Marks & Spencer snaps up logistics firm Gist for £145m to take control of food supply chain July 21, 2022 Marks and Spencer has acquired the logistics provider to its food arm for £145m, with the supermarket “taking control of our food supply chain for the first time in our history.” The premium supermarket said on Thursday the acquisition from Storeshield, owned by The BOC Group, would aid its multi-year plan to modernise its food [...]
Regulators call on airlines to comply with consumer law if they want to avoid enforcement July 21, 2022 The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) have warned airlines they could face enforcement action if they fail to comply with consumer law. In a joint letter sent to carriers today, the regulators said they were concerned about consumers experiencing harm “unless airlines meet their obligations” and “minimise flight disruption [...]
Sigh of relief for Londoners as ALL long-running strikes on Night Tube suspended July 21, 2022 Long-running strikes on London’s Night Tube have been suspended. Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union have been taking industrial action over weekends in a dispute over shifts. “We are pleased that after our strong industrial campaign, we have made significant progress on the Night Tube dispute,” said RMT’s general secretary Mick Lynch. [...]
Scorching inflation sends UK debt interest bill to record-high £19bn July 21, 2022 Scorching inflation has ballooned the UK’s debt interest bill to its highest level since records began in the early 1990s, official figures published today revealed. The amount of money the UK had to pay investors holding government debt in June more than doubled over the last year, topping £19bn, up from £9.1bn in June 2021, [...]
Australian bidder walks away from £650m race to snap up rail giant Go-Ahead July 21, 2022 Australia-based Kelsian confirmed this morning it has pulled out from the race to buy Go-Ahead – weeks after the board picked a rival offer. The business said falling share prices in Australia tied its hands and forced the group to walk away from a potential tie-up. Kelsian is one of Australia’s biggest bus and ferry [...]
FCA and Andrew Bailey slammed for failing to protect pension savers who were ripped off by poor advisors July 21, 2022 The City watchdog and its former head Andrew Bailey, nowadays the Bank of England’s chief, have come under fire for letting down British Steel pension savers who were ripped off by poor advice from companies they thought they could trust. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) did not protect the members of the British Steel pension [...]
Ocado losses swell as shoppers add less items to their baskets amid cost of living crunch July 21, 2022 Ocado has posted swelling losses after shoppers have added less items to their shopping baskets following the cost of living crunch and easing of lockdown restrictions. Losses widened to £211m, from £27.9m the year prior, for the six month period to 29 May, as customers tightened their purse strings as inflation surged past new 40-year [...]
Britvic reports fizzing revenues but warns of cost-of-living slowdown July 21, 2022 Drinks maker Britvic reported a jump in revenues across its markets today but warned sales could be hit in the months ahead as the cost of living begins to bite.
All Bar One owner Mitchells & Butlers has drop in sales amid ‘major challenges’ from inflation July 21, 2022 All Bar One owner Mitchells & Butlers continue to face a “major challenge” due to the impact of the pandemic and ongoing inflation rises. The retailer experienced a drop in sales by 1.6 per cent in the year to date, claiming a mixture of the Jubilee weekend, industrial action and hot weather saw people go [...]
Kitchen seller Howdens posts ‘strong’ performance as home improvement boom continues July 21, 2022 Kitchen seller Howdens today posted “strong” financial results for the first half of 2022, as the firm said it “remains on track” to deliver end of year results “well ahead of pre-Covid levels in 2019.” The London headquartered firm said it continued to “manage effectively ongoing inflationary and supply chain pressures” as it set out [...]