Odds for a White Xmas slashed December 14, 2010 Bookmakers have shortened the odds on a white Christmas, as weather forecasters warn of an icy blast on its way later this week. With less than a fortnight to go until Christmas, temperatures are set to drop as winds from the north bring a band of rain and high winds tomorrow. The Met Office expects [...]
BAA narrows annual losses despite snow February 22, 2011 HEATHROW and Stansted owner BAA narrowed its losses to £316.6m in 2010, it announced yesterday, as a rise in retail spending at its airports made up for some of the £58m hit from snow, ash and strike disruption. BAA, owned by Spain’s Ferrovial, said revenue rose 4.9 per cent to £2.07bn last year. Losses were [...]
Tesco and Sainsbury’s boost UK market share January 9, 2011 THREE of the UK’s big four supermarket chains are reporting Christmas figures this week, with analysts expecting Tesco and J Sainsbury to have boosted their market share. Research company Kantar suggests that Sainsbury’s advanced its share of the British grocery market by 0.3 per cent to 16.4 per cent while Tesco saw a lift of [...]
THE TIPSTER January 16, 2011 DISCOUNT pub group JD Wetherspoon has a trading update due out on Wednesday that should offer some insight as to the impact bad weather had on sales in the pre-Christmas period. A degree of this has presumably been priced in already although broker sentiment does seem to be building against the stock. IG Index is [...]
Virgin mulls legal action over Heathrow disruption January 10, 2011 Virgin Atlantic may take legal action against airport operator BAA over the part closure of London’s Heathrow airport last month and will withhold fees until a probe into the disruption is complete. “We’re exploring our legal options but will continue talking to BAA and want the inquiry into what happened last month to be both [...]
Virgin mulls legal action over Heathrow disruption January 10, 2011 Virgin Atlantic may take legal action against airport operator BAA over the part closure of London’s Heathrow airport last month and will withhold fees until a probe into the disruption is complete. “We’re exploring our legal options but will continue talking to BAA and want the inquiry into what happened last month to be both [...]
Halfords hit as bike sales fall January 13, 2011 HALFORDS issued a worse-than-expected profit forecast yesterday as poor sales of children’s bicycles over Christmas hit the retailer. Cycle sales fell 16 per cent on a like-for-like basis as parents bought gadgets and electronic games instead of bikes. The weakness in bicycles was in contrast to strong car maintenance sales which were up 12 per [...]
Halfords hit as bike sales fall January 13, 2011 HALFORDS issued a worse-than-expected profit forecast yesterday as poor sales of children’s bicycles over Christmas hit the retailer. Cycle sales fell 16 per cent on a like-for-like basis as parents bought gadgets and electronic games instead of bikes. The weakness in bicycles was in contrast to strong car maintenance sales which were up 12 per [...]
JD Sports on takeover talks for JJB February 2, 2011 Sportswear retailer JD Sports Fashion has approached its struggling rival JJB Sports about a possible takeover offer, the two companies said. JD Sports said it was in “early stage” discussions with JJB’s board, while JJB Sports described the talks as “highly preliminary.” Both companies said there was no certainty an offer would be made by [...]
SuperGroup in 87pc bumper sales increase February 9, 2011 RETAILER SuperGroup yesterday posted stellar sales figures after a storming performance over Christmas. The owner of the Superdry brand said yesterday it would be targeting an expansion in online sales and a fresh assault on the European market in 2011. SuperGroup’s total sales rose 87 per cent to £81.7m in three months to 30 January. [...]