Wal-Mart sex case fails June 20, 2011 SUPERMARKET giant Wal-Mart yesterday won a case to dismiss a massive class-action sex discrimination lawsuit, after the US Supreme Court unanimously ruled in its favour. The court said more than 1m female Wal-Mart employees from across the US could not proceed in their multi-billion dollar case, which accused the grocer, which owns Asda, of paying [...]
Asda exec King in shock exit June 20, 2011 Chief operating officer at supermarket giant Asda, Simon King, has quit after only six months. King joined Asda on 10 January this year, moving from Saudi Arabia where he was chief executive of supermarket operator Panda Retail, a subsidiary of The Savola Group. Prior to that he was chief executive of Tesco Kipa in Turkey, [...]
Iceland profits reach record high June 10, 2011 Frozen food giant Iceland’s profit soared by almost 15 per cent in the past year as cash-strapped shoppers felt the pressure from rising food prices, it reported. Net profit before tax rose 14.8 per cent to £155.5m in the year ending March 2011, compared with £135.4m in 2010, in what Iceland described as a record [...]
New chairman Leighton signals change of Pace May 31, 2011 ALLAN Leighton, who was confirmed as the successor to Mike McTighe at the struggling TV set-top box maker Pace yesterday, is planning to launch a strategic review of the Yorkshire-based company. Leighton, who has led the boards of the Post Office and supermarket chain ASDA, said: “I’ve watched the Pace business develop with both its [...]
Leighton set to chair Pace May 30, 2011 UK BUSINESS veteran Allan Leighton is set to take up the chairmanship of struggling TV set-top box maker Pace over the next few days. Leighton has been lined up to replace Mike McTighe, who has been chairman since 2006. His appointment will be announced by the company this week, City A.M. can confirm. The news [...]
Tesco market share rises as Asda sees dip May 24, 2011 TESCO’S market share rose for the first time since November last year, according to Kantar Worldpanel market share data. For the 12 weeks to 15 May Tesco’s market share rose to 30.7 per cent, from 30.6 per cent. The only other retailer in the top four to increase its share was fourth-placed Morrisons. Its share [...]
UK’s retail sales hold steady May 24, 2011 ACTIVITY on the UK high street is “subdued, but steady,” according to the latest research by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). Retail sales are “holding up about as well as can be expected,” the CBI said yesterday, after announcing that sales have remained surprisingly resilient this month. A positive balance of 18 per cent [...]
Morrisons is leading race for Iceland May 22, 2011 SUPERMARKET chain Morrisons is being touted as the frontrunner in the race to buy into rival Iceland, after majority owner Landsbanki officially launched a sales process for its holding in the company. The Resolution Committee for Landsbanki said last week that according to advisers UBS and Bank of America Merrill Lynch, “market conditions are currently [...]
Walmart in overseas lift as US drags May 17, 2011 WALMART posted a bigger-than-expected jump in quarterly profit yesterday despite a further drop in sales at US stores. A strong performance overseas fuelled the profit as the US market lagged behind. Walmart’s international sales rose 11.5 per cent to almost $28bn (£17.2bn) for the three months to the end of April. Markets including China and [...]
Oil price fall fuels hopes of cheaper petrol May 11, 2011 CRUDE oil prices dropped below $100 a barrel and US petrol futures slumped yesterday, fuelling hopes that UK forecourt prices may fall substantially soon. Crude futures plunged more than five per cent in the week’s second major oil price fall, with light sweet crude for June hitting a low of $97.50 (£59.55). Brent crude traded [...]