Knight Frank sees London as prime location September 29, 2013 ESTATE agent Knight Frank has named London as its prime location as it reported increases in both turnover and profit in the last year. The upmarket property advice company saw its profits lift seven per cent to £102.7m in the year ending 31 March, while turnover rose five per cent to £350m and net cash [...]
Consumer confidence rises as house market upswing unfolds August 22, 2013 CONSUMER spending power hit a fresh high in July, after steady gains through the year so far, according to a survey by Lloyds TSB. Optimism about the housing market drove the improvement, with sentiment ramping up around the UK, despite remaining concerns about financial pressure. Last month, 34 per cent of people had positive opinions [...]
Ignore the cranks: Orthodox economics can account for the 2008 financial crash October 28, 2013 ONE OF the more annoying false memes of recent years has been the notion that standard corporate finance models have not worked in or since the 2008 financial crisis, and that no orthodox economics account of that crisis has been offered. As someone who implements standard finance models, and has written orthodox economics accounts of [...]
Retailers set for best Xmas sales since pre-crisis October 14, 2013 BRITISH retailers are set to enjoy their best growth in Christmas sales since the financial crisis, according to a report published yesterday that forecast consumers would spend at least £2bn more than in 2012. Market research specialist Verdict predicted that spending in the fourth quarter would rise 2.2 per cent from the same period in [...]
UK firing on all cylinders ahead of the US shutdown October 3, 2013 EVEN AS America’s political stalemate brought warnings of a renewed global economic crisis, major sectors of the British economy all pointed to expansion again in September, with purchasing managers suggesting the strongest quarter’s growth in 15 years. The services industry rounded off Markit’s purchasing managers’ indexes (PMI) yesterday, with another month of bumper growth. The [...]
Regulator alleges price fixing in sports bra market September 20, 2013 A regulator has alleged price fixing in selling of Shock Absorber bras in UK department stores. The Office for Fair Trading (OFT) today issued a Statement of Objections to a sports bra manufacturer for allegedly fixing the resale price of their Shock Absorber bras. (Release) DB Apparel, the maker of Shock Absorber has, the OFT [...]
Thomas Pink profit rosy after an online push and new products September 29, 2013 LUXURY shirtmaker Thomas Pink saw profits jump by almost a fifth last year as it continued to ramp up its online expansion and come up with new products. The chain, which is owned by French luxury goods giant LVMH, posted a 19 per cent rise in pre-tax profits to £1.9m in the year to 31 [...]
Berkeley sees forward sales break £1.5bn September 2, 2013 AN IMPROVING housing market and a rise in the number of UK buyers has helped forward sales at housebuilder Berkeley Group top £1.5bn. Speaking at the group’s annual general meeting yesterday, chairman Tony Pidgley said trading in the four months to 31 August was in line with expectations and that Berkeley was on track to [...]
Why messing with pay is not the best way to end living cost squeeze September 4, 2013 UNEMPLOYMENT and underemployment in the UK are still far too high. But given the circumstances, the UK’s labour market is in a far better shape than we might have expected. In much of Europe, five years of stagnation have sent jobless figures through the roof. Yet the UK got away with a black eye. A [...]
Regulator chief Martin Wheatley says that reform means challenges will give way to fairness October 23, 2013 Chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) Martin Wheatley will speak tonight about lessons learnt and challenges ahead for the financial world, highlighting the importance of fairness and cultural reform in preventing future crises. The regulator will say that there is no room for complacency, despite an improving situation: “poor conduct is still a [...]