JK Rowling makes screen writing debut September 12, 2013 BEST-SELLING Harry Potter author JK Rowling will return to the wizarding world for her screenplay debut, Warner Brothers said yesterday. Rowling has agreed to write the screenplay for “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”, a film based on the adventures of Newt Scamander – the fictional author of a Hogwarts textbook of the same [...]
Public to need at least £750 to buy shares in Royal Mail share sale September 12, 2013 UNLIKE the great privatisations of the Thatcher era, the forthcoming Royal Mail float will not be accompanied by a major publicity campaign – but individual investors will still be encouraged to buy shares as part of the IPO. The minimum individual share purchase will be £750 but at this stage it is not clear whether [...]
Bottom Line: Prospectus is not enough to seal the deal September 12, 2013 FOR potential investors in Royal Mail, the next few weeks will provide plenty of time to get stuck into the lengthy prospectus for the float, and to try to decide whether the government has made an investment case worth taking a chance on. Initially, their heads may be turned by the dividend. The government has [...]
Next chief sees housing bubble danger ahead September 12, 2013 THE CHIEF executive of Next warned yesterday that improving mortage availability and government measures to boost activity in the housing market could result in an “unhelpful house price bubble” as the retailer reported strong half-year sales growth. Lord Simon Wolfson, a prominent supporter of the Conservative Party, said house price inflation “was as dangerous as [...]
John Lewis first half profits take £50m hit after holiday pay error September 12, 2013 JOHN LEWIS said yesterday it was looking forward to positive trading in the second half after a review of its holiday pay policy dragged first half profits down 38.5 per cent. The department store group booked an exceptional £47.3m charge after discovering an error in the way it had calculated pay for Sundays and bank [...]
Summer sun boosts sales at Home Retail September 12, 2013 HOME Retail Group said yesterday that summer sunshine had delivered a big boost to sales at its DIY chain Homebase in the second quarter, and helped shift seasonal products at its biggest business, Argos. The company said like-for-like sales at Homebase rose by 11 per cent in the 13 weeks to 31 August, comfortably beating [...]
Morrisons to cut new space as it focuses online September 12, 2013 WM MORRISON joined rivals yesterday in calling an end to the space race, as it prepares for its launch online next year and invests in its convenience M Local stores amid falling sales. Chief executive Dalton Philips announced plans to limit growth to 350,000 sq ft – about half of the average rate of the [...]
Analyst Views: What was your reaction to Morrisons’ half year update? September 12, 2013 KEITH BOWMAN | HARGREAVES LANSDOWN “Morrisons has moved to reposition its strategy in line with its major rivals. With the rollout of convenience stores ongoing and its push online now supported by Ocado, management now appear to view its armoury as complete, with group capital expenditure to be reduced. JONATHAN PRITCHARD | ORIEL SECURITIES “Morrisons’ [...]
Real Good Food plans sugar rush September 12, 2013 The Real Good Food Company yesterday said its performance in the first half of the year has been in line with the board’s expectations and that it is ploughing ahead with the building of a new sugar handling hub near Grimsby that will launch in the next three months. Chairman Pieter Totte said it continued [...]
Darty says French recovery on track September 12, 2013 European electricals retailer Darty yesterday said sales at its core French business picked up in the first quarter, as its turnaround plan started to pay off. Darty France, which makes up 70 per cent of group revenue, said sales fell by 0.4 per cent – an improvement from a 2.7 per cent decline in the [...]
