BEST OF THE BROKERS January 21, 2010 UK MAIL Seymour Pierce reckons UK Mail had a good Christmas and has upgraded its full-year profit forecasts for 2010 as a result. The broker notes UK Mail shares had a strong rise at the end of last year thanks to the postal strikes but have slipped to a level which looks under-rated. It has [...]
Morrison beats rivals with festive sales boost January 21, 2010 SUPERMARKET chain Morrison posted the biggest rise in Christmas sales among Britain’s top four grocers – but urged caution about 2010. Sales at stores open at least a year rose 6.5 per cent, excluding petrol and VAT, in the six weeks to 3 January. Total revenue rose by 10.8 per cent for the period. Morrison, [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING January 20, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES BERLIN PUSHES WEBER FOR TOP JOB AT THE ECB Berlin has stepped up its campaign for Axel Weber, Bundesbank chief, to be elected president of the European Central Bank amid intense negotiations over the appointment of the number two position at the Frankfurt-based institution. German officials told the Financial Times that eurozone nations [...]
Comet festive sales are a worry for owner Kesa January 20, 2010 COMET dragged down sales at parent company Kesa as the electrical store failed to beat off its rivals over Christmas. Like-for-like sales dropped by 3.9 per cent at Comet between 1 November and 8 January, the company revealed yesterday. However, Kesa’s overall sales fall was limited to 0.3 per cent after growth in its international [...]
Wolseley duo to return with a breakfast pad on city doorstep January 20, 2010 RESTAURATEURS Chris Corbin and Jeremy King, owners of the Wolseley, have managed to keep this extraordinarily quiet, but word reaches The Capitalist that they’re in the early stages of launching another power breakfast hotspot right on the City’s doorstep. Rex Restaurants has long been enjoying the spoils of the Wolseley’s popularity with just about everyone [...]
Comet in festive sales slump January 19, 2010 COMET dragged down sales at parent company Kesa as the electrical store failed beat off its rivals over Christmas. Like-for-like sales dropped by 3.9 per cent at Comet between 1 November and 8 January. Kesa’s overall sales fall was limited to 0.3 per cent after growth in its international businesses. Comet’s performance was overshadowed by [...]
Theo Fennell sales sparkle over Xmas January 19, 2010 LONDON luxury jewellery chain Theo Fennell yesterday registered sparkling sales growth of 25 per cent for the period 1 to 24 December. The company – which has founder Theo Fennell back on board – expects to make a marginal loss for the financial year, an improvement on the £3.3m loss recorded last year. Like-for-like sales [...]
Pearson raises its full year forecasts January 19, 2010 PEARSON, the publisher of the Financial Times and Penguin books, yesterday raised its full-year earnings forecast after it was buoyed by the success of its digital education business. Schools in Europe and America are discarding their dog-eared textbooks in favour of computerised learning materials, an area where Pearson has invested heavily. The firm said it [...]
E-clear in administration as legal fight continues January 19, 2010 A HIGH Court judge yesterday granted an administration order against E-Clear, the company which dealt with the online ticket sales of collapsed travel firm Globespan. Mr Justice Vos, who made the ruling at a hearing in London, heard that E-Clear consented to the move. The action against the company was brought by business adviser PricewaterhouseCoopers [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS January 19, 2010 Collins Stewart The investment banking group’s wealth management division has hired Richard Christmas to its new corporate executive and employee trading (CEET) desk. He joins from Credit Suisse, where he worked with Michael Smith, now head of the CEET desk for Collins Stewart, which provides broker services to listed firms, their employees and third-party share [...]