Morrisons CEO: Higher prices are coming due to lorry driver shortage September 9, 2021 The boss of supermarket giant Morrisons has warned of pressure on prices due to the lorry driver shortage and higher costs. The takeover target – which is at the centre of a bidding battle between two US private equity firms – said it expects industry-wide retail price inflation in the coming months as a result [...]
Number of workers on furlough tumbles to lowest level since start of pandemic September 9, 2021 The number of workers on furlough has tumbled to its lowest since the onset of the Covid crisis, according to official figures published today. Data from the Treasury shows there were 1.6m people on furlough at the end of July, down 340,000 from almost two million in the previous month. However, the rate at which [...]
Revenue lifts at fresh food provider Bakkavor, but labour shortages bite September 8, 2021 Fresh food provider Bakkavor’s revenue has lifted above pre-pandemic levels, despite “unprecedented challenges in labour availability” which risk its operations running stale. Like-for-like revenue swelled by 6.4 per cent to £924.9m in the six months to 26 June, and 1.2 per cent ahead of the same period in 2019. The Fitzroy headquartered-based company, which [...]
Retail sales growth slowed in August amid recovery warnings September 7, 2021 Retail sales growth has started to slow as shoppers’ pent-up enthusiasm has softened this summer. Total sales increased by 3 per cent in August, below the three month average growth of 6.9 per cent. Clothing retailers reported strong performances as Brits looked to stock up their post-lockdown wardrobes with outfits for weddings and returning to [...]
Road haulage bosses warn buckling supply chains will trigger soaring prices September 4, 2021 The “perfect storm” of problems scuppering UK supply chains will increase prices sharply for households across the country, road haulage and food bosses have warned. A paucity of HGV drivers, soaring shipping costs, delays in deliveries from Asia and ongoing Covid related problems have compounded to produce severe shortages of products. Soaring demand as economies [...]
How worker shortages are cleared will determine UK economy’s trajectory September 4, 2021 You would be forgiven for forgetting we are currently amid one of the best runs of economic growth in living memory with all the negative news about supply chain snarl ups, worker shortages and soaring inflation flying around. A slew of data published this week, alongside a raft of announcements from supermarket, retail and food [...]
Even entertaining a nappy tax exposes No10’s muddled plans for plastic waste and climate change September 1, 2021 When I saw the front page of the Daily Mail over breakfast this morning, I nearly choked on my Shreddies. It’s possible George Eustice did, too, given his department rapidly denied today’s headlines that government is contemplating a levy on disposable nappies. Perhaps someone in Whitehall got the wrong end of the stick. Considering Ministers’ contempt for [...]
Supply chain bottlenecks push shop prices higher September 1, 2021 Severe supply chain bottlenecks and persistent shortages of microchips drove shop prices higher over the last month, according to fresh figures published today. The British Retail Consortium’s latest shop price index shows shop prices climbed 0.4 per cent in August, up from a 0.5 per cent fall in prices in July. Logistics firms have struggled [...]
Even entertaining a nappy tax exposes No10’s muddled plans for plastic waste and climate change – CityAM : CityAM September 1, 2021 When I saw the front page of the Daily Mail over breakfast this morning, I nearly choked on my Shreddies. It’s possible George Eustice did, too, given his department rapidly denied today’s headlines that government is contemplating a levy on disposable nappies. Perhaps someone in Whitehall got the wrong end of the stick. Considering Ministers’ contempt for [...]
Eurozone inflation soars to decade high August 31, 2021 Eurozone inflation soared to its highest level in a decade this month to breach the European Central Bank’s target, according to official figures published today. Data released by Eurostat, Europe’s statistical agency, shows prices rose three per cent this month in the 19 countries that make up the Euro area, ticking up from 2.2 per [...]