Greggs in festive boost January 11, 2012 Baker Greggs posted a rise in sales over the Christmas and New year trading period and forecast more growth in 2012. The Newcastle, North East England-based firm, which sells bread, sandwiches, savouries, cakes and pastries to over 6 million customers a week, said on Wednesday sales at stores open over a year rose 5.1 per [...]
Mulberry ups forecasts as festive rise in turnover boosts share price January 19, 2012 LUXURY fashion brand Mulberry raised its annual profit forecast yesterday, after it enjoyed a 41 per cent rise in festive sales during the six weeks to 14 January. Like for like sales were up 35 per cent over the same period and wholesale orders for its spring/summer line were up 35 per cent on last [...]
Greggs boosted by mince pies January 11, 2012 Baker Greggs posted better-than-expected sales over the Christmas and new year period as shoppers snapped up record numbers of sweet mince pies, festive bakes and giant gingerbread men. The Newcastle-based firm, which also sells bread, sandwiches and to over 6m customers a week, said sales at stores open over a year jumped 5.1 per cent [...]
Payment via mobile moves a step closer February 20, 2012 THE UK’s largest telecoms companies are making headway in bringing cashless payment via mobile phone to the masses, as the cluster intends to file an application with the European Commission (EC) soon. Orange and T-Mobile (under umbrella group Everything Everywhere) joined forces with Vodafone and O2 parent Telefonica last year with the aim of creating a [...]
A happy Christmas for UK Mail January 12, 2012 Internet shoppers wanting home delivery over Christmas contributed to a successful third quarter for UK Mail Group, whose parcel division grew by ten per cent over the period. In line with expectations, UK Mail said reported group revenues increased six per cent compared to the previous year, while revenues on an underlying basis sank four [...]
Financial service jobs rise in February 2012 February 29, 2012 MORGAN MCKINLEY FINANCIAL SERVICES AS THE top graph clearly shows, there have been many ups and downs in the City hiring market over the last five years. The fluctuations in financial services hiring are traditionally seasonal, with Christmas, bonus season and mid-summer being the less active periods of the year. However, over the last five [...]
High street facing a bleak midwinter as commitments loom January 2, 2012 A PERFECT storm of rental payments, tax deadlines, squeezed consumer spending and stretched lending conditions is swirling round the UK retail sector, with the new year expected to be crunch time for several struggling firms. Not only was Christmas day the latest official quarterly rent payment for retail tenants, but stores also need cash to [...]
CITY VIEWS: DO YOU FEEL MORE INCLINED BE CHARITABLE AT CHRISTMAS? December 21, 2011 SHAKTI ANAND TATA CONSULTANCY “Yes, I carry out a lot of charitable actions at Christmas time. I like to make a visible difference as it gives me satisfaction over the holiday period.” ALAN CULLEN LAING O’ROURKE “Definitely, it is the Christian thing to do. It is a time for being with the family, which makes [...]
CITY VIEWS: DO YOU FEEL MORE INCLINED BE CHARITABLE AT CHRISTMAS? December 21, 2011 SHAKTI ANAND TATA CONSULTANCY “Yes, I carry out a lot of charitable actions at Christmas time. I like to make a visible difference as it gives me satisfaction over the holiday period.” ALAN CULLEN LAING O’ROURKE “Definitely, it is the Christian thing to do. It is a time for being with the family, which makes [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: HOW DID SAINSBURY’S FARE AGAINST RIVALS? January 11, 2012 PHILIP DORGAN | PANMURE GORDON A continued strong performance from Sainsbury… we believe that it continues to be underestimated by the market. True, its reported sales growth period is longer than for Morrison… but we believe that it had a good Christmas. KEITH BOWMAN | HARGREAVES LANSDOWN In all, Sainsbury has again surprised on the [...]