Capital Shopping Centres spree helps boost profits August 2, 2011 CAPITAL Shopping Centres (CSC), the UK’s biggest shopping mall owner, said its half-year profits rose by 53 per cent, buoyed by the £1.6bn acquisition of Manchester’s Trafford Centre in January. Footfall across its 14 shopping centres increased by three per cent while net rental income rose by six per cent year-on-year, thanks to an increase [...]
Theo Fennell sets sights on profit fuelled by China July 7, 2011 JEWELLERY designer Theo Fennell has pledged to take his company back into the black, with China a main driver of sales. In the 12 weeks to the end of June, like-for-like retail sales rose 15 per cent, the company said in an update. That followed a dire Christmas in which the jeweller was hit by [...]
The 9 projects that show the future of commercial space July 10, 2011 Office Space ACROSS the capital, thrilling new commercial buildings are springing up, from the City’s twenty-first century office towers to Europe’s largest urban shopping centre at Stratford. Andrew Deverell-Smith, managing director of property recruitment specialists Deverell Smith Recruitment, says “for those of us with so much at stake in the property industry, it is refreshing [...]
Global growth fears drain confidence from markets August 18, 2011 Renewed fears over spluttering global economic growth dragged back world markets with commodity and financial stocks suffering in the increasingly bleak climate. Morgan Stanley cut its forecast for global growth, citing “recent policy errors” in the US and Europe, plus prospects of further fiscal tightening in 2012. MSCI’s world equity index fell 0.8 per cent [...]
London defies slow UK real estate market July 4, 2011 GROWING demand for office space and a booming London market are offering some hope for the UK’s ailing commercial property market, a new survey revealed today. And while the residential property sector continues to slump across the UK, house prices at the top end of the London market are expected to rise by nine per [...]
FTSE takes a battering on recovery fears August 3, 2011 Energy companies took a hammering in London today as a renewed investor focus on global economic fragility saw a flight to safety across Europe. The FTSE 100 retreated more than 133 points or 2.3 per cent to close at 5,584.51, levels not seen since November 2010, after confidence in sovereign debt fell again and investors [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS July 18, 2011 HSBC HSBC has promoted Krishna Patel, chief executive of HSBC Africa, to chief executive of its Global Private Banking division, reporting to group chief executive Stuart Gulliver. Patel will start his new role on 1 September, initially based in Geneva, and will focus on strengthening the bank’s presence in the fastest-growing wealth markets. Patel, who [...]
Tube strike to hit west end sales December 20, 2010 London’s retailers could be severely affected by tube strikes on Boxing Day, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) has warned. Almost one fifth of retail spending takes place in the capital, providing 380,000 jobs, they said. And the strike could damage the industry at a crucial moment, as shops try to tempt customers ahead of the [...]
Massow’s back and helping you to save September 11, 2011 FAMED for founding the first company to provide mortgages and life insurance for people in HIV high-risk groups, Ivan Massow’s name used to be all over the papers in the 1990s. He sat on the sofa with Richard and Judy, on a panel on BBC’s Question Time, he was even flatmates with the now education [...]
Factory output in unexpected fall August 9, 2011 Factory output fell unexpectedly in June, an unwelcome reminder of the poor state of the country’s economy as it faces new challenges from global financial turmoil and widespread riots in London and other cities. The weak official data followed reports overnight from trade associations of low consumer confidence in the retail and property markets last [...]