Miners push FTSE higher but M&S weighs on retail shares January 7, 2010 BRITAIN’S top shares added 0.1 percent yesterday as a rally by heavyweight miners, in tandem with stronger metal prices, offset weakness in energy issues, with retailers upset by a disappointing update from M&S. At the close, the FTSE 100 index was 7.54 points higher at 5,530.04, another 16-month closing high. “It looks like the big [...]
Barclay brothers buy DHL parcels unit January 6, 2010 SIR David and Sir Frederick Barclay started the year with a major acquisition for their home delivery business. They snapped up DHL’s parcels business for an undisclosed sum to merge with their Home Delivery Network (HDN). The deal will vastly increase the scale of HDN, doubling its turnover from £300m to £600m. Briant Gaunt, chief [...]
Asda ramps up supermarket price war January 5, 2010 ASDA yesterday upped the ante in the supermarket wars by announcing its biggest round of price cuts in a decade. The supermarket said it was slashing the price of one in five of its products by an average of 13 per cent. The move comes after Tesco last week promised customer savings of more than [...]
Vodafone gives details of its £35 a month iPhone offering December 21, 2009 VODAFONE will make its move in to the iPhone market on 14 January, becoming the fourth UK network to sell the sought-after handset. It will offer customers a free handset for £35 a month on a two-year contract. Vodafone joins Orange, Tesco and O2, which had the original exclusive deal with Apple for the handset’s [...]
ATM Christmas is on the cards December 21, 2009 Wednesday 23 December will be the busiest day on record for cash purchases, according to research, suggesting consumers are shunning credit cards for banknotes. Figures compiled by Tesco Bank indicate cash machine withdrawals so far in December have outstripped 2008’s numbers. The trend is expected to peak on Wednesday, when ATMs are predicted to handle [...]
Harding walks to TalkTalk December 15, 2009 DIDO Harding, the former Tesco executive who heads Sainsbury’s convenience stores, is to join TalkTalk as its chief executive when it demerges from Carphone Warehouse. TalkTalk will be Britain’s biggest residential broadband provider when it splits from the retail arm of Carphone Warehouse next year. Harding, who previously held management positions at Thomas Cook and [...]
Supermarkets score for both value and reputation December 15, 2009 In the highly-competitive world of supermarkets, there are two basic types of brand: those which are “cheap and cheerful”, which focus on low cost while maintaining reasonable quality; and those which cost more but make a feature of the higher quality products. These show up very clearly in the respective average BrandIndex scores from the [...]
What to drink this Christmas December 6, 2009 Champagne As chosen by Esme Johnston, director of www.fromvineyardsdirect.comPerrier JouetBelle EpoqueCream and honey, brioche and lingering nutmeg notes make this special edition bubbly a delightful classic that’s wonderful with food or on its own. £86.95 at www.thedrinkshop.com Serge Mathieu Superb grower’s champagne, it’s nutty and golden with creamy richness and a light, punchy mousse. Great [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING December 6, 2009 THE SUNDAYSThe Sunday TelegraphBRITISH GAS AIMS TO BECOME TOP INSURANCE PROVIDERBritish Gas is gearing up to become one of the UK’s top 10 insurance companies and the provider of choice to its 4.5m customers. The Centrica-owned utility has been granted approval by the FSA to underwrite its own household and warranty products and is in [...]
Tesco takes the gloves off as Christmas price war hots up December 6, 2009 Britain’s biggest retailer Tesco has launched its most aggressive Christmas discount drive, designed to blow its upmarket rivals out of the water. The supermarket giant is slashing the prices of more than 200 products in its Finest range in a bid to stop shoppers defecting to Waitrose and Marks & Spencer for luxury food treats. [...]