Ocado losses widen: Share price rises as retail arm shows signs of improvement July 18, 2023 Pre-tax losses at Ocado have widened to £289m in the first half of the year, as the grocery firm’s share price was up over 14 per cent this morning. The supermarket technology business said its retail arm – which is a joint venture with M&S – grew five per cent to £1.17bn as it returned [...]
Britain’s pro-growth agenda needs a rebrand to convince reluctant voters July 18, 2023 As the Tories face a brutal set of by-elections, they needs to find a way to give growth a good name again.
US Federal Reserve will slash interest rates in March 2024, Morgan Stanley bets July 17, 2023 The US Federal Reserve will in the early part of next year slash interest rates for the first time since the onset of the Covid-19 crisis, Wall Street analysts are betting, Researchers at Morgan Stanley have said they expect the federal open market committee (FOMC) to bring rates down in the first quarter of 2024, [...]
Tortilla Mexican Grill: Revenues surge by over a fifth after expansion July 17, 2023 Tortilla Mexican Grill raked in revenues of £32.7m during the first leg of the year, up 22 per cent compared to the same period last year, off the back of a string of new site openings. The fast-casual restaurant chain was bolstered by new openings and growing demand, saying like for like revenue also grew [...]
Sofa so good! DFS reaches record market share as it navigates cost of living crisis July 17, 2023 DFS recorded a four per cent decline in gross sales compared to last year as the sofa giant warns of “significantly worse” market activity during the cost of living crisis. The news comes as earlier this year DFS downgraded its profit expectations to between £30m and £35m, slashing it by nearly half on the £60.3m [...]
New data: Cost-cutting and restructuring helps keep restaurant industry alive July 17, 2023 Bank of England interest rate rises could threaten the UK restaurant sector’s return to profitability, according to national accountancy group, UHY Hacker Young. The group say the percentage of UK restaurant companies turning a profit has more than doubled from 35 per cent to 78 per cent in the past year, but recent rate increases could [...]
Bank of England interest rate hikes trigger record £2.1 trillion UK wealth collapse, report claims July 17, 2023 The Bank of England has engineered the largest contraction in UK household wealth on record by jacking up interest rates in response to scorching inflation, a new report out today has claimed. Asset values have collapsed by £2.1 trillion since early 2021, mainly driven by a sharp fall in bond prices in response to UK [...]
Plans to shelve buy-now pay-later rules ‘incredibly concerning’, says Which? July 17, 2023 A top campaign group has sounded the alarm today after it emerged that the government is preparing to shelve plans to clampdown on the buy-now pay-later (BNPL) sector.
Easyjet: Can the budget airline quell investors’ fear of strikes and cancellations? July 16, 2023 EasyJet shareholders will be looking ahead with bated breath this week, with the budget airline set to unveil its third quarter trading performance on Thursday. EasyJet shares have plateaued following a flying start to the year, with concerns peaking amid an announcement earlier this week that nearly 2,000 of its flights would be cancelled over [...]
John Lewis boss: Shoplifting up over 20 per cent due to cost of living pressures July 16, 2023 The boss of John Lewis said today that shoplifting has increased over 20 per cent across the high street over the past year blaming the cost of living crisis for the rise in the crime. Speaking to the BBC on the Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg show, boss Sharon White said she was surprised to not [...]