Landscape supplier Marshalls in first half sales jump as building booms July 6, 2015 Hard landscaping manufacturer Marshalls had an 11 per cent rise in revenue for the sixth months to 30 June, up to £199m, the firm said yesterday. Sales to the public sector and commercial market were up 15 per cent compared with 2014, and represented 64 per cent of Marshalls’ total sales. Sales in the domestic [...]
Perfect storm: Are US equities heading for a sell-off? July 6, 2015 US equities have been on a six-year bull run and the seemingly unstoppable S&P 500 has repeatedly hit new highs. It reached a record level of 2,408 on 10 April this year, giving investors who bought the market a return of 183 per cent over the last six years. The economy has continued to recover [...]
US stocks close lower amid Greek debt crisis July 6, 2015 United States stocks closed lower today, however they clawed back some of the sharp losses seen at the open, after European and Asian markets which shook off the fallout from the Greek debt crisis earlier in the day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended the day down 46.53 points, or 0.26 per cent, to just [...]
Amazon to launch new global shopping event “Prime Day” at midnight on 15 July to rival Black Friday July 6, 2015 Amazon is hoping to stir up the same shopping frenzy as Black Friday by launching of new global shopping day next week with hundreds of promotional deals. The online retail giant is turning 20 years old next week and as part of its celebrations it will launch Prime Day at midnight on 15 July, which [...]
Greek crisis: ECB maintains emergency funding for Greek banks and imposes bigger haircut on Greek bank collateral July 6, 2015 The European Central Bank (ECB) has imposed a bigger haircut on Greek banks making it harder for them to receive the emergency funding they need to stay afloat. The governing council's move means Greek banks will have to cough up more assets in exchange for Emergency Liquidity Assistance (ELA), however a source told Reuters that the [...]
Iran nuclear talks: These UK sectors will be in a seriously good place if a deal is reached tomorrow July 6, 2015 Tomorrow is the deadline for a nuclear deal between Iran and other foreign powers, which would involve the removal of economic sanctions against Iran in return for a curbing of its uranium enrichment programme. Read more: Iran will limit uranium enrichment but deal remains unlikely, officials say At the moment, the country's economy is [...]
Challenger bank Shawbrook appoints new chairman Iain Cornish to replace Sir George Mathewson July 6, 2015 Challenger bank Shawbrook has appointed former Yorkshire Building Society chief executive Iain Cornish as its new chairman. Cornish replaces former RBS boss Sir George Mathewson who will step down as chairman and as director with immediate effect. Cornish is a senior independent director of debt manager Arrow Global and wealth manager St James's Place. Read more: Challenger [...]
Government could sell half its RBS stake within two years to raise £16bn July 6, 2015 The government could sell half of its stake in Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) within two years, raising £16bn in the process. Read more: RBS' share price falls as it could face $13bn penalty over mortgage-backed securities The Chancellor of the exchequer George Osborne announced last month it would begin to sell off a stake in [...]
Greek crisis: Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras agrees with Angela Merkel he’ll present new proposals tomorrow July 6, 2015 Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has agreed with German Chancellor Angela Merkel that he will present new proposals for a deal at a summit of Eurozone finance ministers tomorrow, reports have suggested. Read more: Has the Greek crisis irrevocably tarnished the euro? Reuters reported that the pair had reached the decision during a phonecall today. However, [...]
Budget airlines easyJet and Wizz Air welcome soaring passenger numbers as summer starts July 6, 2015 A fleet of budget airlines have today announced their passenger statistics for last month. One of the key elements to look out for is load factor. This is a measure of how much capacity an airline uses, and is critical for low cost airlines, who are less able to absorb the cost of flying with [...]