Retailers hit by worst January in 15 years as snow and VAT hike take toll February 8, 2010 THE UK high street shuddered last month as retailers suffered their worst January in 15 years due to snow and a lack of consumer confidence, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) will say today. Underlying sales values for January fell 0.7 per cent compared to a 2.6 per cent rise the year before. On a total [...]
ECONOMIC DIARY February 21, 2010 AFTER a week packed with economic data releases, the next five days promise to be a bit quieter. Last Thursday, the US Federal Reserve hiked the rate it charged banks to hold reserves in a surprise move that signalled a return towards more normal monetary policy. On Wednesday Fed chairman Ben Bernanke will be giving [...]
Sports Direct celebrates a double victory February 11, 2010 SPORTS Direct has seen a surge in sales and been cleared by a competition commission investigation. Britain’s largest sports retailer raised its full-year profit guidance yesterday after the sales jump for the 13 weeks to 24 January. Retail sales rose 9.4 per cent to £326m – lifting gross profit to £136m. Sports Direct – which [...]
FTSE rocked as mining shares fall on commodity price drop February 23, 2010 BRITAIN’S top shares shed 0.7 per cent yesterday, tracking early falls on Wall Street and pressured by weaker miners and energy issues as commodity prices fell with a firmer dollar after dull data. At the close, the FTSE 100 was 36.98 points lower at 5,315.09, having hit a one-month high earlier in the session. US [...]
From easy money to $1m comic books February 23, 2010 Q. What do quantitative easing and super-hero comic books have in common? A. Quite a lot. Cheap money from central bank asset purchases and ultra-low interest rates is helping to reinflate bubbles in parts of the global economy. UK house prices are soaring irrationally again, for instance. But my favourite anecdote comes from ComicConnect.com, a [...]
Optimism seeps back to the City’s financial services firms January 18, 2010 THE financial services industry in London showed signs of optimism in 2009, with 39 per cent of businesses claiming to be more optimistic about their prospects this year, compared to 23 per cent in 2008. An improvement in sales was one reason for cheer, with 94 per cent of respondents reporting either stable or increased [...]
Car scrappage scheme boosts sales by 280,000 January 13, 2010 NEARLY 290,000 cars have been sold through the government’s scrappage scheme. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said yesterday that 284,479 new cars were registered through the scrappage scheme between May and December. The scheme, which rewards consumers trading in their old vehicle for a new, fuel-efficient one with a £2,000 subsidy, accounted [...]
Liberty unveils demerger as profits tumble March 9, 2010 LIBERTY International will split its retail and commercial property businesses in a bid to “achieve greater value for shareholders.” The shopping centres arm of the business will become a real estate investment trust (REIT) called Capital Shopping Centres (CSC) with a market cap of around £2bn. And its London based portfolio will become Capital & [...]
Economic Diary January 24, 2010 MARKETS are expecting a bumpy ride this week with a slew of data that could derail momentum. Britons are eagerly awaiting the release of fourth quarter GDP tomorrow, which should show that the UK finally exited recession in the last three months of 2009. The consensus forecast is for output growth of 0.4 per cent. [...]
WH Smith sales dive January 26, 2010 WH Smith have reported a 4 per cent drop in like-for-like sales as customers bought fewer books. The figures for the 21 weeks to last weekend showed that the retailer’s High street stores saw a fall of 5 per cent while its travel-based outlets dipped by two per cent. WH Smith has been concentrating on [...]