Asda May 27, 2010 GET ready to slap the change in your back-pocket and shout “that’s Asda Price”: Britain’s number two supermarket has been on a spending spree. At first glance, the £778m that Asda has shelled out for 193 Netto stores looks pricey. The Wal-Mart subsidiary is paying £504 per square foot, mostly for units that are in [...]
UK retail sales plunge in May May 27, 2010 UK High Street sales fell to a 14-month low in May, casting a shadow over the fragile recovery on the high street. The CBI’s monthly distributive trade report said poor weather and a slowdown in the housing market had driven down consumer demand. Pay squeezes and job insecurity also contributed to the drop. The business [...]
JJB pins hope on World Cup boost as losses deepen May 27, 2010 JJB Sports yesterday posted a pre-tax annual loss of £68.5m – treble the previous year. The struggling retailer, which narrowly avoided administration, also saw sales slump 42 per cent to £372.5m in the year to 31 January. However JJB said trading had improved in its new financial year as stock for the World Cup and [...]
WH Smith and Currys Digital hit with label of being worst retailers May 27, 2010 TWO of Britain’s best-known high street chains have been named and shamed as the worst shops in the UK in a new consumer poll. Retailer WH Smith and electronics store Currys Digital (formerly known as Dixons) came bottom in the survey by consumer experts Which? More than 14,000 people scored 100 shops on factors including [...]
RICHEMONT IN LUXURY MARKET WARNING May 27, 2010 CARTIER watchmaker Richemont yesterday warned that the luxury market in watches and jewellery still faces an uphill struggle after taking a battering in the recession. It posted a pre-tax profit of £510m yesterday. Sales were down – but still above forecasts.
DMGT sales dip but profits leap a fifth May 27, 2010 DAILY Mail & General Trust (DMGT) battled a sharp dip in sales to pull off a 20 per cent rise in first-half operating profit. The Daily Mail publisher credited improving advertising trends and severe cost cutting measures for the positive results. Its adjusted operating profit was £144m, beating market expectations of £142m. Revenue fell three [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WILL DMGT CONTINUE TO OFFER GOOD VALUE? May 27, 2010 LORNA TILBIAN | NUMIS “We remain firm supporters of DMGT which has business to business businesses which are at least as strong as its rivals combined with best in class business to consumer assets. The group remains one of our key picks for 2010 and on our higher forecasts our target price increases from 579p [...]
Airlines body hits Unite for BA strikes… May 27, 2010 THE trade body for the airline industry yesterday accused rebellious British Airways staff of being “divorced from reality”, as figures revealed the commercial damage done by the Icelandic ash cloud. In an unexpected broadside, the chief executive of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said the labour unrest plaguing Europe this year was “unbelievable”. Pointedly [...]
… as Walsh and union leaders resume talks May 27, 2010 TALKS between British Airways (BA) and Unite to put an end to the strike have been postponed until today. The decision to delay the negotiation talks came Wednesday night after the two struggled to reach an agreement to end the long running dispute. The break down of the negotiations had nothing to do with the [...]
Election fails to boost UK confidence May 27, 2010 BRITISH consumers have not yet been convinced that the new Lib-Con coalition government will boost either the general economy or their own personal finances, the May consumer confidence survey from GfK NOP will show today. The overall consumer confidence index dropped for a fourth consecutive month and fell by two points to -18, a similar [...]
