BoE says mortgage lending flat in January February 18, 2011 The country’s major lenders approved 41,000 mortgages for house purchase in January, the Bank of England said on Friday, the same number as in December and a further sign that the housing market remains in the doldrums. The BoE, updating its Trends in Lending statistics, said net mortgage lending picked up slightly in January to [...]
Retail sales bounce back in January February 18, 2011 UK retail sales rebounded in January after heavy snow caused a big drop in December sales, figures have shown. The volume of retail sales in January rose 1.9 per cent on the previous month, the Office for National Statistics said. December’s monthly figure was also revised downwards to show a 1.4 per cent monthly drop [...]
ECB emergency borrowing triggers euro zone fears February 18, 2011 Emergency overnight borrowing from the European Central Bank remained exceptionally elevated for the second day running, strengthening fears that a euro zone bank could be facing serious funding problems. ECB figures showed banks borrowed more than 16bn euros in high-cost emergency overnight funding – the highest amount since June 2009. The sum compared with the [...]
John Lewis sales stall again February 18, 2011 John Lewis JLP.UL posted a fourth consecutive week of lacklustre sales, adding to evidence consumers are cutting back on spending in the face of macro economic headwinds. The employee-owned group, which has been outperforming the broader retail sector for over a year, said on Friday sales at its department stores increased 1.4 per cent to [...]
Rentokil full-year profit higher than expected February 18, 2011 Pest control and cleaning firm Rentokil posted a 15 per cent rise in full-year pretax profit and said it will focus on improving its struggling City Link business in 2011. The company, which provides textiles and washrooms services, parcel deliveries and tropical plants, said on Friday adjusted pretax profit had risen to £192.3m after strong [...]
Anglo American profit beats expectations February 18, 2011 Anglo American, the world’s fourth-largest diversified miner, posted better-than-expected results for the year and said the outlook for the commodities market remained positive. In a separate statement, it said it would combine its UK aggregates business with Lafarge to create a construction materials company with sales of about $1.8bn (£1.1bn). Net profit for Anglo jumped [...]
Sports Direct to hit profit target February 17, 2011 Sports Direct said it would meet its target for year profit, with trading still strong after a robust third quarter. The firm, controlled by Newcastle United soccer club owner Mike Ashley, said total sales for the 13 weeks to January 23 increased 12.1 per cent to £416m. “Since the end of January, the group’s underlying [...]
BNP Paribas misses forecast after AXA charge February 17, 2011 BNP Paribas, France’s biggest listed bank, missed forecasts for fourth-quarter profit after it booked a 534 million euro (£444.8m) charge on the value of its stake in insurer AXA. BNP blamed the surprise one-off charge on “highly volatile” post-crisis stock markets that had taken AXA shares below their book value. BNP owns 5.2 per cent [...]
BAE Systems says defence cuts are biting February 17, 2011 BAE Systems, which posted a slight rise in profits for 2010, said it expected sales to fall in 2011 as the impact of defense cuts in the UK and US begin to hit home. BAE, Europe’s biggest defense contractor, announced that underlying earnings before interest, tax and amortization (EBITA) for 2010 rose 0.8 per cent [...]
Tesco set to outpace global rivals February 17, 2011 Tesco, the world’s third-biggest retailer, is set to outpace sales growth at major global rivals, driven by its expansion in Asia, according to international food and grocery analyst IGD. The supermarket group will see sales grow at a compound annual rate of 7.5 per cent from 2010-15, or 44 per cent in total, to reach [...]
