The Notebook: Susannah Streeter talks Brits’ love of brands, ready meals and Eurovision May 16, 2023 The notebook is a place for interesting people to say interesting things. Today, it’s the turn of former journalist and now Hargreaves Lansdown’s head of money and markets Susannah Streeter. Our love of big brands helps fuel inflation fires Brand power is the much-lauded virtue of the world’s most successful companies. But this much-admired characteristic is partly [...]
Amigo boss resigns as subprime lender continues wind down May 16, 2023 The chief executive and director of controversial subprime lender Amigo resigned from his role yesterday as the firm continues its wind down. Danny Malone, who joined Amigo last year, will step down after serving his 6-month notice period to ensure “the continuation of the solvent and orderly wind-down of the business”. Malone said he joined [...]
Boohoo share price soars as profits halve: Brits ditch fast-fashion and head back to the high street May 16, 2023 Online fashion retailer Boohoo said its profits halved, as the cost of living crisis continues to hit consumers’ spending and Brits flock back to physical stores. Pre-tax profits for the group halved during the 12 month period ended 28 February 2023 to £63.3m, down 49 per cent, with revenues dropping 11 per cent to £1.77bn. [...]
Tesco cuts price on 30 own brand products including pasta and oil as supermarket wars continue May 16, 2023 Tesco has announced another round of price cuts on its own-brand pasta and cooking oil as it sees deflation making its way through to cupboard essentials. The UK’s biggest supermarket is dropping the price of 30 products, with 15p off 500g and 1kg packs of own-brand pasta, 14p off its one litre vegetable oil and [...]
Chicken goujons and late nights give Greggs another positive quarter May 16, 2023 British bakery and fast food chain Greggs said it saw strong sales growth in the first 19 weeks of 2023, as it continued the roll-out of new shops, longer trading hours and added extra options to its menu. Greggs said that total sales in the 19 weeks to 13 May 2023 were £609m, up from [...]
Marston’s pubs: No change in Brits’ appetite for a night out May 16, 2023 Marston’s recorded a near 11 per cent rise in sales in the first half on the back of its strong drinks sales, a trend that has continued over the past few weeks. Marston’s said the continued strength of drink sales demonstrated the resilience of its community pub estate in spite of the economic environment. In [...]
Imperial Brands: Profit up on back of ‘next generation’ tobacco alternatives May 16, 2023 Cigarette maker Imperial Brands reported a 27 per cent spike in operating profit on last year, while its foray into vaping and e-cigarettes also proved lucrative. The London-listed firm said it made £1.53bn operating profit in the six months ended 31 March, with revenue for its ‘next generation products’ offering an alternative to tobacco up [...]
Vodafone’s new CEO says “We’ve not been good enough” as she plots mass job cuts May 16, 2023 Saying "Vodafone must change," Della Valle has said the company is "too complex" and will need radical simplification to deliver.
Morning in the City: News and market updates May 16, 2023 Good morning and welcome to City A.M.s morning liveblog.
Some meat, yoghurt and vegetables have doubled in price in a year, new data shows May 16, 2023 Some meat, yoghurt and vegetables are among items that have doubled in price compared to a year ago, according to new figures from consumer group Which? The group urged Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to intervene on behalf of struggling consumers as its latest data shows food inflation remaining at “shockingly high levels”. The figures come ahead of Tuesday’s [...]