Tesco, Argos and Currys Black Friday deals: Retailers’ websites struggle with massive demand November 28, 2014 Retailers' websites are struggling to keep up with demand from shoppers hunting for mega-deals on Black Friday. Customers have been unable to access the deals being offered by Tesco, Argos and Currys with their websites returning error messages due to the high volume of visitors just days before "Cyber Monday" when online deals are expected [...]
In charts: Spending on Black Friday, Cyber Monday and Manic Monday to peak at £470k per minute November 26, 2014 Retailers including Tesco, Marks & Spencer, John Lewis, Amazon and Currys PC World are gearing up for what are tipped to be some of the biggest shopping days of the year. The retailers have unveiled a whole range of deals on everything from electricals like TVs, tablets and other gadgets to designer watches, clothing and [...]
DIY investing: Five crucial tips to remember when going it alone November 25, 2014 Think carefully about your risk profile and platform choice REFORMS to the way financial advice is charged for in the UK have led to a sharp uptick in the number of investors shunning advisers in favour of self-managed portfolios bought through a platform. The Retail Distribution Review (RDR), introduced at the end of 2012, stopped [...]
The best places to look for Black Friday deals 2014: John Lewis, Amazon, Marks & Spencer, Very, Curry’s PC World and Halfords November 24, 2014 Retailers are gearing up for Black Friday to be one of – if not the – biggest online shopping day of the year, with hundreds of promotions being planned to tempt consumers to join the spending bonanza. According to the Centre for Retail Research, shoppers will spend £1.32bn over the four days between Black [...]
Black Friday to kick off £42bn Christmas spree November 23, 2014 Britons are expected to splurge £42.4bn in the run-up to Christmas – £1.5bn more than last year – as retailers brace themselves for an American-style Black Friday shopping frenzy set to take over their websites and stores this week. Sales are forecast to rise by four per cent year-on-year in the period starting from today [...]
Staying on track: The secrets to rebalancing your portfolio November 18, 2014 No financial adviser can stress enough that it is unwise to expect your portfolio, however carefully put together, to fulfil your investment goals automatically over the long term. Periodically reviewing the assets you hold is vital if you don’t want to fall victim to portfolio drift. “Rebalancing instills good investment habits, trimming the holdings that [...]
From Gotham City to Fidelity and Canaccord: The unfortunate tale of Quindell’s share price November 18, 2014 You'd be forgiven for forgetting the full detail behind the story of Quindell – here, we wrap up the last seven months of headache-inducing stories that kept the insurance outsourcer in the headlines. April 23 – Mysterious short seller Gotham City Research publishes a 74-page dossier, claiming Quindell had “magical… paper profits” and raising [...]
Quindell share price falls as chairman Rob Terry steps down November 18, 2014 Chairman Rob Terry and non-executive director Steve Scott are leaving Quindell with immediate effect, while Laurence Moorse will remain at the company for 12 months after the 2015 annual meeting, the company confirmed this morning. Quindell investors appeared flummoxed by the news, with shares rising as much as 15 per cent on opening, but [...]
Rob Terry departs Quindell: How Gotham City got its man November 17, 2014 Quindell, the London stock-market listed group targeted for months by a short-selling research group Gotham City, was yesterday forced to part company with its chairman in an effort to restore investor confidence. The decision that Rob Terry should leave came hours after it was announced that broker Canaccord Genuity had quit on 21 October, ahead [...]
Leadership goes wrong when you just don’t listen November 13, 2014 Always jumping in with the solution won’t curry favour with staff. Unsurprisingly, some of the most inspiring leaders I have met are also the most skilled listeners I know. They empathise, even if they don’t agree. They make me feel like they care about me and my views, and that makes me care about [...]