Iranian cyber attack harvested details of MPs and chief executives April 3, 2019 Iranian hackers launched cyber attacks on key parts of British infrastructure, gaining access to MPs' mobile phone numbers, in a major breach just before Christmas, according to reports. The 23 December attacks are also said to have hit UK private-sector firms including the Post Office and banks, as well as local government networks. Sky News yesterday [...]
Bonmarche shares drop as billionaire Philip Day snaps up retailer in cut-price deal April 2, 2019 Edinburgh Woollen Mill Group owner Philip Day is set to take struggling retailer Bonmarche private in a deal that values the firm at just £5.7m. Bonmarche has been plagued by profit warnings, issuing its third in late March when it told investors to expect up to a £6m loss due to “significantly weaker” March trading. [...]
Joules chief executive to resign after five years in charge of fashion retailer April 1, 2019 Joules chief executive Colin Porter has announced plans to retire after five years in charge of the fashion retailer. Shares slid more than three per cent after Porter, who has been with the business since 2010, revealed he would resign before the end of the next financial year. Read more: Joules boss Colin Porter to [...]
Hedge funds take out £86m bets against British Gas owner Centrica March 31, 2019 Hedge funds are taking out record bets against British Gas owner Centrica as the energy sector faces challenges from Ofgem’s price cap. The cap, which increases from tomorrow, has put pressure on suppliers’ margins. Read more: UK must decarbonise heating, Centrica boss says Disclosed so-called short positions in the Big Six energy supplier have risen [...]
Focus On Camden: Camden Market turns 45 tomorrow, but how much have house prices changed in this cultural hotspot? March 29, 2019 Today, a London institution reaches proper middle-age. Camden Market – once home to punks and mods, now home to an awful lot of tourists looking for the punks and mods – turns 45 on 30 March 2019. It could be home to you, too, if you can afford it. The average second hand sales price, [...]
Five retail tips for small businesses worried about Brexit March 29, 2019 So much of the political debate over Brexit has focused on the impact on big business. The banks, multinational drug companies, carmakers, and other corporate pressure groups have been leading the conversation. But Brexit also impacts the hundreds of thousands of small businesses that employ most Britons and are the heartbeat of the economy. Read [...]
Tesco boss accuses business rates system of ‘killing’ retailers March 28, 2019 The chief executive of Tesco, Dave Lewis, has harshly criticised the UK’s business rates system, saying it has become “a rising tax on investment” in a speech today. Lewis said that increasing business rates have come as retailers are squeezed by online competitors, and called for an online sales levy. He brushed off criticism that this [...]
UK mortgage approvals fall as Brexit uncertainty bites March 26, 2019 Mortgage approvals in the UK have fallen year-on-year as homebuyers put off their decisions amid political uncertainty, new data has revealed. The number of mortgages approved by the main high street banks in February was 2.2 per cent lower than the same month in 2018, the finance and business services body UK Finance said today. [...]
ASOS and Bonmarche in share price collapse March 25, 2019 By Graeme Evans from interactive investor. Investors in these two high-profile retailers ran for the hills following the latest trading updates. While ASOS (LSE:ASC) and Bonmarche (LSE:BON) operate in two very different retail worlds, the pair have plenty in common from an investor viewpoint after their December profit warnings were followed by more disappointment last [...]
Kodak shows how to compete with startups if you’re a heritage brand March 25, 2019 The digitalisation of our world has given with one hand and taken away with the other. It has created opportunities for new companies, and made household names such as Amstrad computers and Woolworths entirely redundant. Technological advancements have facilitated the emergence of startups that thrive on disrupting traditional business models. However, the decline of established [...]