CBI: Service sector sees a slump in profitability September 1, 2010 PROFITABILITY in Britain’s service sector unexpectedly fell last month and firms expect no end to the current gloom engulfing the sector, the CBI will reveal today. A net 14 per cent of consumer services firms reported overall profitability to be down over the past three months while a net 29 per cent of business and [...]
US housing market improves but consumer confidence hit July 28, 2009 US HOME sales rose for the first time in almost three years in May but ongoing weakness in the jobs market hit July consumer confidence hard, data showed yesterday. The S&P/Case-Shiller composite-20 index rose 0.5 per cent month-on-month in May, which saw the annual decline moderate to 17.1 per cent. But these figures are not [...]
Treat yourself to a taste of luxury this year May 18, 2010 POSH frocks and designer handbags come in and out of fashion, but the companies that make them can be a prudent investment. Luxury stocks held up pretty well during the recession and there are now some signs that they will lead the pack as the global economic recovery gathers pace. Hermes, the French designer brand, [...]
Easing inflation worries improve German consumer confidence July 27, 2009 GERMAN consumer confidence rose to its highest level in more than a year as easing inflation encouraged shoppers, according to data from research group GfK yesterday. The GfK consumer sentiment indicator, rose to 3.5 going into August from an upwardly revised reading of 3.0 for July. “Inflation is fading and people have more money in [...]
Chinese demand will keep the German engine roaring October 31, 2010 GERMANY certainly is the engine of Europe at the moment; it has powered its way out of the recession. Exports are booming, unemployment is expected to fall to levels last seen in the early 1990s and its current account is firmly in surplus. The blue-chip Dax index is the model of this good health, outperforming [...]
Chinese demand will keep the German engine roaring October 31, 2010 GERMANY certainly is the engine of Europe at the moment; it has powered its way out of the recession. Exports are booming, unemployment is expected to fall to levels last seen in the early 1990s and its current account is firmly in surplus. The blue-chip Dax index is the model of this good health, outperforming [...]
Britons are at their most optimistic in two years as economy starts to grow March 2, 2010 BRITONS are at their most confident in two years with expectations about the future the highest level on record, the Nationwide Consumer Confidence Index for February will show today. This second consecutive rise puts the index at 80, its highest level since January 2008, and almost double the level recorded during the same period last [...]
DS Smith says trading on track after it boosts sales September 7, 2010 PACKAGING supplier DS Smith said trading over the summer was encouraging, helped by an uptick in fast moving consumer goods (FMCG). The FTSE 250 firm said it was confident for the rest of the year, and said it was ahead of the market for growth in the FMCG sector. “Our aim is to produce a [...]
UK consumer confidence unchanged due to uncertain economic situation July 30, 2009 UK consumers were no more positive in July than in the previous month as they wait to see what happens to the economic situation over the next 12 months, according to GfK NOP figures released today. Overall UK consumer confidence remained at -25 – a very low level historically – but is nonetheless 14 points [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING November 17, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES AGARWAL’S PROJECT QUASHED Anil Agarwal, the Indian billionaire who controls Vedanta, the UK-listed mining group, has suffered a setback to his philanthropic ambitions, hard on the heels of legal problems this year involving some of the group’s Indian operations. Mr Agarwal’s plans to build a $3.3bn (£2.1bn) university in a coastal area of [...]