Aldi and Lidl expansion plans speed ahead of Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Asda in supermarket wars with five times as many planning applications May 5, 2015 Rival German discounters continue to outpace the UK's "big four" in the supermarket wars with ambitious plans for expansion five times the rate of Tesco, Sainsbury's, Morrisons, and Asda combined. While Tesco and Morrisons have been forced to shutter stores in the midst of declining sales and squeezed margins, Aldi and Lidl have submitted plans [...]
Cost of the weekly shop declines as supermarket price war rages on May 5, 2015 The cost of the average weekly grocery shop plunged by eight per cent year-on-year in May as fierce competition between the grocers continues to impact the market. Research by mySupermarket’s Groceries Tracker showed that a basket of 35 staple products across all major grocers cost a total of £86.69 in May, down from £93.87 12 [...]
Sainsbury’s braced for first loss in a decade as supermarkets move to downsize May 5, 2015 Battling with excess space and a revival at Tesco, Sainsbury’s is having to fight harder than ever. It is early on a weekday morning, and the first wave of customers are yet to arrive at Sainsbury’s revamped store in Wandsworth – its aisles stacked high with everything from garden furniture to Le Creuset-style saucepans [...]
Investors await the result of General Election – London Report May 4, 2015 ALL EYES will be on the political polls this week, as the nation gears up for the General Election on Thursday. With little to separate the popularity of the leading parties, the Conservatives and Labour, many expect no party will gain a majority, while many investors and property buyers are holding off from making decisions [...]
Alliance Trust gets a year to show results as Elliott Advisors gives 12 months’ notice April 28, 2015 Investment firm Alliance Trust has been put on 12-months’ notice by activist investor Elliott Advisors to show results or be forced to change its strategy. In a vicious battle over the past month, both sides have been rallying support among shareholders, with Elliott pushing for three new directors to join the board, and Alliance [...]
Ex Morrisons chief Dalton Philips pockets £1m bonus April 28, 2015 Former Morrisons chief executive Dalton Philips, whose last year in the role saw the supermarket cut its dividend amid large losses, is being given a £1m bonus for 2014/15. This comes on top of his base salary of £850,000, and other benefits including his pension. In total, Philips will take home almost £2.1m. [...]
Elliott Advisors: The activist US hedge fund shaking up Britain April 27, 2015 Elliott Advisors is the UK subsidiary of a much larger American group, which began life in 1977 when it was established by Paul Elliott Singer. Its British arm has a reputation for activism which is not always welcomed by companies’ executives, as the hedge fund analyses performance and pushes for changes to squeeze better returns. [...]
City Moves for 27 April 2015 | Who’s switching jobs April 26, 2015 Nexus Underwriting Management Group Stuart Rouse has been appointed chief operating officer and chief financial officer (CFO) at the underwriting firm. He has previously served as CFO of Fusion Insurance, CFO of Towergate Underwriting, chief operating officer of Towergate Financial, CFO of Aspen’s managing agency and its insurance division, and latterly group chief operating officer [...]
Sainsbury’s to shed 800 store jobs in bid to save £500m in supermarket price war April 23, 2015 Sainsbury’s is set to axe 800 jobs in stores as part of a shake-up aimed at saving £500m over the next three years to better position itself in the ongoing supermarket price war. The supermarket chain said yesterday that it plans to remove department and deputy managers from certain stores in order to invest [...]
Tesco results: Three things you need to know after today’s annual loss announcement April 22, 2015 Tesco's results are out and there's a lot to take in – market reaction had been mixed this morning, initially up and now largely flat. Here are the three key things you need to know about Tesco this morning after shock losses at the supermarket. 1. How huge? This huge To put Tesco's £6.38bn loss [...]