Supermarket sales continue to edge upwards in the months following the Brexit vote September 20, 2016 Supermarket sales continued to edge upwards this month, increasing by 0.3 per cent for the three months ending 11 September. The growth was against a backdrop of price deflation of 1.1 per cent. Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Kantar Worldpanel, said: “While overall sales growth has been slow, consumers have been keen [...]
British business backer BBBI reports pre-tax profit of £40m as it gets behind 12,000 firms September 20, 2016 British Business Bank Investments (BBBI), the commercial arm of the government’s economic development lender, British Business Bank, today reports a pre-tax profit of £40m for the year to 31 March. BBBI, which invests in small business finance providers, will today also report annual income of £45.5m in the full year and a dividend of £32m to [...]
GlaxoSmithKline appoints Emma Walmsley as FTSE 100’s latest female chief executive September 20, 2016 GlaxoSmithKline will join the exclusive club of top firms to have a woman at its helm, the pharmaceutical giant announced this morning. Emma Walmsley, head of GSK's consumer healthcare division, will become the firm's new chief executive from March 2017, replacing the outgoing Andrew Witty. Announcing the appointment, GSK chairman Philip Hampton said: "I am very [...]
No Brexit storm for Kingfisher as it retains DIY crown with higher sales and profits September 20, 2016 B&Q owner Kingfisher has posted a strong set of results for the first six months of its financial year and said there is "no evidence" the EU referendum result dented its performance, sending its shares up two per cent at the open. The figures The DIY giant, which also owns Screwfix, said underlying pre-tax profits [...]
Sports Direct announces independent company will replace RPC to review working practices and corporate governance September 20, 2016 Sports Direct announced this morning that it would appoint a new independent party to conduct a review of its working practices and corporate governance – replacing RPC. Shares in the company were up 3.3 per cent mid-morning. [stockChart code="SPD" date="2016-09-20 11:15"] The embattled retailer said in a report released at the beginning of September [...]
Research identifies what makes a company an attractive acquisition target September 20, 2016 Underperforming public companies have become increasingly attractive acquisition targets in recent years, according to research out today. Intralinks and the Cass Business School have published a study, based on data spanning 23 years and 34,000 firms worth at least $50m (£38m), seeking to determine what features make a company an attractive target. The researchers examined six [...]
Fraudsters hit Brits with a financial scam every 15 seconds September 20, 2016 The UK suffered an incident of financial fraud ever 15 seconds in the first six months of the year, as the rise of scams to obtain passwords, bank details and cash shows no sign of abating. Financial Fraud Action UK (FFA) found more than one million separate accounts of people handing over personal details between January [...]
Why Stateside aggression is increasingly familiar to European investors September 20, 2016 An abundance of liquidity relative to opportunities has led to investors agreeing to lend to companies at relatively high leverages without the usual conditions that enable them to renegotiate terms when the businesses underperform. Almost all deals syndicated that are taking place in Europe this month are covenant-lite, which means that investors will be unable to [...]
Evolve or die: The high street is not dead but it must shape up fast to lure shoppers September 20, 2016 Reports on the impending death of the high street may be greatly exaggerated. According to the new Omnico Retail Gap barometer, browsing and paying in-store is still the nation's favourite way to shop, with 43 per cent of consumers choosing this method. This was followed by 17 per cent of people who said they liked [...]
City Moves for 20 September 2016 | Who’s switching jobs September 20, 2016 Newcore Capital Management Newcore Capital Management, the alternative real estate investment manager, has made two appointments to support its growth strategy. Neil Sarkhel has joined as an associate and Iain Cobban has joined as an assistant investment manager. Neil will be responsible for underwriting potential acquisitions and disposals, while leading on a number of business [...]