London becomes fourth most expensive city in the world: Rent, petrol and cooking oil drive cost of living June 9, 2022 A perfect storm of rising inflation, the war in Ukraine and soaring house prices and rent, have turned London in to a pressure cooker of expense, making it the fourth most costly place to live in the world. London move up one place according to new research about cost of living for expatriates around the [...]
Poundland owner: UK shoppers particularly wounded by higher bills due to stagnant wage growth June 9, 2022 Poundland owner Pepco has said consumers in the UK have been particularly wounded by higher costs of living, impacting spending. Pepco, which also owns discount retailer Dealz, said higher wages in Central and Eastern European markets were significantly offsetting inflationary pressures. However, in the Western European markets, stagnant wage growth had led to shoppers paring [...]
Apollo and Reliance Industries join forces to make binding bid of up to £6bn for chemist Boots June 9, 2022 Private equity firm Apollo and Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries have made a binding bid for high street chemist Boots, it has been reported. According to the Financial Times, the offer values the company at between £5bn and £6bn, two sources familiar with the deal told the newspaper. US owner Walgreens Boots Alliance had been looking [...]
Morrisons’ private equity owner clears final regulatory hurdle for £7bn supermarket sweep June 9, 2022 The competition watchdog has given the green light to Morrisons’ private equity owner, meaning the deal has now cleared regulatory checks. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) had provisionally accepted Clayton, Dubilier & Rice’s offer to sell 87 petrol stations in order to address competition concerns. Now, the watchdog said it has accepted the undertakings [...]
DFS reveals deliveries have dipped below expectations as supply chain issues bite June 9, 2022 DFS has revealed its production and deliveries are below expectations in the fourth quarter of the fiscal year.
Tate & Lyle snaps up Chinese dietary fibre firm as Ukraine conflict pushes up costs June 9, 2022 Tate & Lyle has inked an acquisition of a dietary fibre business in China as the syrup maker hopes to shrug off inflationary headwinds. In an update on Thursday, the former sugar-making giant said it had acquired Quantum Hi-Tech, for an undisclosed sum, to expand its presence into Chinese and Asian markets. For the year [...]
Fuller’s toasts return to profit amid ‘fragile’ consumer confidence June 9, 2022 Pub chain Fuller’s is back in the black after posting an adjusted profit before tax of £7.2m, as the licensed trade recovers from the pandemic. In results for the year to 26 March, the pub operator saw profit back in growth after posting a £48.7m loss in 2021, when Covid lockdowns enforced the closure of [...]
The new landlord in town: John Lewis to build homes on two London Waitrose sites June 9, 2022 John Lewis is preparing to pitch itself to Londoners as an affable landlord, revealing plans for two rental developments at Waitrose sites in the city. The retailer set out early plans to for build to rent developments in Bromley and West Ealing in London, as well as a vacant John Lewis warehouse in Reading. The [...]
Amazon seizes more than three million counterfeit products as ecommerce giant cracks down on fraud June 8, 2022 Amazon has seized more than three million counterfeit products in the last year and referred more than 600 criminals for investigation as the tech firm tries to stamp out fraud. In its latest Brand Protection Report, the ecommerce giant revealed it has invested more than $900m and had more than 12,000 people—including machine learning scientists, software developers, and [...]
Govt declares war on smokers as Javid looks at ‘radical ways to create a smoke-free Britain’ June 8, 2022 The UK government is about to declare war on smoking as health officials are considering “radical ways” to reduce the number of smokers in England, Sajid Javid said today. But the Health Secretary would not be drawn on whether or not the Javed Khan review on smoking would recommend that the legal smoking age should [...]