Johnson defends London and foreign investment in property October 15, 2014 LONDON mayor Boris Johnson yesterday stood up for foreign investment into London, dispelling claims that they were in part to blame for the property crisis as “absolute rubbish”. One of the developments Johnson may have had in mind was the Qatar-backed Shard when he spoke at Mipim UK, the inaugural property trade show in London’s [...]
Tesco suspends more staff over profit error October 14, 2014 TESCO announced yesterday it had suspended another three executives over the discovery last month of an accounting error which led first-half profits to be overstated by £250m. The retail giant did not disclose the names of the three executives, but Sky News is reporting them to be Tesco’s wine director Dan Jago, Sean McCurley, director [...]
Burberry sales jump despite tough market October 14, 2014 BURBERRY warned yesterday that conditions in some of its markets, including China, were getting tougher, despite a 14 per cent increase in first-half sales, sending shares down almost four per cent. The luxury group said total revenues reached £1.1bn in the six months to 30 September, thanks to strong performance across all regions. However, it [...]
Profit warning puts thorn in Mulberry October 14, 2014 MULBERRY shares were looking the worse for wear yesterday after the troubled luxury leather goods group issued yet another profit warning. The English luxury brand has been attempting to turn itself around following an ill-fated attempt to move the brand upmarket under previous chief executive Bruno Guillon. But in a statement yesterday, Mulberry warned that [...]
Boohoo claims credit for online market success October 14, 2014 BOOHOO co-chief executive Carol Kane said the online fashion retailer’s success and recent IPO had acted as a wake-up call for other high street stores to improve their own online businesses, as it posted a jump in sales yesterday. Boohoo made its successful debut on Aim in March, with a market value of £560m, just [...]
Luxottica founder Leonardo Del Vecchio takes charge as second chief executive Enrico Cavatorta steps down October 14, 2014 Luxottica chairman Leonardo Del Vecchio has taken control of the running of the company he founded half a century ago after losing its second chief executive in six weeks. The Ray-Ban owner announced on Sunday that Enrico Cavatorta was quitting just over a month after the surprise exit of his predecessor Andrea Guerra. Cavatorta and [...]
Carpetright stays on track to meet expectations after a frayed year October 14, 2014 CARPETRIGHT cheered the market yesterday after posting a seven per cent rise in like-for-like sales in its first quarter under the leadership of new chief executive Wilf Walsh. The retailer has had a tough year after suffering several profit warnings and losing its previous chief executive Darren Shapland last October. In June, its founder Lord [...]
Bellway share price jumps as home sales and profits break records October 14, 2014 Bellway’s shares rallied 5.53 per cent yesterday after the housebuilder posted record half-year profits and said it expected to build 10 per cent more homes over the next year. The Newcastle-based company said pre-tax profits reached £245.9m in the six months to 31 July, up 74.5 per cent on the same time last year and [...]
Afren share price plunges as company fires chief exec and chief operating officer for misconduct October 13, 2014 Afren was plunged into fresh turmoil last night after the oil and gas explorer revealed it has fired chief executive Osman Shahenshah and chief operating officer Shahid Ullah for gross misconduct. Afren’s shares have plunged since the controversy over unauthorised payments began at the end of July. The group said law firm Willkie Farr & [...]
Thorntons sales melt by 12.8pc October 13, 2014 SHARES in Thorntons slumped nearly eight per cent yesterday after subdued consumer spending and lumpy orders from commercial customers hurt the chocolatier’s first quarter sales. Thorntons has been reducing its exposure to the high street and repositioning itself as a fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) business, its chocolates to supermarkets and other third-party retailers. The company [...]
