Marks & Spencer scraps 2021 dividend and warns of prolonged coronavirus disruption April 28, 2020 Marks & Spencer (M&S) has cancelled next year’s dividend in order to save £210m as the retailer warned of prolonged disruption to trading. The high street giant said it was preparing a “never the same again” programme to make permanent changes to ways of working, which will be unveiled when the company publishes its full-year [...]
Recovery plans must prioritise small businesses April 28, 2020 If the UK economy is to get back on its feet as soon as possible following the extreme lockdown, there needs to be a small business-first exit strategy. While it is right that decision is led by public health concerns, for the sake of our hugely important small business population, we need to understand the [...]
Games Workshop forecasts profit fall as it secures £25m overdraft April 28, 2020 Games Workshop today said it has secured a £25m overdraft as the model maker warned the coronavirus crisis would take its toll on full-year profit. The Warhammer owner said the majority of its stores remained closed due to the pandemic, but it will resume online orders from 1 May. As a result, the retailer forecast [...]
TheCityUK boss: Banks not ‘shirking’ CBILS duty April 28, 2020 One of the City’s most senior figures has insisted banks are not “shirking their responsibilities” as the government unveiled further modifications to the controversial Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS). Miles Celic, chief executive of industry group TheCityUK, said that banks were doing “their level best” to address demand for loans in what he called “an [...]
Wirecard says KPMG could not obtain all data for audit April 28, 2020 Wirecard has said an independent audit by KPMG uncovered no need to restate earnings but added that all the data could not be obtained. Wirecard hired KPMG last October to conduct an independent audit, in a bid to address claims its finance team had tried to inflate its reported sales and profits. In a statement [...]
Five ways to retain your wealth management clients in 2020 April 28, 2020 | City Talk The global wealth management industry is being buffeted by demographic changes among investors, as well as technological advancements such as the arrival of robo-advisers. Recent research commissioned by Bank of America on millennials’ spending priorities in the USA – with millennials defined as those aged 24 to 41 – found that about 25% of those who [...]
HSBC first quarter profit halves on coronavirus pandemic April 28, 2020 HSBC saw coronavirus rip its first quarter profit in half today as it counted a huge $2.4bn jump in credit losses as a result of the pandemic. The bank’s share price declined 1.7 per cent to 409.3p in early trading as it revealed profit before tax sank 48 per cent year on year to $3.21bn. [...]
UBS profit jumps 40 per cent despite coronavirus disruption April 28, 2020 UBS reported a sharp rise in first-quarter net profit, helped by higher trading volumes as clients reacted to market volatility. Net profit rose 40 per cent year on year to £1.6bn. UBS had said earlier this month it expected a net profit for the period around $1.5bn. Market volatility helped UBS’s investment bank post a [...]
Shoppers spend extra £524m at UK supermarkets in April April 28, 2020 Shoppers spent an extra £524m at UK supermarkets during the coronavirus lockdown compared to April last year. Grocery sales soared 9.1 per cent in the 12 weeks to 19 April, which were £524m higher in the past four weeks than they were in April 2019. Households made a record low 14 trips to UK supermarkets [...]
Santander first quarter profit plunges 82 per cent on coronavirus April 28, 2020 Spain’s Santander bank posted an 82 per cent year-on-year slump in quarterly net profit todayas it booked higher provisions for expected credit losses from the coronavirus outbreak. The Eurozone’s second-largest bank by market value reported a profit of €331m (£288.5m) for the first quarter ended in March. Overall loan-loss provisions rose 80 per cent after [...]