Heatwave drives retail sales but autumn slowdown anticipated as inflation masks falling volumes August 9, 2022 The summer is set to be “the lull before the storm,” with consumers splashing out on heatwave essentials at the tills while inflation masks a drop in volume sales. UK retail sales increased 1.6 per cent on a like-for-like basis from July 2021, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and KPMG sales monitor. However, [...]
High street names including Tesco and Greggs call on Tory leadership candidates to slash ‘shop tax’ August 9, 2022 A coalition of retailers including Morrisons, Greggs and Tesco, have called on the Conservative party leader candidates to slash business rates. The Retail Jobs Alliance has called on both Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss to pledge to cut business rates, which it said were “killing our high streets”. The group, consisting of Co-op, Greggs, Kingfisher, [...]
Jupiter Fund Management halves stake in e-commerce retailer THG August 8, 2022 Jupiter Fund Management has halved its stake in the e-commerce retailer THG. In an announcement published on the London Stock Exchange yesterday afternoon, the fund said it had reduced its holding from 8.94 per cent to 4.97 per cent. The fund manages shares in THG for BNP Paribas, Northern Trust and Citigroup. The Manchester-based retailer, [...]
Lion sells beer brands Fourpure and Magic Rock to Odyssey Inns August 8, 2022 Australian beverage giant Lion has sold its UK operations, including craft beer brands Fourpure and Magic Rock to Odyssey Inns. Alongside the beer brands, Odyssey has also snapped up breweries and taprooms in London, Huddersfield and Holmfirth and the Little Creatures craft beer hospitality venue in Kings Cross. Lion, a subsidiary of Japanese drinks conglomerate [...]
The Works warns of cost of living impact on Christmas sales August 8, 2022 Stationery chain The Works has slashed its guidance for the 2023 financial year and warned about consumer spending amid the Christmas spending period. The London-listed company, which sells discount books, toys and art supplies, said the general market outlook had “deteriorated” since the start of the calendar year, pointing to “low consumer confidence and rising [...]
Shipping services provider Clarksons posts buoyant profit after ‘supply shortage’ in global fleet August 8, 2022 Shipping services provider Clarkson has posted a profit boost for the first six months of the year, with underlying profit before tax sitting at £42.2m. The London-listed firm saw underlying profit before tax rise some 53.5 per cent in the period. The shipping firm posted £266.7m in revenue for the six months to 30 June, [...]
Joules confirms talks with Next about retail giant acquiring £15m minority stake August 8, 2022 Joules has confirmed weekend speculation that Next is set to acquire a minority stake in the lifestyle retailer for around £15m. Sky News reported at the weekend that the high street staple had been in talks with Joules for several weeks over a deal. Now, Joules has confirmed these discussions are taking place, with talks [...]
Asda and Deliveroo partner up for rapid grocery delivery roll-out August 5, 2022 Asda and Deliveroo have announced a partnership for the rapid delivery of groceries, with a roll-out launching in 15 stores. Wakefield, Leeds and Manchester are among the first cities for the roll-out, with 2,400 products available from the Asda range that can be ordered via Deliveroo. Asda plans to launch 300 stores on the Deliveroo [...]
Average UK house price falls for first time in a year to sit at £293,221 August 5, 2022 House prices marked their first decrease since June last year, dropping slightly last month to stand at an average price of £293,221. Prices fell by a marginal 0.1 per cent in July, according to Friday’s Halifax House Price Index. The annual rate of growth eased to +11.8 per cent (from +12.5 per cent), with Wales [...]
London Stock Exchange Group says costs for integrating Refinitv after £22bn takeover unchanged August 5, 2022 The London Stock Exchange Group has said costs for the integration of its $27bn (£22.2bn) takeover of data firm Refinitiv remain unchanged. In interim results, the company also announced it was launching a £750m share buy-back programme. “We are managing costs well and we continue to make progress on achievement of synergies,” the group’s chief [...]
