Tesco’s share price climbs as it stems declines but Asda and Morrisons crowned worst performing supermarkets in the UK March 8, 2016 Tesco has continued to stem its declines, but Asda and Morrisons have tumbled further, according to Kantar Worldpanel's latest figures for the supermarket sector. Sales at Tesco fell 0.8 per cent – meaning its performance is still well below the sector average of 0.5 per cent growth – but a relative improvement on last month's decline of [...]
Google agrees to pay £130m in back taxes in deal with HMRC January 23, 2016 Google has agreed a deal with HMRC in which it will pay £130m in back taxes after an "open audit" of its accounts by the UK tax authorities. The £130m covers corporation tax owed since 2005, and senior figures at Google have said it would follow rules which will result in it paying more tax [...]
Is UK online fashion retailer Net-a-Porter about to be bought by Amazon? March 27, 2015 Is Amazon planning to get into high-end fashion retailing? The US tech giant is reportedly in talks to acquire Net-a-Porter, the British online luxury fashion retailer. It would be a bold move for Amazon, which already has clothing categories on its site – although many of the listings tend to feature the word "polyester". According [...]
Tesco Now trademarked: Is one-hour delivery on its way? October 19, 2015 Tesco has filed a trade mark for the name Tesco Now, fuelling speculation that it's considering offering customers deliveries within the hour. Filed on 29 September and spotted by the Grocer, the trade mark covers five different food areas and the delivery of goods. The move follows the introduction of Amazon's Prime Now service, which can [...]
Consumer goods groups challenge financials to become biggest sector in FTSE 100 as Barclays, HSBC, RBS and Standard Chartered share prices plummet year-to-date March 3, 2016 Consumer goods groups are challenging the dominance of financial firms in the FTSE 100 for the first time in a decade. The two sectors are neck-and-neck, with consumer goods actually overtaking financials briefly during February, rising to account for 20.85 per cent of the FTSE 100, compared with 20.61 per cent, before slipping back down again. [...]
Poor little rich boys: The wealth of the world’s billionaires, including Warren Buffett, Bill Gates and Carlos Slim, shrank by $19bn in 2015 December 29, 2015 The wealth of the world's 400 richest people shrank by $19bn (£12.7bn) in 2015, with three of the five richest people losing $34bn between them. That's according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, falling commodities and slow growth in China caused the world's richest to lose out. The heart bleeds… Mexican telecoms billionaire Carlos Slim, once the [...]
Chinese consumers are changing their habits rapidly as luxury has suffered a slow death and online takes off April 24, 2016 Beijing is awash with restaurants, but locals Cherry and Andy Ho haven’t bothered going out to eat for months. The proliferation of Groupon-style coupons and deals means it’s easier to have food delivered. It’s half the cost, with no delivery charge – great for consumers, but not so good for some traditional businesses. Indeed, this was among [...]
The seven things to look out for at Apple WWDC June 12, 2016 Apple's already launched a phone this year, but there's more to come from the tech titan, and some of that will be revealed at its developer conference next week. Don't expect the iPhone 7 yet though, this will be all about software and services rather than devices. Last year, we had a bumper one that [...]
Black Friday 2015 UK: An interactive guide to the best deals, the history of the sales bonanza, whether it’s good for business – plus Cyber Monday November 27, 2015 The 2015 incarnation of Black Friday is set to be the UK’s biggest ever shopping day with some estimates suggesting almost £2bn will be spent on deals, sales and offers at the country’s biggest retail stores – both online and on the high streets. But what is it all about, why does it matter for [...]
Best Black Friday 2015 UK deals on sportswear, gear and trainers from JD Sports, Sports Direct, SportsShoes.com, Decathlon, Pro:Direct and others November 26, 2015 The frenzied sales of Black Friday have become synonymous with crazed customers fighting over cut-price HD TVs amid shopping aisle stampedes – but it doesn't have to be so stressful. In fact, avoid going out altogether and instead of a new screen to give your eyes a good glazing, order some sportswear to get you off [...]