Delia fattens Waitrose with cake November 22, 2010 Waitrose grocery sales rose four per cent in the 12 weeks to October 31 – lifted by swift sales of Delia Smith’s ready-to-make Christmas cake kit. The UK cook has in the past caused a run on ingredients like eggs, stout and goose fat, after championing them in her recipes. Earlier this year Waitrose ran [...]
THE TIPSTER November 21, 2010 THE run-up to Christmas truly gets underway this week with US Thanksgiving on Thursday. Historically this has given equity markets a boost as a result of improved sentiment and as the festive sentiment rubs off on investors. This could prompt a rally in the Dow. Capital Spreads quotes 11,165-11,167 for the index. US dollar strength [...]
Upbeat Swann’s itching to get started November 21, 2010 GRAEME SWANN cannot wait to open the final window of his Ashes advent calendar as the excitement and anticipation builds towards a crescendo ahead of the first Test at the Gabba on Thursday. The world’s premier spin bowler has been patiently ticking off the days ever since the touring party landed in Perth at the [...]
Quantas Airbus fleet “weeks away” from flying November 19, 2010 Qantas Airways likely faces several more weeks before its fleet of six Airbus A380s can return to service threatening to squeeze its capacity as it heads into the busy Christmas season. The delay also indicates Rolls-Royce will need more time than Qantas expected to resolve the engine issue, which led to a November 4 oil [...]
SELLING November 18, 2010 MANAGING DIRECTOR, PROPERTY HUNT Q.Dear Russell, what can I do to increase the value of my property? A.There are very simple and obvious things that can be done to improve the value of a property but it is amazing how often people forget them. For example, it will not help the value of your property [...]
Halfords refinances as earnings drive forward November 18, 2010 HALFORDS said yesterday it had refinanced its debt arrangements as it posted a rise in first half profit. The cycle and car parts retailer saw pre-tax profit rise 12.8 per cent in the six months to 1 October. Halfords said it had grown its market share in its more expensive cycles range as more people [...]
John Lewis in sales surge as Xmas nears November 18, 2010 JOHN Lewis said sales had risen by 11.3 per cent over the last four days – driven by a strong performance from fashion and helped by the colder weather. The department store said the week had begun well as consumers started thinking about buying Christmas gifts. Lesley Ballantyne, John Lewis director of operational development said: [...]
Tube boss vows to fight unions in a bid to modernise the network November 17, 2010 TUBE boss Mike Brown vowed not to back down in his long-running dispute with unions over his plans to cut 800 ticket office jobs. “I want staff to be more flexible, I make no apology for that,” said the London Underground managing director. “We will not run a service that is stuck in the 1960s. [...]
BETWEEN MURDOCH AND A VERY HARD PLACE November 17, 2010 FINALLY! A chance for harried BSkyB chief executive Jeremy Darroch to let his hair down: the Sky Christmas party – or “Winter Reception” – invites have been issued, the balloons blown up, the goose cooked. And it will be a well-deserved rest. The Capitalist hears that Darroch has had a stressful few weeks in the [...]
Securitas eyes new UK deals November 17, 2010 THE chief executive of Securitas, one of the world’s largest security companies, is warning that the global threat posed by terrorism is escalating while vigilance at airports means travellers will have to pay the price with longer queues. The company Alf Goransson leads provides security at four airports in the UK, including Liverpool and the [...]