Meet the Co-op traditionalists’ top dog March 11, 2014 Ben Reid, the chief executive of the Midcounties Co-operative, is seen as the likely flag-bearer for the traditionalists in a battle for control of the Co-operative Group. The traditionalists have been opposed to many of the measures the departed chief executive Euan Sutherland has been trying to impose, such as restructuring, the selling off of [...]
Amazon swings to loss as string of US firms miss July 25, 2013 AMAZON shares took a tumble last night, after disappointing financial results for the second quarter were announced, showing a surprise loss and shrunken operating income The online retail giant swung to a net loss of $7m (£4.56m), falling short of analysts’ forecasts of a small profit and last year’s quarterly earnings of $7m. Operating income [...]
Squatters are trying to beat huge brands to these new domain names February 18, 2014 Squatters are targeting some of the biggest worldwide brands ahead of the release of swathes of new web addresses this year. Domain names like www.amazon.web and www.gucci.shop are being targeted by squatters looking to cash in on confusion surrounding the new addresses due to be released later this year. Over 98 per cent [...]
Seven habits of the most effective digital enterprises May 23, 2014 In an age where most developed economies are experiencing lacklustre growth, digital continues to expand at an ever more rapid pace. E-commerce is booming at double-digit rates in the US, as well as the majority of European countries, and is rising across Asia. However, many companies are struggling to move beyond the experimentation stage of [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 11 April 2014 April 10, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Banks urged to act over Heartbleed A US regulator has warned that cyber criminals could be impersonating bank services or stealing users’ online banking passwords after the “Heartbleed” bug, called one of the most significant breaches of internet security ever, was discovered in the software used to secure two-thirds of the web. The [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 16 April 2014 April 15, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Market troubles dent Moelis flotation Boutique investment bank Moelis raised $163m from its US initial public offering after last-minute investor concerns forced it to shrink the size of its share sale and cut the price of the deal below its expected range. The IPO is the latest to come under pressure on the [...]
Google I/O 2014: Expect Google TV, Google Glass, Android Lollipop and wearables June 25, 2014 Google’s I/O conference brings together developers from across the world to see the latest breakthroughs, products and software created by the internet giant. The event kicks off later today, but speculation is rife about the announcements due to come out of San Francisco. Here’s what’s expected (in addition to guests pulling up in Google's driverless [...]
Marx was wrong (cont): Corporate giants are inherently fragile June 17, 2014 ONE of Karl Marx’s big theories was that capitalism had an inherent tendency towards monopoly and would thus self-destroy. The idea remains widely held, and is one reason countries operate stringent anti-trust regulations. But it’s a little more complicated than that. First, many monopolies or quasi-monopolies are actually created by the state, rather than resulting [...]
New York Report: Shares bounce back in the US April 8, 2014 US STOCKS rose yesterday, snapping a three-day losing streak as investors bought beaten-down social media and internet shares. The day’s biggest gainers included Amazon, up 2.9 per cent, Yahoo, up 2.3 per cent, and LinkedIn, up 5.9 per cent. The Global X social media index rose 2.4 per cent to close at 18.50. But gains [...]
Best of the Brokers for 17 March 2014 March 17, 2014 To appear in Best of the Brokers, email your research to notes@cityam.com MORRISONS Cantor Fitzgerald keeps its “buy” rating and puts its target under review after the supermarket’s profit warning last week. The broker thinks the shares will be supported by the prospect of a takeover by the likes of Amazon or a grocery rival [...]