Fears of a nightmare before Christmas for UK retailers as footfall and spending dip November 13, 2017 Retail analysts fear a nightmare before Christmas for British shops as figures published today show weakness ahead of the crucial holiday spending spree. Footfall in UK retailers fell by two per cent year-on-year in October, according to figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Springboard. The decline in the number of shop visits was [...]
Marks and Spencer (LON:MKS) share price: Steve Rowe promises to “make M&S special again” as sales and profits slide while CFO Helen Weir steps down November 8, 2017 Marks and Spencer Group’s profits fell in the first half, as the retailer faced additional headwinds in its food business and continued the struggle to boost clothing sales. The group also confirmed reports that its chief financial officer, Helen Weir, will leave the company in due course. Shares in the company rose 3.5 per cent [...]
Debehams share price: Short sellers pile in to bet against Debenhams ahead of Christmas shopping season November 7, 2017 The City appears to be pessimistic about Debenhams’ prospects this Christmas, with the amount of short-selling of the retailer’s stock rising to its highest level for more than four years. According to data from the Financial Conduct Authority, the amount of stock borrowed by hedge funds to bet against Debenhams’ fortunes has ramped up in [...]
UK inflation rises, adding to pressure on rates October 20, 2017 There are two key domestic issues this week for UK financial markets. One is the latest inflation news and the implications for interest rates. The second is the ongoing Brexit discussions and what might the latest phase imply for settling. Let's focus here on the inflation news. This week's data release showed that inflation rose [...]
Co-op Group increases membership but profits dip in first half September 21, 2017 The Co-op Group today announced it added more half a million members in the first half of the year – but revenue and profit dipped. The figures Revenue in the 26 weeks to 1 July came in at £4.64bn, down from £4.7bn in the same portion of last year. Operating profit dropped to £51m from [...]
Solar, bitcoin, tech, Tesla and tea: seven important investment charts from August September 5, 2017 Each month, writers at Schroders pull together the most intriguing charts of the month. Solar production eclipsed (briefly) The US came to a standstill on 21 August as people looked skyward to witness a remarkable solar eclipse. But as the moon blocked the sun it also temporarily blocked solar energy production. California aims to generate [...]
How tobacco stocks could now be damaging to your wealth September 4, 2017 A month has now passed since tobacco businesses – and their share prices – were sent reeling by a US regulatory announcement. So what was the news that, for example, wiped out all the gains British American Tobacco had made in the first half of this year? Was it perhaps about to become illegal to [...]
Seven investment charts that caught our eye in June July 6, 2017 Schroders Investment Communications team highlights charts they found interesting this month. Mid-year markets Schroders' team of economists put together a handy summary of how various asset classes and markets have performed as we reach the middle of the year. Looking at broad asset classes, equities have been the best to be invested in, while commodities [...]
FTSE 100 history: how the index has changed over 33 years July 3, 2017 The FTSE 100 index has just seen one of its quarterly changes with security firm G4S and real estate investment trust Segro promoted to the top 100. Although perhaps small in themselves, these regular events have changed the face of the UK’s leading index since it was formed in 1984. For the many investors whose [...]
UK retail sales slide as consumers cut discretionary spending, according to British Retail Consortium June 6, 2017 Retail sales fell back again last month as consumers started counting the pennies and cut their discretionary spending. Like-for-like retail sales were down by 0.4 per cent in May, according to figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC), falling back from the sales boost the sector received over the Easter holiday. Non-food retailers dragged on [...]