Pret A Manger mulls expanding into coffee vending machines in move to diversify July 29, 2021 Pret A Manger is set to expand into coffee vending machines. The sandwich chain is joining the trend, according to the Financial Times, to widen its product offering through automated dispensers as the sector suffers from the drop in commuters and staff shortages. Earlier this month, the company’s application to trademark the name “Pret Express” [...]
Cost of the UK’s new royal yacht increases by £100m in one week July 29, 2021 The cost of the UK’s new royal yacht appears to have increased by £100m in the past week alone before any contract has even been awarded. The Ministry of Defence (MOD) last week said the total budget of the new ship – branded officially as a “national flagship” – was £150m in a formal invitation [...]
Drax hikes dividend as power firm heads back to black July 29, 2021 Power generator Drax this morning said that it would hike its interim dividend a tenth after getting back into profit in the first half of the year. For the first half, the FTSE 250 firm reported profit from continuing operations of £84m, swinging back into the black after a £57m loss last year. Energy firms [...]
Former UK Athletics chair Ed Warner: My heart says Team GB track and field stars can deliver against the odds at Tokyo 2020 Olympics July 29, 2021 “Head not heart” was the mantra I lived by going into an Olympics, such is the jeopardy in international athletics. With 214 member nations within World Athletics, experience says that Great Britain needs at least two genuine podium prospects for every medal the team might actually bring home from any global track and field competition. [...]
Netflix, Google and Facebook to require jabs for return to office July 29, 2021 Netflix, Google and Facebook will require all US employees to be vaccinated against Covid-19 before they can return to work. In an email to staff Google boss Sundar Pichai said the tech giant was pushing back its return to the office from September to mid-October. He added that vaccinations will be compulsory for US staff, [...]
Pets at Home keeps lockdown puppy boom momentum and hoists revenue July 29, 2021 Pets at Home has kept up its pandemic sales momentum in its first-quarter following last year’s lockdown puppy boom, with revenue up 25.7 per cent. The pet retailer group’s total revenue lifted to £377m in the weeks to 15 July, with 29.4 per cent growth on the same period the year before Covid-19. The group [...]
How might the UK replace China in its new nuclear plants? July 29, 2021 Back in 2015 the UK and China put nuclear power at the centre of what was hailed as a new “golden age” for relations between the two countries. As part of £30bn worth of deals, China’s state-owned nuclear firm China General Nuclear (CGN) agreed to partner with the UK to help it build three new [...]
Guinness owner Diageo sales jump as it toasts reopening July 29, 2021 Spirits group Diageo has beaten expectations for full-year sales as it gears up the reopening of bars and nightclubs across Europe. The booze business, which owns brands such as Guinness, Johnnie Walker and Smirnoff, reported net sales of £12.7bn in the year to the end of June, up 8.3 per cent on the previous year. [...]
Fraud detection company RELX expects 2021 revenue growth to be above historic trends July 29, 2021 Analytics and fraud prevention company RELX said it expected profit growth and underlying revenue to be “slightly above historic trends” in its 2021 full-year results. Following a strong performance in the first six months of 2021, the London-based company saw revenue total £3.39bn, with a constant historical currency growth of four per cent. However this [...]
BAE Systems kicks off £500m in share buybacks as earnings top £1bn July 29, 2021 Defence giant BAE Systems today announced that it would kick off a £500m share buyback programme after its first half earnings topped £1bn. The FTSE blue chip said that earnings totalled £1.03bn for the first half, up from £849m in the same period in 2020. It also said that it would boost its interim dividend [...]
