January’s bumper new car sales set to slow over 2014 February 6, 2014 After ending 2013 on a high, UK new car buying confidence continued into this year, with the number of new cars registered in January rising 7.6 per cent. According to figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) 154,562 were registered in the month. The rise was the 23rd in a row, and [...]
Ocado co-founder offloads 3m shares after losses shock February 6, 2014 After the grocer suffered pre-tax losses of £12.5m in the year to 1 December, co-founder and director Jason Gissing has sold over 3m shares. Gissing is a founding director, and yesterday it was announced that he would step down, leaving chief executive Tim Steiner as the only remaining co-founder at the company. Steiner said that [...]
1 chart that puts talk of an emerging market crisis in perspective February 6, 2014 There is no crisis. Booming UK and EM in meltdown. pic.twitter.com/pWj18e3av3 — Paweł Morski (@Pawelmorski) February 6, 2014 For all the talk of a roaring UK economy, most of the emerging market economies that are getting trashed right now aren't doing all that badly. The above chart shows that most are actually expected to [...]
Sony cuts 5,000 jobs as PC business sold off February 6, 2014 Sony has entered a memorandum of understanding with Japan Industrial Partners (JIP) to sell the company's Vaio PC division. The price secured for Vaio has yet to be disclosed but it is hoped the deal will be completed by the end of the year. Sony will cease immediately to design and develop any further PC [...]
Bombardier bags £1bn Crossrail deal February 6, 2014 Plane and train manufacturer Bombardier has won a £1bn contract to provide trains for Crossrail, the Department for Transport and Transport for London has announced today. The Canadian company will provide 65 trains for the service, which is set to open in 2018. The vehicles will be manufactured and assembled at the company’s plant in [...]
AstraZeneca shares drop on loss February 6, 2014 Some rather disappointing news for AstraZeneca this morning. The drug maker has, as expected, posted a loss for the fourth quarter of 2013 and says it expects revenues and profits to decline in 2014 as it feels the impact of loss of exclusivity on several brands. Expiring patents and competition from generics hampered performance for [...]
EasyJet flying high as passenger numbers grow February 6, 2014 EasyJet continues to show steady growth, as passengers opting to fly with the low-cost airline continued to increase through January. The FTSE-100 company saw passenger numbers rise by 3.7 per cent compared to the same time last year, reaching a total of 4m. This marks further improvement for the company which posted positive numbers for [...]
What you need to know before the open – 06/02 February 6, 2014 A slightly higher open for European markets this morning as the European Central Bank’s decision over its main interest rates lies in focus. There’s been speculation that its headline rate could get cut from 0.25 per cent to 0.1 per cent – although many economists are sceptical as to the impact that would have on [...]
Tui Travel has sunny outlook for 2014 as losses narrow February 6, 2014 Tui travel has said it's upbeat about the coming year, as it saw loss before tax diminish 8.3 per cent to £166m in the last three months of 2013 from a year earlier. Revenue increased slightly to £2.73bn from £2.72bn. Gross profit stood at £156m, up from £144m. The owner of Thomson and First Choice [...]
Weak European markets hit Vodafone revenue February 6, 2014 Telecommunications company Vodafone has seen reported revenue fall by 3.6 per cent to £10.9bn for the quarter ended 31 December. The European market proved to be a tough environment for the the FTSE 100-listed company, with price competition across the region seeing a fall in German revenue of 7.9 per cent and UK revenue of [...]