New man is from the Leahy mould April 19, 2011 THE son of a Tesco store manager in the Wirral, Philip Clarke has moved into the hot seat 36 years after he did his first shelf-stacking shift for the supermarket as a schoolboy. Like his predecessor Sir Terry Leahy, who also grew up in Liverpool, he has been one of the backbones of the company [...]
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 [...]
FTSE up but investors jittery over Greek crisis June 27, 2011 The FTSE 100 was up this morning but investors remained wary ahead of yet another chapter in the Greek financial crisis. Greek MPs are due to debate a fresh package of austerity measures later. The euro slipped as confidence in the eurozone continued to be sapped by Greece’s debt pile. Meanwhile France’s Christine Lagarde was [...]
Soaring tech stocks burnish banking rally to send FTSE up July 20, 2011 BANKING stocks led Britain’s top shares higher yesterday on strong corporate earnings and optimism over a deal in Washington to increase the US debt ceiling and avoid default. The UK benchmark index closed up 63.83 points, or 1.1 per cent, at 5,853.82, building on the previous session’s 0.7 per cent advance. Solid US earnings, including [...]
Soaring tech stocks burnish banking rally to send FTSE up July 20, 2011 BANKING stocks led Britain’s top shares higher yesterday on strong corporate earnings and optimism over a deal in Washington to increase the US debt ceiling and avoid default. The UK benchmark index closed up 63.83 points, or 1.1 per cent, at 5,853.82, building on the previous session’s 0.7 per cent advance. Solid US earnings, including [...]
Dairy Crest performance up thanks to Country Life May 19, 2011 DAIRY Crest yesterday said that market-beating performances by brands including Cathedral City cheese and Country Life butter helped profits rise five per cent. The dairy giant reported a seven per cent rise in sales for its five key brands, while the volume of milk sold to major retailers jumped nine per cent after a new [...]
Sainsbury’s sales rise but fuel costs bite June 15, 2011 UK SHOPPERS are spending £10 per week less on food now than two years ago because of the cost of petrol, Sainsbury’s chief executive Justin King (pictured) warned yesterday, as the supermarket said sales rose 0.9 per cent in the past quarter. Sales excluding petrol but including VAT rose 1.9 per cent, while sales ex-VAT [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING June 2, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES FORMER TESCO CHIEF PUTS MONEY INTO NICOTINE A medical devices group developing non-tobacco nicotine delivery systems has won the backing of Sir Terry Leahy in the latest private investment by the former Tesco chief executive since he retired in March. Sir Terry has put an undisclosed sum behind Kind Consumer, a start-up that [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING June 2, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES FORMER TESCO CHIEF PUTS MONEY INTO NICOTINE A medical devices group developing non-tobacco nicotine delivery systems has won the backing of Sir Terry Leahy in the latest private investment by the former Tesco chief executive since he retired in March. Sir Terry has put an undisclosed sum behind Kind Consumer, a start-up that [...]
RSA limits losses and boosts income May 12, 2011 HOME insurer Royal and Sun Alliance (RSA) reassured investors yesterday with solid quarterly numbers that moved on from heavy winter losses in the UK and Europe. RSA’s net written premiums rose eight per cent to £2.1bn in the three months to March from 2010 as rates rose and it felt the benefit of takeovers in [...]