Surprise fall in UK retail sales hopefully a temporary blip November 14, 2013 UK retail sales suffered a worse than expected fall of 0.7 per cent in October. Analysts had expected retail sales to remain in line with figures seen in September. Capital Economics' UK economist, Mark Beck, comments: Overall, with recent data showing a robust labour market and October’s faster than expected fall in inflation easing the [...]
Euro area economy expands in third quarter November 14, 2013 The euro area economy expanded in the third quarter. A flash estimate of Eurozone GDP (seasonally adjusted) came in at 0.1 per cent, just below expectations of a 0.2 per cent rise and after 0.3 per cent growth in the second quarter. Jonathan Loynes of Capital Economics says that the fragility of the Eurozone recovery [...]
Domino’s Pizza appoints Sean Wilkins as chief financial officer designate November 14, 2013 Domino's Pizza has appointed Sean Wilkins as chief financial officer (CFO) designate. Mr Wilkins will assume his responsibilities as CFO from 18 November, taking over from Lee Ginsberg after his retirement at Domino's annual general meeting in 2014. Mr Wilkins is an international finance director and recently held the position of general manager of Coles [...]
Serco shares plummet as contractor faces lower profits in wake of government investigation November 14, 2013 Serco has warned that profits for 2013 may be lower than expected and earnings for 2014 will be lower than 2013. The company has suffered a sharp fall in its share price of over 10 per cent this morning. Serco's problems have been magnified due to an investigation launched by the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) [...]
Italian GDP falls in third quarter, in line with forecasts November 14, 2013 The Italian economy contracted 1.9 per cent in the third quarter when compared to a year ago, according to a flash GDP estimate, which was in line with expectations. Second quarter GDP was revised down from -2.1 per cent to -2.2 per cent. Quarter-on-quarter, GDP decreased an expected 0.1 per cent, compared to the 0.3 [...]
French GDP contraction piles pressure on government November 14, 2013 French GDP unexpectedly fell by 0.1 per cent in the third quarter, according to the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies.This disappointing fall comes after 0.5 per cent growth was reported in the second quarter. A drop in exports of 1.5 per cent was accompanied by declining corporate investment and and a slow down [...]
Burberry gets revenue boost as it prepares for Ahrendts’ exit November 14, 2013 Burberry has reported a 17 per cent jump in revenue, to £1,031m, for the six months ended 30 September. The fashion powerhouse, which is readying itself for new leadership under chief creative officer Christopher Bailey, saw adjusted profit before tax of £174m – above original guidance and 2012's £173m. This is the first time Burberry's [...]
Centrica holds onto customers but not profit November 14, 2013 As anticipated, energy supplier Centrica expects full-year profit for British Gas to be significantly lower than last year, as it says this morning that we are in "unprecedented times for the energy sector" and market conditions "remain challenging". It residential energy supply margin will also be hit and is expected to be "slightly lower than [...]
What you need to know before the open – 14/11 November 14, 2013 Europe is set to open higher this morning after US markets saw a record close and Fed chair elect Janet Yellen's dovish remarks to the Senate Banking Committee last night. dunno how Republican Congressmen will feel about her but markets have a crush on Janet Yellen. — kit juckes (@kitjuckes) November 14, 2013 Yellen [...]
Germany sees growth slow in third quarter November 14, 2013 Germany's economy slowed in the third quarter, in line with expectations. In a flash estimate released by the federal statistics office, GDP increased by 0.3 per cent in the three months ended in September, down from 0.7 per cent growth in the second quarter.