UK consumer upbeat about rest of year July 7, 2009 BRITISH consumers are feeling increasingly positive and confidence levels are now close to those recorded last year, according the Nationwide consumer confidence index published today. The index rose to 58 from 54 in May, compared to a reading of 59 in June last year. Consumer expectations for the economic situation in six months time were [...]
US consumer cheer dives June 30, 2009 CONFIDENCE among US consumers dived unexpectedly low in June, despite encouraging signs the worst of the housing slump may be over. The Conference Board’s sentiment index fell to 49.3 in June from 54.8 in May, suggesting the economy is still firmly in the grip of recession. The lack of consumer confidence reflects a weak labour [...]
US consumer cheer dives June 30, 2009 CONFIDENCE among US consumers dived unexpectedly low in June, despite encouraging signs the worst of the housing slump may be over. The Conference Board’s sentiment index fell to 49.3 in June from 54.8 in May, suggesting the economy is still firmly in the grip of recession. The lack of consumer confidence reflects a weak labour [...]
It’s time to halt quantitative easing February 1, 2010 ONE of the most important pieces of data is also one of the hardest to understand. Working out how much money is circulating at any one time in the economy is the Holy Grail of macroeconomics; those who can make sense of it have a huge advantage when it comes to predicting inflation, stock and [...]
JD Wetherspoon’s sales take a tumble due to cold weather January 20, 2010 PUBS group JD Wetherspoon yesterday reported a decline in second-quarter like-for-like sales as a prolonged outbreak of snow across Britain kept drinkers at home. The company, which has 744 pubs, said sales at pubs open for more than a year fell by 0.3 per cent in the 12 weeks to 17 January, with the last [...]
Comet festive sales are a worry for owner Kesa January 20, 2010 COMET dragged down sales at parent company Kesa as the electrical store failed to beat off its rivals over Christmas. Like-for-like sales dropped by 3.9 per cent at Comet between 1 November and 8 January, the company revealed yesterday. However, Kesa’s overall sales fall was limited to 0.3 per cent after growth in its international [...]
Belt tightening hits Restaurant November 18, 2009 RESTAURANT GROUP, the retailer behind Garfunkel’s and Frankie & Benny’s, yesterday warned of falling revenues. Sales were down three per cent year-on-year between January and October despite the opening of 17 new eateries. The company said rising unemployment, tight credit markets and high levels of household debt had made 2009 a “challenging” time to run [...]
RECOVERY IS GAINING IN MOMENTUM August 9, 2009 JANE FOLEYRESEARCH DIRECTOR, FOREX.COM THE suggestion that the UK economy may return to growth by the end of the year is not new, but the recent spate of better than expected economic data appear to give legs to this possibility. Purchasing managers’ indices (PMIs) for July are suggesting expansion in both the manufacturing and services [...]
CITY VIEWS: WHEN DO YOU THINK THE ECONOMY WILL COME OUT OF RECESSION? November 25, 2009 SIMON DUKE LLOYD’S OF LONDON“I expect that by the end of next year we will see signs that the recession has ended, particularly because we’ve already hit bottom. It will take time for new jobs to surface and previous jobs to return, but I think the recovery process is underway.” MARK STOOP BEAZLEY“I think the [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS July 5, 2009 HEINEKENBroker JP Morgan yesterday raised its price target for beer brewer Heineken from €23.00 (£19.70) to €26.00, forecasting an improvement in beer volumes during this year and next. JP Morgan added it did not believe that Heineken is again the “cheap value, recovery player” in the sector, but said that the worst is over in [...]