GETTING THE PRICE RIGHT IS CRUCIAL November 11, 2010 MD & FOUNDER OF FINE WINE MERCHANT BORDEAUX INDEX AS THE giddy prices achieved at the recent auctions in Hong Kong confirmed, the right price for anything is what someone’s willing to pay for it. With premia to market averaging around 60 per cent on over £10m of widely available stock, it speaks more of [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING November 11, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES SMARTPHONES IN HACKING RISK Certain smartphone models running Google’s Android operating system have security flaws that could allow hackers to steal personal information or record conversations, researchers said this week. In a demonstration at the Black Hat security conference in Abu Dhabi, a UK researcher showed how a vulnerability in the web browser [...]
Just 50,000 sign up to BT’s sports package November 11, 2010 BT yesterday announced its Sky Sports offering has limped to just 50,000 subscribers since its launch this summer. Chief executive Ian Livingston admitted the firm has a “lot more to do” but reiterated BT’s long term committment to the project. He said: “Around 10 per cent of our BT Vision subscriber base is now taking [...]
A Wilde ride of political ups and downs November 11, 2010 An ideal husband Vaudeville Theatre NICK Clegg could feel a shiver of recognition in An Ideal Husband. In Oscar Wilde’s political comedy, Sir Robert Chiltern (Alexander Hanson) has fairly effortlessly risen through the ranks of Parliament to become Under-Secretary for Foreign Affairs. Halfway through the first scene he is coerced into agreeing to recommend a [...]
ALSO OUT THIS WEEK November 11, 2010 FILM SKYLINE Sci fi gubbins of the alien-invasion kind. A lack of press screenings isn’t a good sign. YOU AGAIN Family drama with Sigourney Weaver and Jamie Lee Curtis. MY AFTERNOONS WITH MARGUERITE Sickly sweet French drama with Gerard Depardieu. DVD DOWNTON ABBEY SERIES 1 Swift turnaround on ITV’s just-finished period piece. A CHRISTMAS CAROL [...]
JJB issues warning as promotions fail November 11, 2010 STRUGGLING sportswear retailer JJB yesterday warned that full-year results would not meet its hopes after poor recent trading, increasing the chances of the company having to raise additional cash. Shares in JJB, which came close to administration last year, lost up to 29 per cent of their value after the retailer said sales over the [...]
Ralph Lauren ups sales forecasts November 10, 2010 RALPH Lauren reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit yesterday and again raised its full-year sales outlook. The fashion company, whose brands include Polo, saw net revenue rise 11 per cent to $1.53bn (£0.9bn). It has benefited from a recovering demand for luxury items, as well as strong sales overseas. The most recent quarter is usually Polo’s [...]
Google gives all its staff a 10pc pay rise November 10, 2010 GOOGLE is handing all of its employees a 10 per cent pay rise and a pre-Christmas bonus of $1,000 in a move that will cost the search giant a reported $1bn a year. Employees received the news in an internal memo emailed to staff from Google chief executive officer Eric Schmidt. Tax on the “holiday [...]
ODD JOBS November 10, 2010 GENERAL MANAGER, THE MERCER Before he made the move to Threadneedle Street restaurant The Mercer, Bedford ran restaurants such as Dakota in Notting Hill, The Collection in Chelsea and Mocota in Knightsbridge. Although he enjoys all aspects of managing a restaurant, wine is a special interest that has only intensified during his time in the [...]
J Sainsbury outpaces rivals as it sees its market share inch higher November 9, 2010 UK SUPERMARKET sales are rising slightly more than food price inflation, with the third largest grocer J Sainsbury outpacing its major rivals, market researchers Kantar Worldpanel said yesterday. Grocery sales climbed four per cent in the 12 weeks ended 31 October, helped by a three per cent rise in inflation — little changed from the [...]