played host last night to a City crowd debating one of the most pertinent questions currently facing the UK’s politicians, regulators and bankers – whether the country’s biggest banks should be forcibly broken up, or whether other kinds of reforms are the best way forward. [...]
Sainsbury’s beats forecasts with sales hike October 6, 2010 J Sainsbury has posted second-quarter sales towards the top end of forecasts, as new stores, online shopping and demand for non-food lines helped it to grow share in a tough market. The group said it expected conditions to remain difficult for shoppers as the government hikes taxes and cuts spending to rein in its debts. [...]
UK retailers are serving up higher high street prices May 16, 2011 ACCORDING to a report issued by economic forecasting group Ernst and Young ITEM Club yesterday, UK retailers are in for a difficult time in the years ahead. The report points to rising inflation and energy bills – without corresponding wage increases – leaving households with less disposable income. “World prices for food, fuel and fibres [...]
J Sainsbury outpaces rivals as it sees its market share inch higher November 9, 2010 UK SUPERMARKET sales are rising slightly more than food price inflation, with the third largest grocer J Sainsbury outpacing its major rivals, market researchers Kantar Worldpanel said yesterday. Grocery sales climbed four per cent in the 12 weeks ended 31 October, helped by a three per cent rise in inflation — little changed from the [...]
Deal would shake up the supermarkets May 22, 2011 COMPETITION objections notwithstanding, Iceland’s 780 stores would be a huge boost to Morrison’s forecast earnings, giving it the foothold in the convenience store industry that chief executive Dalton Philips made central to its growth plans last year. They would also cement Morrison’s presence in the south of the country. Though the Bradford-based company has made [...]