E-cigarette demand boosts sales for British American Tobacco August 1, 2019 Demand for e-cigarettes boosted first half sales for British American Tobacco (BAT), mitigating the decline in demand for traditional smoking products. The figures Revenue in the first half rose 4.6 per cent to £12.17bn. Read more: Dividend star British American Tobacco gets cheaper The Lucky Strike and Pall Mall owner said profit from operations slumped [...]
Insurer RSA hails ‘solid’ first-half as it tries to get underwriting back on track August 1, 2019 Insurer RSA said today it had improved its underwriting performance in the first half of 2019, as it looks to re-energise its business following a slump in 2018. Underwriting profit fell from £171m in the first half of 2018 to £153m in the first half of 2019. Read more: RSA Insurance shares drop as firm [...]
Lego Movie 2 fails to deliver for Merlin Entertainments August 1, 2019 Theme park operator Merlin Entertainments reported weaker trading at Legoland in the first half of the year due to poor weather and a lack of visitor momentum from the latest Lego film release. Read more: Merlin Entertainments accepts £4.8bn takeover offer The figures Revenue rose in the 26 weeks to 29 June to £763m – [...]
Schroders profit drops amid weak investor sentiment August 1, 2019 Schroders suffered a 14 per cent profit drop despite a rise in assets under management as it warned investors that it sees “headwinds across the industry”. Read more: Janus Henderson struggles to shake client jitters as outflows mount up The figures Profit before tax fell 14 per cent year on year to £319.3m for the [...]
Kier shares soar 40 per cent as it chips away at debt pile August 1, 2019 Kier Group investors rejoiced this morning as they were treated to a rare piece of good news: that the firm is regaining control of its debt. The firm also said it had attracted “significant interest” in its house building arm, which it is trying to sell to reduce its debt. Read more: Kier shares plunge [...]
Shell profits slip to lowest point since 2016 as weak oil and gas prices hit energy major August 1, 2019 Shell shares dropped this morning as it reported its lowest second-quarter profits since 2016, as earnings slumped more than 25 per cent. The oil and gas major suffered from lower oil and gas prices. Shares were down four per cent in early morning trading. The figures Shell profits fell 25 per cent to $3.6bn (£2.9bn) [...]
Standard Chartered hikes profits despite US-China trade war impact August 1, 2019 Standard Chartered boosted profits in the first six months of 2019, but warned of the impact of the US-China trade war on global market sentiment. Read more: MPs turn up the heat on Standard Chartered boss in pension pay row The figures Underlying profit before tax increased 11 per cent year on year to $2.6bn [...]
Barclays boosts first-half profit 82 per cent to £3bn August 1, 2019 Barclays today posted first-half profit before tax of £3bn, an 82 per cent increase on the same period last year. Total income fell one per cent to £10.8bn. Return on tangible equity was 9.4 per cent, down from 11.6 per cent in the first half of 2018. The bank said it was targeting return of [...]
Email belongs in the trash, not your inbox August 1, 2019 Email has become a ubiquitous form of communication since it was invented in 1972. Its ability to connect people and facilitate digital conversations has been an innovation like no other. However, almost 50 years since its inception, electronic mail is no longer fit for purpose as the main communication tool in today’s enterprise. A combination [...]
DEBATE: Should the long summer school holiday be shortened? August 1, 2019 Should the long summer school holiday be shortened? Jenny Afia, a privacy lawyer and partner at Schillings and member of the Children’s Commissioner’s Digital Task Force, says YES. One week into the summer holiday and I need a break, let alone my daughter. It’s argued that long holidays are needed so children can rest. But [...]