The Champ – AP McCoy December 20, 2012 Looking at the William Hill King George VΙ Chase, it’s not a surprise to see Long Run heading the market. If the ground stays testing then he is the one guaranteed to really stay. There are plenty of horses that have won over the three-mile trip, but for some like Finian’s Rainbow and Cue Card [...]
Santa comes early for the stock market December 19, 2012 TRADERS received some festive cheer yesterday as the FTSE 100 continued its pre-Christmas gains to close just below its 2012 high. “The Santa rally is in full flight as markets hit their highs,” declared Matt Basi of CMC Markets, as investors celebrated the traditional end-of-year gains. London’s leading share index is up 0.7 per cent this [...]
Shoppers delay their Christmas gift purchases December 19, 2012 RETAIL footfall fell sharply in the week to 16 December compared with last year, but improved on the previous week as trading gathered pace in the run-up to Christmas. Shopping centres suffered the worst decline in visitors, with footfall plunging 4.3 per cent on a year ago, the BRC-Springboard Footfall Monitor showed, while out-of-town footfall [...]
Festive trading is slow for UK supermarkets as sales weaken December 19, 2012 SUPERMARKET grocery sales have slowed in the past four weeks, held back by weak general merchandise sales and the continued squeeze on consumer budgets. According to the latest data from Nielsen, grocery sales in the four weeks to 8 December rose 1.3 per cent year-on-year. That compared with a two per cent growth in the [...]
Will you christmas shop this saturday? December 19, 2012 ELLA JENKINS | ACCENTURE No, I will be drinking mulled wine with my friends. I bought all my presents online this year to avoid the last minute shopping. In fact, the last one just arrived with the mail. JUDE AWANI | AVIVA Yes, I am late and still have to buy presents for my nephews [...]
On his naughty list? Revenge of Secret Santa December 19, 2012 A DISTURBING Christmas survey from NPW, the supplier of impulse purchase products to high street stores such as John Lewis and Paperchase. The firm’s Christmas elves told The Capitalist that not only do a third of us now enter into office present-giving via a mystery Father Christmas, but 32 per cent of chief executives use [...]
Snap the cab and win a skate, or sweep, at Broadgate ice rink December 19, 2012 COMMUTERS hailing cabs around Liverpool Street station should keep an eye out for Broadgate’s ice taxi that has been cruising around the City. Budding skaters who snap a photograph of the cab driving through town can tweet their picture using #BroadgateIce to be in with the chance of winning a two-for-one skate voucher at the [...]
US budget hope and Christmas cheer push FTSE close to 6,000 December 19, 2012 BRITAIN’S blue-chip share index scaled fresh nine-month highs yesterday on growing expectations of a US budget deal, and nearing tough technical resistance levels en-route to the 6,000 mark. Although the US political ping-pong continued, the main parties looked to be closing in on an agreement to avoid the “fiscal cliff” of tax hikes and spending [...]
The best Christmas gift can’t be found on the high street December 19, 2012 CHRISTMAS is a time of consumption and, this year, despite some conflicting statistics, central London seems heaving. The New West End company estimated that the first weekend of December saw 16 per cent more shoppers than in 2011, many from abroad. Retail sales in December are typically twice those of other months and, for many [...]
Bumi investors want Takeover Panel to get a move on December 18, 2012 FEW corporate situations have been quite as embarrassing for the reputation of the City of London as the preposterous mess that is currently Bumi. Bumi’s origins date back to the creation of a special purpose vehicle called Vallar, led by Nat Rothschild, that raised £600m in June 2010 for the purpose of investing in the [...]