Sterling falls to lowest since before Theresa May’s Brexit speech as Lords vote looms March 7, 2017 Sterling fell to its lowest value since mid-January ahead of the resumption of voting in the House of Lords on the government’s bill on Article 50. The pound fell below $1.22 against the US dollar on Tuesday morning for the first time since 17 January, when Prime Minister Theresa May announced the UK would leave [...]
Supermarket sales grew at their fastest rate since June 2014 in the last 12 weeks March 7, 2017 Supermarket sales were growing at their fastest rate since June 2014 over the past three months as inflation started to bump up prices for key items such as tea, butter and fish. According to data from Kantar Worldpanel, supermarket sales grew by 2.3 per cent year-on-year for the 12 weeks ending 26 February. Kantar said [...]
Retail sales fell in February as non-food retail sales decline for first time since 2011 according to early indicator March 7, 2017 Retail sales fell in February as non-food purchases recorded their first quarterly decline in more than five years, a survey ahead of official data shows. Like-for-like sales fell by 0.4 per cent compared to February 2016, according to the retail sales monitor reported by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and KPMG, despite food sales rising [...]
Which stock market sectors will benefit as inflation heats up? March 6, 2017 We wrote last year about our expectation that inflation would soon start to re-emerge in Europe, and that banks were likely to be among the chief beneficiaries. This scenario has indeed come to pass, perhaps even more quickly than we had anticipated. With signs of inflation becoming ever more apparent, which other sectors should investors [...]
Higher energy prices drive Eurozone inflation to hit two per cent for the first time in four years March 2, 2017 Eurozone inflation hit two per cent in February, beating the European Central Bank (ECB)’s target for the first time since January 2013. The year-on-year rate of inflation rose from 1.8 per cent in January according to flash estimates from the European Commission. The sharp rise over the months since November has mainly been driven by the [...]
London’s new super sewer could add up to £25 to water bills by the early 2020s March 2, 2017 London's new super sewer is set to add up to £25 to water bills in the capital, according to a report from the UK's public spending watchdog. The Thames Tideway Tunnel is expected to cost a total of £4.2bn, and but the National Audit Office today warned it remains unclear how much Thames Water customers [...]
Higher oil prices alone won’t rescue failing petro-states like Venezuela March 1, 2017 At the annual International Petroleum Week at Grosvenor House on Park Lane last week, all eyes were on Mohammed bin Saleh al-Sada, the Qatari energy minister. The dignitary was honoured with a special award, “International Oil Diplomacy Man of the Year 2016”, as one of the masterminds behind the production cuts agreed to last November [...]
Food prices are increasing at the fastest rate for two and a half years March 1, 2017 Food prices are increasing at the fastest rate for two and a half years as the fall in the value of sterling has forced supermarkets to pass on some of their costs to shoppers. Prices for food rose 0.4 per cent year-on-year in February, according to figures from Nielsen and the British Retail Consortium (BRC). [...]
Greggs hikes dividend as healthy food sales help boost profits February 28, 2017 Greggs has reported a jump in sales for last year, and has hiked its dividend after growing profits – but the baker is looking at job cuts as it aims for greater supply chain efficiency. The figures Total sales rose seven per cent to £894.2m from £835.7m, while company-managed like-for-like sales (which excludes franchises) went up [...]
Ministers must show they are pro-business by tackling costs in the Budget February 27, 2017 Momentum behind the post-Brexit consumer-spending boom appears to be slowing. As City A.M. reports today, a GfK poll found that UK consumers’ confidence took a turn for the worse this month, with the index slipping a point to a score of minus six. It would be easy to dismiss the dip as mere jitters but [...]