John Lewis reveals how we shop, live and look in 2015: Spiralising and the Nutribullet took over while we ditched thongs, bookcases and formal dining October 16, 2015 When looking back at 2015, how will the year be remembered? Plenty of scandals, both corporate and political, have kept us busy in the news department, but what about when we hit the shops? Middle England's favourite department store John Lewis has released its annual state of the nation report, revealing the five items that [...]
The Co-operative Bank wants to spend £1m growing the UK’s co-operative sector October 16, 2015 It may still be shaking off the effects of a £1.5bn black hole in its balance sheet, but The Co-operative Bank is already looking to the future, after it announced plans for a £1m boost to the UK's co-operative sector. In a statement today, it said it had agreed a three-year partnership with Co-operatives UK [...]
What emissions crisis? European new car registrations jumped in September – and people were desperate for Volkswagens October 16, 2015 While politicians and those at the top of Volkswagen wring their hands in anguish over the emissions cheating scandal, it turns out the rest of Europe just sort of shrugged and got on with it, after new figures showed the number of new VWs registered in Europe jumped 8.3 per cent in September. Lest we forget, [...]
Nestle share price falls after disappointing sales slashing growth forecast October 16, 2015 Nestle has cut its growth forecast for 2015 as “exceptional events” kept the company from meeting its sales targets. The figures Organic sales growth was up 4.2 per cent year-on-year for the first nine months, against forecasts of 4.7 per cent. The company reported sales of £44bn for the period, weighed down 6.9 per cent [...]
UK house prices: London rents actually fell in the last quarter (but they are still higher than this time last year), according to HomeLet October 16, 2015 Good news for London's renters; bad news for the capital's buy-to-let investors: the average rent of a property in Greater London has fallen for the first time since February. Average rents in the wider region fell by 0.2 per cent in the three months to September, according to HomeLet. That doesn't mean it's cheap: the average [...]
Volkswagen emissions scandal: New boss Matthais Mueller says VW can “shine again” October 15, 2015 The new boss of Volkswagen Matthais Mueller has said the car giant can "shine again" in the next two or three years. Speaking to managers, Mueller hailed a new culture for the company, which he said needed to become more decentralised, with brands and regions becoming more independent. Read more: German investor sentiment hit by [...]
A third of people visit shopping centres to eat rather than shop, says CBRE October 15, 2015 You would think that most people’s immediate instinct when entering a shopping centre would be to grab and run – before it all gets too much. Not so, according to new research from CBRE, which reveals that a third of all visitors to shopping centres across Europe, South Africa and the Middle East will visit [...]
Singaporean wealth fund GIC backs property revival in UK regions October 15, 2015 Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC has thrown its weight behind a private equity firm that invests in the UK’s regional property market. Maya Capital said it has secured a £90m loan from GIC to help fund acquisitions in areas outside London and the M25 that have enjoyed a resurgence in activity thanks to the improvement economy [...]
Repsol share price tumbles as Spanish firm reveals plans for £4.6bn asset sale October 15, 2015 Repsol's plan to sell €6.2bn (£4.6bn) of assets to reduce its unwieldy debt pile and keep investors happy was met with scepticism by the industry today, with questions over the viability of the oil giant's strategy. The Spanish firm's shares saw a turbulent day of trading, plunging over four per cent in the afternoon after a [...]
Battle of the banks: did Bank of America, JP Morgan, Citi or Goldman Sachs do better? October 15, 2015 Goldman Sachs, Citigroup and Blackstone, the world's largest alternative asset manager, were the latest Wall Street giants to report their earnings had been hit as the markets have taken a tumble. Blackstone made a first loss for the first time since 2011. While Goldman saw trading revenue fall by a third. "We experienced lower levels [...]