John Lewis Partnership poised to reduce bonus payout to staff March 9, 2015 THE JOHN Lewis Partnership will this week seek to cut its bonus pot for staff for a second year in a row after the supermarket price war took its toll on sales at its upmarket grocery chain Waitrose. Waitrose has grown sales and market share faster than its traditional supermarket rivals in recent years, thanks [...]
Zegona Communications IPO: Peppa Pig backer Marwyn puts aside £12m for new Aim entry March 9, 2015 Investment fund Marwyn will be the chief investor in Zegona Communications once the company lists on the Alternative Investment Market (Aim), it was revealed yesterday. The fund, which is also a backer of Peppa Pig, will be investing up to £12m in the new company which was set up earlier this month by former executives [...]
Sir Philip Green poised for BHS sell-off March 9, 2015 Update: This deal has now gone through. Read the full details here. Sir Philip Green (pictured above with TV star Holly Willoughby )is understood to be close to agreeing a deal to sell troubled department store chain BHS in a move that would break up his Arcadia empire. American hedge fund Apollo’s retail fund [...]
Britons splash out on holidays in February after confidence boost March 9, 2015 Consumer spending power hit a seven-month high in February as higher wage growth, falling inflation and lower petrol costs helped boost confidence. Britons spent 4.1 per cent more last month than at the same time a year earlier thanks to people spending more on travel and leisure activities around the February half-term, according to figures [...]
Morrisons to cut dividend and post lowest profit in eight years March 9, 2015 Morrisons is expected to signal lower dividend payouts on Thursday this week when the troubled supermarket chain is to report its lowest annual profit in eight years. The Bradford-based retailer has been hit hard by the fierce industry price war as all big four supermarkets battle it out to retain customers’ loyalty and fend off [...]
Whitewood Reff IPO: Benelux focused property firm to float in London March 9, 2015 A property arm of Whitewood Group has unveiled plans to float in London to raise cash for a push into Holland and Belgium’s commercial property sector. Whitewood Reff will raise up to £125m from listing and aims to start trading on the main market of the London stock exchange next week. The vehicle, led [...]
Boris Johnson’s apprenticeship plan will not meet target, says Labour March 9, 2015 Figures released by Labour at the start of National Apprenticeship Week claim that Boris Johnson is unlikely to meet his target of creating 250,000 apprenticeships by the time he leaves City Hall in 2016. Labour London Assembly Members say government figures show only 96,500 apprenticeships were created from 2012 until 2014. They also criticise the [...]
Increasing life expectancy could cause problems for UK economy March 9, 2015 Life expectancy in the UK is improving, which could present the country with a “significant economic danger” if the extra years of peoples’ lives are not spent in good health and prosperity, academics have warned. Research conducted by Cass Business School in partnership with the International Longevity Centre (ILC) UK has found that age at [...]
Traders at Barclays and Deutsche Bank questioned over Euribor rigging March 8, 2015 The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) is questioning former traders from Barclays and Deutsche Bank over possible Euribor rigging. According to the FT, which spoke to sources close to the matter, they are being interviewed “under caution”. This means the UK fraud investigators must have at least a reasonable suspicion of wrongdoing, and this type of [...]
The Eurozone’s quantitative easing programme is about to start – here’s what you need to know March 8, 2015 Tomorrow is the launch of the Eurozone's long-awaited quantitative easing programme, as the European Central Bank (ECB) starts buying back €1trn (£720bn) worth of bonds from the bloc's member states. The scheme, which aims to boost Europe's economy, was finalised on Thursday, with ECB President Mario Draghi citing the success of similar programmes launched by [...]