Swedbank tops forecasts while provisions drop July 22, 2010 Swedbank yesterday posted a second-quarter profit more than twice as big as forecasts as loan losses related to the recession-hit Baltic region, where the bank is the top player, shrank sharply. The Swedish lender, which expects to post a full-year profit after spending 2009 in the red, was upbeat about the rest of the year, [...]
Eurostar sees ash cloud help lift revenues July 22, 2010 ICELAND’S volcano Eyjafjallajokull significantly bolstered Eurostar’s business after the high-speed European train operator carried 100,000 more passengers during the first half of the year pushing revenue up by 18 per cent. Additional passengers looking to avoid air travel during the last six months boosted Eurostar’s revenue to £404m. Eurostar saw passenger numbers climb six per [...]
Lonmin keeps 2010 targets as sales halve July 22, 2010 Lonmin’S third-quarter refined platinum sales almost halved the miner revealed yesterday following a closure of its main furnace, but it reiterated full-year sales guidance. The world’s third-biggest platinum producer, which operates in South Africa, had said on 24 May it would need to send material out to be refined by rivals to meet the company’s [...]
Sports Direct in profit rise July 22, 2010 FOOTBALL fans buying personalised shirts and other World Cup gear, helped to fuel a 50 per cent profit rise for Sports Direct. The retailer celebrated its strongest-ever trading on the day of the England versus USA game. The company said World Cup demand helped it maintain the sales trends that saw post and annual pre-tax-profit [...]
M&B sales hit by World Cup July 22, 2010 PUBS and restaurants group Mitchells & Butlers said yesterday sales growth slowed in June and July as diners were lured away by the attraction of the World Cup. M&B, which has over 2,000 pubs and restaurants and whose brands include Harvester, All Bar One and Toby Carvery, said the World Cup had a “negative impact” [...]
Imperial Tobacco suffers as cigarette volumes fall July 22, 2010 IMPERIAL Tobacco, the world’s fourth-biggest cigarette maker, said cigarette volumes fell 4.3 per cent in the nine months to June – a worsening from a 3.7 per cent decline in its first half. Imperial, with cigarette brands including Lambert & Butler, West and Gauloises, said declines in Russia, Spain, Ukraine and the United States were [...]
Kingfisher sees sales dip as UK stores struggle on July 22, 2010 B&Q owner Kingfisher said yesterday it was on track to meet first-half profit expectations, with cost cutting and business improvement measures offsetting a dip in underlying sales. The firm, which runs Castorama and Brico Depot chains in France said sales at stores open at least a year fell 0.8 per cent in the 10 weeks [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: HOW IS KINGFISHER HOLDING UP IN LEAN TIMES? July 22, 2010 NICK BUBB | ARDEN PARTNERS We had hoped to see a small positive, on the view that the weather has been helpful and the World Cup impact overstated. The UK is in fact disappointing, with B&Q like-for-like sales down by 4.3 per cent, albeit gross margins are good. The read-across for Homebase and Home Retail [...]
SABMiller beer volumes fall July 22, 2010 Brewer SABMiller reported a decline in first-quarter beer volumes yesterday despite a World Cup boost, after floods, national mourning and a tax hike hit drinking in key markets. The brewer of Miller Lite, Peroni and Pilsner Urquell said that underlying beer and soft drink volumes were one per cent down year-on-year. Analysts were on balance [...]
Champagne sees fizz return July 22, 2010 Champagne makers Remy Cointreau and Vranken-Pommery Monopole have posted quarterly sales growth, signalling customers were returning to high-end brands after a lull during the financial crisis. Remy Cointreau, which makes Piper-Heidsieck champagne, said sales of champagne rose 23 per cent to £14m in its fiscal first quarter to 30 June. Vranken-Pommery said sales rose 52 [...]