Retailers hit as consumers cut spending December 18, 2011 RETAIL sales are continuing to slump as consumer spending power is hit by inflation, government spending restraint and the Eurozone crisis, according to research published yesterday by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR). Spending is down 1.7 per cent compared with November, the CEBR claims, and down 0.3 per cent on last December [...]
Fears of more losses at HMV December 18, 2011 HMV IS TODAY expected to reveal it has plunged further into the red as the troubled music retailer grapples with intense competition from the internet and waning CD and DVD sales. Analysts have forecast first half losses of almost £40m for the six months to 29 October compared with a hit of £32m a year [...]
Black’s Leisure looks for new bidders or faces winding-up December 18, 2011 BLACK’S LEISURE faces falling into administrators’ hands and being broken up if the struggling outdoor chain fails to find a buyer this week, putting 2,000 jobs at risk. Black’s competitors Go Outdoors and Mountain Warehouse have both emerged as likely bidders for the company after Sports Direct’s billionaire founder Mike Ashley ruled out a bid [...]
Britain’s last-standing music retailer will have to change its tune to keep up December 18, 2011 ALMOST a century after HMV’s dog mascot Nipper first took a look down the gramophone, the record is still playing but the music has long changed its tune. After what has been a torrid year for the group, investors, lenders and suppliers will today want to know whether HMV can play a different record — [...]
Inflation hits incomes at record speed December 18, 2011 CONSUMERS are suffering at record rates, despite the small fall in inflation, according to separate pieces of research published today by Markit and Lloyds TSB. The Bank of England’s quarterly bulletin also identified ongoing falls in the standard of living. Spending power fell at its fastest rate this year in November, according to Lloyds TSB. [...]
Weak pound helps slash trade deficit December 18, 2011 THE WEAK pound has helped cut the UK’s trade deficit by making imported goods more expensive and exported services cheaper, according to the Bank of England’s quarterly bulletin. However, the weak state of the financial services industry meant exports did not rise as strongly as may have been hoped. The 25 per cent fall in [...]
Low red tape keeps UK open December 18, 2011 RED TAPE and bureaucracy might regularly be attacked by businesses and politicians, but in international terms the UK is one of the most free and open economies in the developed world, according to new research from Maplecroft. Among G8 countries, only Canada is more open to business, while Britain comes ahead of Germany and France, [...]
Widest stocks sell off in years December 18, 2011 ALL sectors saw a net sell off of equities for the first time in four years from September to November, as investors took a major hit according to data out today from Capita Registrars. Private investors saw £24bn wiped off holdings since May, selling £695m in the three months to November. The sell-off represents a [...]
HOUSE PRICES SOAR ACROSS LONDON December 18, 2011 LONDON’S house prices rose 6.4 per cent in the last 12 months – an average of £500 a week – and have further to rise next year, according to Rightmove. Nationally, prices rose 1.5 per cent, and are expected to go up by two per cent in 2012.
China relaxes over foreign investment December 18, 2011 FOREIGN investors will be able to purchase shares in China with currency held offshore, authorities announced on Friday. The move follows data out last week showing that year on year, foreign direct investment fell for the first time in 28 months as the economy continued to slow down. Gradual internationalisation of the renminbi is a [...]
