London Report: FTSE pauses for breath as sharp rally peters out February 19, 2014 THE UK’S top shares steadied yesterday as analysts bet the strong rally that followed a slump in emerging markets has run out of steam, though Sports Direct gained on robust profits. The FTSE 100 closed up 0.28 points – flat in percentage terms – at 6,796.71 points. It hit 6,810.48, its highest since late January, [...]
Hedgies demand cashback from UK supermarkets January 26, 2014 BRITAIN’S biggest supermarkets are coming under pressure from a US hedge fund to split their vast property empire to drive up value for shareholders. Morrisons, Tesco and Sainsbury’s are all being asked to replicate a model used by one of Canada’s largest supermarkets, Loblaw Companies, to put some of its property into a real estate [...]
Ankle operation rules Townsend out of World Cup April 30, 2014 TOTTENHAM winger Andros Townsend will miss this summer’s World Cup after the club confirmed he will undergo an ankle operation today. The 22-year-old suffered the injury during a late cameo appearance in Spurs’ 1-0 win at Stoke at the weekend, though limped through the remainder of the match having been the third and final permitted [...]
Tesco slashed the price of milk. Here’s how dairy farmers have responded March 3, 2014 Dairy farmers have accused Tesco of sparking a price war with its supermarket rivals that will cause further damage to an already fragile dairy industry, after the retail giant slashed the price of milk. Britain’s biggest food retailer delivered a fresh broadside in the battle for customers’ loyalty after cutting the price of a four [...]
Asda and Tesco kick off latest fuel price war March 10, 2014 SUPERMARKET chain Tesco kicked off another fuel price war yesterday, swiftly followed by Asda, following a decline in the wholesale cost of petrol and diesel despite escalating political unrest in Ukraine. Tesco cut the price of its petrol and diesel by one pence per litre (ppl) from yesterday afternoon. Asda is lowering its diesel by [...]
Why Sainsbury’s is SocGen’s favourite supermarket January 22, 2014 When it came to supermarkets’ Christmas performance in the UK, the discounters claimed the victory. Aldi and Lidl saw sales leap, both increasing their market shares. It was good news for high-end store Waitrose, too, which also saw a bumper festive period. It’s the Big Four – or, at least, three of them (Tesco, Asda [...]
Analysts predict price cuts at Sainsbury’s April 29, 2014 Analysts at Deutsche Bank issued a positive note on Sainbury’s today ahead of its full-year results next week, arguing that the supermarket group could be a relative winner in the sector compared to its rivals but warning that it will have to join them in slashing prices to stay ahead of the game. The [...]
Here’s what 3 banks are saying about Tesco’s latest turnaround plan February 26, 2014 Tesco’s shares are down more than four per cent, after the supermarket chain scrapped its profit margin target and laid out plans to invest in lowering its prices, prompting analysts cuts their ratings and price targets. Deutsche Bank cut its earning before interest and tax (EBIT) forecast of a £50m decline in the year to [...]
2014 brings bad news for Britain’s supermarkets January 9, 2014 Tesco has announced a disappointing set of results for the Christmas and New Year period. In the UK like-for-like sales were down 2.4 per in the six weeks to 4 January. Group sales for the period fell by 1.2 per cent. Chief executive Philip Clarke commented: We continued to invest in the most compelling offer [...]
Co-founder of Ocado steps down as the company reports £12.5m loss February 4, 2014 Online grocer Ocado has suffered a pre-tax loss of £12.5m for the year ended 1 December, despite increasing sales growth and the company’s deal with Morrison's last year to supply a new online service. Gross sales rose by 15 per cent to £843m, with new customer acquisitions up over 40 per cent on 2012. Analysts [...]