Sainsbury’s: Expected profits up as food shoppers splash Christmas cash but Argos bears brunt of cost of living crisis January 11, 2023 Sainsbury’s cashed in on Christmas shopping with retail sales up more than five per cent, as the supermarket giant expects its profit to be at the “upper end” of guidance. The major retailer now expects to be making close to £700m in pre-tax profit this March, despite the cost of living crisis weighing down consumer [...]
JD Sports expects pre-tax profits to top £1bn following Christmas surge January 11, 2023 JD Sports expects to post pre-tax profits of more than £1bn for the year ending on 3 February 2023 after it recorded a Christmas sales surge. The sportswear retailer said a strong performance in the second half of 2022, driven by a surge in sales over Christmas, will see it achieve its financial goals. The [...]
Heathrow: Strikes and ongoing charging issues fail to dent December’s passenger levels January 11, 2023 Heathrow Airport’s passenger numbers skyrocketed last month despite challenges posed by Border Force Strikes. The west London hub said 5.9 million travellers passed through its gates during the festive month, up 90 per cent on 2021 levels. Overall, the airport remained in line with former expectations, with 61.6 million passengers using Heathrow in 2022. John-Holland Kaye, [...]
Change of luck on the cards for Hewitson and Happy Soul January 10, 2023 FORMER South African Champion Jockey Lyle Hewitson finally looks set for a change of luck when he renews his association with the Danny Shum-trained HAPPY SOUL in division three of the Great George Handicap (12.45pm) over six furlongs. Hewitson is presently lying fifth in the jockeys’ championship table with 16 victories, but has had a [...]
Majestic: Brits taste for champagne and sparkling wine in December boosts sales with second-largest festive intake ever January 10, 2023 Brits guzzled down 20 per cent more wine at Christmas than before Covid, as Majestic posted its second-highest festive intake in 40 years. The UK’s largest specialist retailer, Majestic Wine, raked in a sales increase of 21.1 per cent against 2019, with English sparkling wine proving particularly popular. Majestic reported that sales rose 0.2 per [...]
Up-up but not away: Branson’s historic Virgin Orbit UK rocket launch ends in failure after anomaly forces return to earth January 10, 2023 An attempt to make British space history by launching a rocket into orbit from UK soil has ended in failure after suffering an “anomaly” during the flight. After taking off from Cornwall, the Virgin Orbit plane flew to 35,000ft over the Atlantic Ocean where it jettisoned the rocket containing nine small satellites towards space. Organisers [...]
Inflation wipes out Christmas sales as Britain stumbles toward recession January 10, 2023 Inflation is forcing Brits to rein in spending to shield their finances, prompting experts today to warn of a rise in high street bankruptcies as the country stumbles into a recession. Retail sales fell in real terms over the Christmas period, when consumers tend to splash the cash on food, new clothes and decorations, according [...]
Recession fears force UK businesses to park hiring plans January 10, 2023 Recession fears are forcing businesses to mothball hiring plans to keep costs at a minimum, a new survey out today reveals. KPMG and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation’s (REC) permanent hiring index stumbled to 44.5 in December from 46.4 in the previous month. The reading has now been below the 50 point mark that separates [...]
The Notebook: Victoria Scholar on defensive plays, BA’s new uniforms and Elon Musk’s fall from fortune January 10, 2023 The Notebook is a new feature for 2023, allowing the City’s biggest names to get a few thoughts off their chest. Today it’s the turn of Victoria Scholar, Head of Investment at interactive investor It has been widely reported that the UK is on the brink of recession while a third of the global economy [...]
Explainer-in-brief: What’s happening in the Meghan & Harry free zone January 9, 2023 If you started tuning out of the news in mid-December last year, you would have left as Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s Netflix series dominated the headlines, strikes caused chaos before Christmas and the NHS struggled under the weight of winter pressures. Turning on the radio this morning, little had changed, with the stateside Royal [...]