Wetherspoons drowns its sorrows as profits are hit by taxes – and chairman voices support for Brexit March 11, 2016 Cheap it may be, but cheerful Wetherspoons is not – after it said profits in the six months to the end of January were hit by the "continuing tax disparity" between supermarkets and pubs, as chairman Tim Martin came out in favour of Brexit. The figures Pre-tax profits fell 2.2 per cent to £36.6m, while operating profit before exceptional [...]
Euro rebounds: Mario Draghi warns euro inflation will stay negative for “several months” and European Central Bank cuts deposit rate and expands quantitative easing March 10, 2016 European Central Bank (ECB) chief Mario Draghi has suggested inflation in the Eurozone will stay negative for "several months" – but added that the bank is "not short of ammunition" to bring it back up to target. At a press conference after the bank announced it was slashing key rates, Draghi said he expected inflation to pick up to 0.1 per cent in [...]
Mario Draghi’s big guns: Here’s everything you need to know about the ECB’s TLTRO II programme March 10, 2016 Shares in European banks shot up today after the European Central Bank (ECB) announced a new round of bank lending measures, known as targeted longer-term refinancing operations, or TLTROs to their friends. This is the second round – so naturally it's known as TLTRO II. ECB president Mario Draghi called TLTRO "loans to banks and additional incentives to [...]
Aviva share price rises as it unveils 20 per cent profit boost and hikes dividend after Friends Life buyout March 10, 2016 What floods? Insurer Aviva said it was hiking its dividend after it completed its acquisition of Friends Life ahead of schedule. The figures Operating profits rose 20 per cent to £2.7bn in 2015, Aviva said this morning – seven per cent ahead of analyst expectations of £2.5bn. That allowed it to hike dividend by 15 per cent to 20.8p. Nice. The company said the [...]
FTSE 100 closes lower after ECB president Mario Draghi takes stocks on a rollercoaster ride of emotions March 10, 2016 Oh, Mr Draghi. What have you done to us? The FTSE finished almost 1.8 per cent lower at 6,036.7 points today – perilously close to the 6,000 mark – after European Central Bank (ECB) president Mario Draghi sent equities (and the euro. And gold) on an emotional rollercoaster ride. The index started the day off undulating gently, before rising [...]
Sweet: Krispy Kreme could be planning an IPO in London March 10, 2016 Krispy Kreme is planning an IPO in London, City A.M. understands. It may be a volatile time to do it – but we'd imagine there will be a hole lot of interest… Sky News reported that the company's owner, Alcuin Capital Partners, had appointed Investec to oversee the flotation. The news comes a day after [...]
Renters to be priced out of the market by 2026 as deposits rocket 40 per cent March 10, 2016 A lot has been made of the problems first-time home buyers are having at the moment – but won't someone please think of the renters? A new report by Money.co.uk has suggested even those in the rental market could be priced out of the market by 2026 – as deposits rocket by 40 per cent to [...]
FTSE 100 has a muted start as investors await European Central Bank big reveal March 10, 2016 The FTSE 100 made a muted start to trading today, as investors nervously awaited a big reveal from the European Central Bank's Mario Draghi, who is expected to take rates further into negative territory later today. The FTSE 100 edged down 0.1 per cent in early trading, as economists expected Draghi to cut the central bank's deposit rate [...]
Meh: FTSE 100 edges up as investors await a glitter bomb from Mario Draghi – but Burberry share price leads the fallers March 9, 2016 The FTSE 100 had an uncharacteristically relaxed day of trading today, edging up 0.41 per cent to finish at 6,174.8 points. The lacklustre performance came as investors held their breath in anticipation of a potential bombshell from the European Central Bank (ECB) chief tomorrow: it is hoped Mario Draghi will cut the bank's deposit rate by at [...]
Drawing on examples and getting the timing right: Four ways to negotiate a kick-ass pay rise March 9, 2016 While the number of people in work has been improving steadily for a number of years now, the picture is far less rosy when it comes to take-home pay. In fact, it’s fair to say that average UK wage growth is moving at a glacial pace. So how can you try to buck the trend [...]
