Next nudges up profit guidance after blistering summer despite ‘volatile’ market September 25, 2018 British fashion retailer Next nudged up its full-year outlook this morning, after the firm’s strong summer performance unexpectedly carried on into August and September. Next posted half-year pre-tax profits of £311.1m compared with £309m in the same period last year, raising its full year guidance by £10m to £727m. The better-than-expected forecasts have largely been [...]
Cobra Beer founder Lord Karan Bilimoria talks curry and craft beer culture September 24, 2018 Britain loves beer. This might not be good for our wallets or our waistlines, but it’s true nonetheless. And perhaps no one knows this truth more than Lord Karan Bilimoria, founder and chairman of Cobra Beer. Cobra (slogan: “impossibly smooth”), has become something of a British institution. Not only can you find it in [...]
Labour opens new front in party’s war on business September 23, 2018 Labour's party conference is getting underway in Liverpool, and the various factions of the hard-left are already putting on a good show as they compete for control of the agenda. The trade unions used their voting power to block a bid by Momentum activists to force sitting MPs to face reselection challenges; members demanding [...]
Price wars versus trade wars: Markets work just fine when we leave them alone September 21, 2018 David Lewis is ramping up a food fight of epic proportions. The chief executive of Tesco has launched a spin-off chain of discount supermarkets called Jack’s (named after Tesco’s founder Jack Cohen). The aim is to become more competitive with German chains Aldi and Lidl, which have been saturating the market with cheaper products since [...]
Kier defies expectations with strong profits as order book swells September 20, 2018 Construction and services company Kier Group posted a better-than-expected nine per cent rise in profit this morning, fighting off investor fears following the collapse of competitor Carillion earlier in the year. Bolstered by a growing order book, the FTSE 250 firm’s underlying pre-tax profit jumped to £137m in the year to June, compared with £126m [...]
Spirit in the sky: City Pub Group sees profits jump after bumper World Cup summer September 20, 2018 Aim-listed pub landlord City Pub Group has posted a 73 per cent rise in pre-tax profit on the back of a bumper summer of good weather and a successful World Cup run. Profits before tax rose to £1.6m in the first six months of 2018, rising from £0.9m compared with the same period last year, [...]
Who could be against a war on plastic? Lots of people, actually September 20, 2018 The Conservative party conference is just around the corner, and with the news so often dominated by Brexit, it’s a good moment to consider some of the more domestic policy ideas we’re sure to hear about. On plastic, for example. Earlier this year, Theresa May used a big speech on environmental issues to launch a [...]
Starbucks’ European arm paid just 2.8 per cent tax in the UK September 19, 2018 Starbucks' European business paid 2.8 per cent tax in the UK on profits of $213m (£162m) in the year ending October 2017. The coffee chain's Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) division, based in London, paid $5.9m in UK corporation tax, its accounts reveal. Its profits were boosted by a dividend payment of $150m, which [...]
Retail giants to be hit by £190m business rate bill as industry fears ‘tipping point’ September 19, 2018 UK retailers are set to face a fresh tax bill worth hundreds of millions of pounds if today’s inflationary figures remain similar next month, with embattled high street businesses fearing another hefty levy could push the sector to its limits. The British Retail Consortium (BRC) predicts that the retail sector will be slapped with a £190m [...]
Shop Direct swings to a loss as rising costs and PPI claims hit profits September 19, 2018 Littlewoods owner Shop Direct has moved into the red in the last 12 months, as rising construction costs for new distribution centres and mounting PPI mis-selling claims mount up for the online retailer. Pre-tax losses hit £24.7m in the year leading up to the end of June 2018, compared with profits before tax of £24.9m [...]