Bottom Line: Revamp can’t happen fast enough October 24, 2013 CHANGE can be good – great even – but it always come with risks. For months now Debenhams’ flagship Oxford Street store has been covered in scaffolding, with shoppers pointed towards a temporary entrance before being directed into a store that looks more like a building site than a shopping haven. All signs point to the [...]
Mobile Streams’ stock hit as cash remains trapped in Argentina October 2, 2013 SMARTPHONE content retailer Mobile Streams, chaired by media entrepreneur Roger Parry, said yesterday its annual profits doubled in 2013 to £4.8m following huge growth in the company’s Latin America operations. But the company’s share price fell over 10 per cent as Mobile Stream’s cash in Argentina, some 73 per cent of the company’s total, remains [...]
A new public square for north London November 21, 2013 New homes in West Hampstead will be inspired by Bauhaus architecture and contemporary design ACCORDING to rock legend, The Rolling Stones wrote their first song while locked in a West Hampstead flat in 1964. The tale goes that, despite The Stones’ success, The Beatles were making more money because the talented rascals had the cheek [...]
Gather round for the Hudl – Tesco’s tablet launch event on the horizon September 17, 2013 On Monday 23 September, Tesco is holding a press event, with speculation that it's the unveiling of a new tablet, the Hudl. The Hudl arrives on the market with a rumoured price tag of £99, taking on Amazon's Kindle Fire and Google's Nexus, and the tagline 'We've got something to show you.' Analysts anticipate a 16GB, [...]
City analysts say carbon tax should be scrapped October 28, 2013 THE CARBON tax should be scrapped before it makes domestic energy supplies more expensive than imports, city analysts at Macquarie warned over the weekend. The UK government’s levy on coal and gas, which is called the carbon price floor, was implemented earlier this year and encourages firms to invest in low-carbon energy production. It adds [...]
Before the open: FTSE expected up following Chinese strengthening September 10, 2013 Given stronger data in from China this morning, investors are expecting London's leading index to move higher at the open. Industrial production and retail sales came in higher than analysts anticipated. European opening calls: FTSE +22, DAX +34, CAC +13 — Carolin Roth (@CarolinCNBC) September 10, 2013 $ little weaker, equities set to be stronger [...]
Losses at French Connection but CEO still upbeat September 16, 2013 FRENCH Connection reported slightly reduced first half losses yesterday, as the British fashion retailer continues its attempted turnaround following years of underperformance. Losses fell to £6.1m, compared to £6.3m in 2012, results which chairman and chief executive Stephen Marks said are encouraging. “We have continued to implement significant changes across the business and our new [...]
Weather hits internet retail as high streets boosted by heat August 18, 2013 ONLINE sales fell two per cent in July, in a reversal of fortunes for internet retailers as shoppers returned to high streets during the heatwave. According to the IMRG Capgemini retail index for July, sales were up by nine per cent in the 12 months to July, but dipped in the month itself, making it [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 7 October 2013 October 7, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Temasek bids for Repsol gas stake Temasek and Sinopec have both approached Repsol over buying its €4.7bn stake in Gas Natural as the Spanish oil company seeks to raise cash to increase its investment in oil exploration. Repsol, which is working with Deutsche Bank and Citigroup to find a buyer for the domestic [...]
City Moves for 2 September 2013 | Who’s switching jobs September 1, 2013 Stonehage The wealth management and advisory services company has announced the appointment of Simon Clark as managing director of group services. Clark was most recently at ACPI, where he was chief operating officer. Prior to that, he was chief financial officer at Heartwood, and he has previously held various roles at RBS Financial Markets, Greenwich [...]