Germany may be in recession despite a wider trade surplus January 9, 2012 HIGHER exports have bolstered Germany’s trade balance, official data showed yesterday, widening the Eurozone heavyweight’s surplus. The positive economic news was short-lived, however, after separate data showed a decline in German industrial output — prompting some economists to state that the core Eurozone nation could already be in the midst of a double-dip recession. And [...]
Morrisons says its festive revenues gained slightly January 9, 2012 WM MORRISON said squeezed shoppers counted their pennies this Christmas, trading down on items like champagne for sparkling wine, as the supermarket chain reported a slowdown in like-for-like growth. Britain’s fourth-biggest supermarket said sales at stores open for at least a year rose 0.7 per cent, excluding fuel and VAT in the six weeks to [...]
December sales boost flattered by 2010’s snow January 9, 2012 HOPE for the British high street was boosted this morning by figures showing a sharp increase in retail sales for December, compared to the key Christmas period the previous year. Like-for-like retail sales were up 2.2 per cent, while total sales — which include newly developed shop floor space — jumped by 4.1 per cent. [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WERE MORRISONS’ RESULTS IN LINE WITH EXPECTATIONS? January 9, 2012 PHILIP DORGAN | PANMURE GORDON Christmas trading was slightly below best expectations, although in line with the market. Morrison’s shares were fantastic performers in 2011 and, while we see no real downside, we expect others within the sector to pick up the baton in 2012. CLIVE BLACK | SHORE CAPITAL We deem such a performance [...]
BSkyB signs $15m tie-up with Zeebox January 9, 2012 BSKYB has acquired 10 per cent of social TV network Zeebox in a move that grants the broadcaster exclusive rights to use the two-month-old start-up’s technology in its own apps. While no sum was officially disclosed, Zeebox chief executive Ernesto Schmitt tweeted that BSkyB parted with more than $15m (£9.7m) in the deal. Co-created by [...]
Start-up founders extract a tidy sum January 9, 2012 AN interesting deal this. Industry sources put the price of BSkyB’s stake in Zeebox at a rich $15m (£9.7m), implying a valuation of $150m for a start-up that was launched just two months ago. Extrapolating a price tag mightn’t be entirely fair, because Sky is also buying the rights to integrate Zeebox’s technology into its [...]
HMV hopeful for its survival as sales fall January 9, 2012 EMBATTLED music retailer HMV said sales of consumer gadgets such as headphones and tablet computers had helped improve its sales over the crucial Christmas trading period as the group attempted to offset the long-term decline in CDs and DVDs. Sales at stores open over a year fell 8.2 per cent in the five weeks to [...]
Foyles’ new shops help to offset Crossrail problems January 9, 2012 FOYLES’ bookshops said the sale of hardback classics and limited editions of Haruki Murakami’s bestseller 1Q84 helped boost group sales by 20 per cent for the period from 1 to 24 December compared to same period last year. Strong sales at its newly opened store in the Westfield Stratford shopping centre helped offset a six [...]
Netflix and Lovefilm battle for UK market January 9, 2012 US video streaming service Netflix began its attempt to take over the UK market yesterday, ruffling the feathers of home competitors such as Lovefilm and Sky Movies. British customers can pay £5.99 per month for unlimited access to Netflix’s online emporium of films and TV programmes that can be streamed on a range of gadgets [...]
Eurotunnel eyes up ships after SeaFrance sinks January 9, 2012 CROSS-CHANNEL ferry operator SeaFrance sank into official liquidation yesterday after France’s Tribunal de Commerce ruled a £165m bailout by the French government illegal. Eurotunnel told the French press yesterday that it could mount a surprise bid to buy up SeaFrance’s fleet in the wake of the collapse, only to draw criticism from a rival ferry [...]