Shoppers unfazed by market headwinds as confidence rises – Deloitte October 19, 2015 Optimism in the economy reached a four-year high in the third quarter, according to the latest consumer tracker from accountancy giant Deloitte. Consumer confidence rose by two percentage points to -7 per cent, from -5 per cent in the second quarter. Consumers were apparently unperturbed by the recent volatility global financial markets that saw the FTSE [...]
UK dividends reached record heights in the third quarter – Capita Asset Services October 19, 2015 UK dividends reached record heights in the third quarter, hitting £27.2bn, but this is unlikely to prevent an annual slump in payouts. Figures from Capita Asset Services' dividend monitor forecasts that payments for 2015 will come in at £87.2bn, down 10.5 per cent from £97.4bn in last year. A series of special dividends form the [...]
Nectar profits collapse as supermarket price war takes its toll on loyalty cards October 18, 2015 Profits have tumbled at Britain’s biggest loyalty card provider, Nectar. Aimia Coalition Loyalty UK, Nectar’s parent company, said that pre-tax profits fell to £14.1m for 2014, from £74.4m the year before, due to a rise in people cashing in their points, while collecting fewer. The company warned that if people continued to redeem points then [...]
Deutsche Bank’s investment arm is split in two as new boss John Cryan tries to reinvigorate the firm October 18, 2015 Germany's biggest lender Deutsche Bank is overhauling its management and investment bank structure as new boss John Cryan tries to reinvigorate the company’s performance following a number of fines and shareholder dissatisfaction. Long-term management board member Stefan Krause is leaving his post along with Colin Fan, co-head of the firm's investment banking and trading unit. Asset [...]
Hamleys poised to be sold to a relative of House of Fraser’s Chinese billionaire owner October 18, 2015 A Chinese investor is said to be closing in on a deal to buy the UK’s most famous toy store Hamleys in the coming weeks. Ludendo, the French family-owned toy group, is in advanced talks to sell the chain to a Hong Kong company run by a relative of Yuan Yafei, the billionaire owner House [...]
Volkswagen may face a record-breaking £30bn lawsuit from shareholders over emissions scandal October 18, 2015 GERMAN car-maker Volkswagen could be set for more trouble, after it has emerged that one of the world’s biggest law-firms is planning to make a record-breaking multi-billion pound legal attack on the company. Law firm Quinn Emanuel, which has won almost €50bn (£32bn) for clients and represented major companies including Google and Fifa, has been [...]
Online retailer Amazon files lawsuit in battle against fake review sellers October 18, 2015 Online retail giant Amazon is suing over 1,000 unidentified people it is accusing of selling fake reviews. The company said the 1,114 "John Doe" defendants used a website Fiverr.com – where a variety of people offer jobs called "gigs" starting at a price of $5 (hence the name) – to sell reviews. It claims each of the John Doe defendants has [...]
Uber’s UK sales are soaring after winning a legal battle in the High Court against black cab drivers October 18, 2015 It seems court battles aren’t standing in the way of Uber’s growth. After Uber’s landmark victory over black cab drivers on Friday, there’s more good news for the ride-hailing app: UK sales are up tenfold in the past year. British turnover soared to £11.3m last year, according to data from Companies House. The app’s accelerating [...]
Alibaba lobbying to stay off counterfeit blacklist October 18, 2015 A growing pile of fakes is giving Alibaba a headache. The US wants to blacklist Alibaba as a “notorious” market for counterfeit goods – but the Chinese e-commerce giant is fighting back. Alibaba and its bazaar site Taobao were both added to the US Trade Representative’s blacklist back in 2008. After successfully cleaning up fraudsters [...]
Volkswagen share price continues to churn amid emissions scandal October 17, 2015 Shares in embattled carmaker Volkswagen were down 3.8 per cent to 103.2p per share in Germany this morning, more than a week after news of its emissions scandal first broke. The company has suspended the research and development chiefs of its core VW brand, luxury division Audi and sports-car maker Porsche, sources told Reuters. This comes [...]