Marlboro man’s Philip Morris up despite forex impact on sales April 16, 2015 Tobacco titan Philip Morris saw its share price leap over eight per cent yesterday after investors chose to ignore the impact of a strengthening dollar on first quarter earnings. The seller of Marlboro recorded revenues of $6.6bn (£4.4bn) during the period, down 4.4 per cent on the year before, however, currency fluctuations shaved $939m off [...]
Amex profits climb to beat tough market April 16, 2015 AMERICAN Express last night reported a six per cent rise in profit during the three months to 31 March, up to $1.53bn (£1.02bn) from $1.43bn. The rise in income came despite sales falling by three per cent from $8.17bn to $7.95bn. Kenneth Chenault, the firm’s chief executive and chairman said the 2015 first quarter of [...]
Paris attack and tunnel fire take toll on Eurostar April 16, 2015 The strong pound, terror attacks in France and a Channel Tunnel fire resulted in a disappointing first quarter for Eurostar parent company Eurotunnel. The train operator’s revenues fell six per cent during the first three months of 2015 compared to the previous year, it announced yesterday. January proved to be a particularly tough month for [...]
Eurozone recovery begins to gain some traction as new car sales speed ahead April 16, 2015 New car purchases in Europe are growing strongly, in a sign that the economy is starting to gain momentum. March saw the highest monthly growth for a year, as 1,604,107 new cars were registered. For the Eurozone, registrations of new cars were up 13.3 per cent compared to March last year, according to figures released [...]
SABmiller sees Africa expansion pay off as continent booms April 16, 2015 SABmiller sales crept up in the last quarter as the world’s second largest beverage firm’s focus on African markets paid off it emerged yesterday. The company recorded a two per cent increase in lager sales driven by strong demand in South Africa and a recovery in the Chinese market. Africa saw total drink sales rise [...]
Diageo shares lose fizz after a decline in sales April 16, 2015 DIAGEO sales slipped during the last quarter, driven by a sharp decline in its Latin American market, it was revealed yesterday. The world’s largest spirits maker saw sales in the region slump by over 10 per cent in the three months ending 31 March compared to the same period last year. The company blamed currency [...]
WH Smith posts profit boost despite a slide in sales on the high street April 16, 2015 Stationery chain WH Smith reported a four per cent rise in half-year profits even as sales fell on the high street, after winning new contracts to open travel outlets overseas. The retailer, which has 740 travel outlets and 621 high street stores, reported pre-tax profits of £72m in the six months to the end of [...]
UK house prices at record high as growth slows amid General Election uncertainty April 16, 2015 The average price of a property across England and Wales was at a new record last month, despite March seeing the smallest annual change in house prices since November 2013. A house now costs on average of £275,123. This is a 5.6 per cent annual rise, equating to £14,620. However, in London and the south [...]
Moody’s warns of threat to UK economy from house price drop April 16, 2015 RATINGS agency Moody’s yesterday warned that the UK’s housing market posed a significant risk to the economy. Reviewing 50 episodes of house price declines, Moody’s analysts found that they were typically associated with a six per cent loss in GDP. It said that low interest rates, rising populations and slow construction had contributed to house [...]
City Moves for 17 April 2015 | Who’s switching jobs April 16, 2015 Investec Securities Paul Satchell has been appointed pan-European chemicals analyst at Investec Securities. He joins from Canaccord Genuity, where he has been an equity analyst since 2010. Satchell has almost 19 years’ experience as a sell-side analyst, and has held further equity analyst positions at ING, Merrill Lynch, Flemings and Paribas. He also has 16 [...]
