Promethean sees sales plunge April 18, 2012 INTERACTIVE whiteboard firm Promethean World yesterday revealed a dramatic sales drop in its key North American market, causing its share price to tumble a further 20 per cent. Blaming “challenging market conditions”, the interim management statement showed revenues of £35.9m for the first quarter of 2012, a 14.4 per cent decline on the same period [...]
Higher card spend boosts American Express April 18, 2012 AMERICAN Express’ profits climbed seven per cent in the first quarter to $1.26bn (£0.79bn), beating Wall Street estimates as customers spent more on their credit cards. Revenues grew by eight per cent to $7.61bn as spending on the network rose by 12 per cent. Amex cardholders spent an average of $3,772 a month, up from [...]
LVMH WARNS ON EUROPE DESPITE PROFIT JUMP April 18, 2012 LVMH, the luxury conglomerate, yesterday warned that the outlook remained uncertain despite posting a 25 per cent jump in first-quarter revenue. The owner of brands such as Moet Hennessy and Yves Saint Laurent said like-for-like sales rose 14 per cent to €6.58bn.
Tesco to fight back with £1bn revival scheme April 18, 2012 TESCO revealed yesterday it would be spending £1bn on reviving its UK business as the supermarket giant attempts to restore sales growth and make customers “fall back in love again” with the brand. Chief executive Philip Clarke outlined a six-point plan to hire 8,000 more staff, create “warmer” stores, lower prices and improve products after [...]
Tata pulls out of bid race for UK telco firm April 18, 2012 TATA Communications has ditched discussions to bid for Cable & Wireless Worldwide (CWW), surprising the City after weeks of building up financing from a handful of banks. The Indian company announced after markets closed yesterday that it “has been unable to reach agreement with CWW on an offer price and therefore confirms that it does [...]
Spirit Pubs enjoys sales rise thanks to makeover success April 18, 2012 SPIRIT PUBS group, the operator behind chains including Flaming Grill and Chef & Brewer, said its managed estate continued to outperform the market, after profits rose seven per cent in the first half of the year. The company, which de-merged from Punch Taverns last year, said pre-tax profits increased to £20m in the six months [...]
Clarke will need more than £1bn to reverse curse of complacent incumbency April 18, 2012 LET’S keep things in perspective here. Tesco isn’t exactly struggling, although you wouldn’t know it from the bad publicity that has plagued it since a profit warning in January. Group profit of £3.83bn was up by five per cent last year on revenues that were seven per cent higher at £72bn. A distressed retailer this [...]
ANALYST VIEWS DID SPIRIT’S HALF-YEAR RESULTS MEET EXPECTATIONS? April 18, 2012 PAUL HICKMAN PEEL HUNT Results close to our expectation leave the business model continuing in strong growth, beating most of the pub sector. Technical downgrades may create some short-term weakness, and this represents a buying opportunity. Current trading continues strong, although no numbers are given as they would be artificially high, reflecting the Easter holiday. [...]
CITY VIEWS DO YOU SHOP FOR GROCERIES ONLINE? April 18, 2012 LUCY WALLCRAFT FIDELITY Sometimes I shop online for my groceries, but not always. When I do it’s because it is the most convenient way to get what I need. I mainly use Tesco if I shop online because it is the easiest to use.” SHARON GURNETT MCGRIGORS I don’t personally shop online for groceries. I’m [...]
HSBC tests City appetite for dim sum bonds April 18, 2012 HSBC saw strong demand from investors when it issued the first ever renminbi-denominated bond sold outside Chinese territory yesterday, raising 2bn yuan (£200m) in London. With investors subscribing for twice the issuance amount, the bank paid just three per cent interest on the three-year bond. Most of the debt was bought by European investors. The [...]
