Trainline ‘confident’ it can navigate coronavirus downturn as revenue grows May 7, 2020 Travel ticketing platform Trainline has said that it is “confident” it can navigate an extended coronavirus downturn, as its revenue grew 24 per cent last year. The firm said that although passenger numbers in the UK and Europe are currently down 95 per cent, its long term growth strategies remained intact. The figures Trainline said [...]
Debenhams to close five stores after dispute with landlord Hammerson May 7, 2020 Debenhams has announced it will permanently close five stores in Hammerson shopping centres after it was unable to reach an agreement with the landlord, with Next swooping in to rent some of the vacant space. The department store chain will shut its stores at Hammerson’s Birmingham Bullring, Leicester, Reading, Croydon and Glasgow Silverburn sites, affecting [...]
S4 Capital shares rise as advertising firm shrugs off Covid-19 hit May 7, 2020 Shares in S4 Capital rose as much as six per cent in early trading as the advertising firm boosted first-quarter revenue despite the impact of the coronavirus crisis. S4 Capital’s like-for-life revenue increased 17 per cent in the first three months of the year to £71m, while gross profit was up 22 per cent on [...]
UK house prices dip in April as coronavirus lockdown brings market to standstill May 7, 2020 UK house prices dipped in April as property market was brought to a standstill by the coronavirus lockdown, however property expects expected buyers and sellers to return “in droves” when restrictions are lifted. UK house prices fell 0.6 per cent in April compared to the previous month, dropping to an average price of £238,511. On [...]
O2 and Virgin Media confirm merger to create £31bn telecoms player May 7, 2020 O2 and Virgin Media have confirmed a merger to form a multi-play broadband giant that would be valued at a combined total of £31.4bn. The pair pledged to invest £10bn into the UK over the next five years while saving £6.2bn through combined synergies, or £540m a year five years after the merger completes. But [...]
Insurer RSA posts double-digit profit rise but expects £25m coronavirus hit May 7, 2020 FTSE 100 insurer RSA today said it expected its exposure from the coronavirus pandemic to total around £25m, with claims coming from travel, wedding and event cancellation insurance. The home, motor and commercial insurer had received around 25,000 claims on which it would pay out, of which around 23,000 were travel claims, it said in [...]
Coronavirus: Superdry suspends dividend and delays full-year results May 7, 2020 Superdry suspended its dividend and delayed its full-year results this morning as the retailer announced a dive in revenue due to the impact of coronavirus and the brand’s shift away from discounting. The clothing brand said its full-year results, which were due to be published on 9 July, will be postponed by five to eight [...]
British Airways owner IAG targets ‘meaningful return’ to flying in July May 7, 2020 British Airways owner IAG has announced that it is targeting a “meaningful return” to operating flights in July, but warned passenger numbers across the whole year could fall by 50 per cent. The airline warned that it did not expect to see a return to pre-coronavirus passenger numbers until 2023, meaning further restructuring would be [...]
BT scraps dividend as Covid-19 and full-fibre rollout hit profit May 7, 2020 BT today scrapped its dividend as the coronavirus crisis and full-fibre broadband costs weighed on profit. The telecoms giant said it had taken the “exceptionally difficult” decision to suspend the payout until 2022, when it will be reduced 50 per cent to 7.7p per share. It came as BT posted a two per cent dip [...]
The City View podcast, from City A.M., with Andy Clarke, former CEO of Asda May 7, 2020 In this episode Christian is joined by Asda’s former CEO, Andy Clarke, now chairman of AI-powered retail system Spoon Guru. Subscribe to The City View Podcast: Apple / Google / Spotify / RSS Andy reflects on the way in which the supermarket and grocery sector responded in the early stages of the pandemic, with panic [...]