Britain’s biggest companies call on Westminster for fundamental business rates reform September 16, 2014 Some of Britain's biggest businesses including Marks & Spencer, Sainsbury's, Tesco, General Motors and Tata Steel have called on the government to rip up the current business rate regime claiming the current system is “a critical problem for all of British business”. The controversial tax delivers around £25bn to the Treasury every year, but [...]
Inflation falls again, to 1.5 per cent September 16, 2014 The Consumer Prices Index fell to 1.5 per cent in the year to August, down from 1.6 per cent the month before, as low wages and pressures on recovery in European economies continued to take their toll. The Office for National Statistics said the measure was pushed down by a drop in the price of [...]
Retailers cheer as sales recover September 8, 2014 RETAIL sales picked up again in August, with the high street enjoying its strongest growth since January this year. Like-for-like sales rose by 1.3 per cent in August compared with same time last year and a 0.3 per cent dip in July, according to the latest data from KPMG and the British Retail Consortium (BRC). [...]
Food costs help to power 16th month of retail price deflation September 2, 2014 Shop prices fell again during the year to August with the lowest food inflation on record, according to an industry body this morning. Figures released by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Nielsen today show that shop prices overall fell by 1.6 per cent – the 16th month of deflation on record. Although the pace [...]
Ebola food shortage: Sufferer escapes Liberian hospital to steal bread from crowded market September 2, 2014 Concerns over the shortage of food available for Ebola victims in West Africa have been put in the limelight by a YouTube video uploaded today. It shows an Ebola patient walking through a crowded market after escaping from a hospital in Liberia. He picks up a piece of bread from one of the stalls [...]
Eurozone inflation falls to five-year low as unemployment stays flat at 11.5 per cent August 29, 2014 Consumer price inflation in the eurozone dropped to 0.3 per cent in August, its lowest level since October 2009, as unemployment remained stubbornly flat at 11.5 per cent, official figures published this morning showed. Although the figures were underwhelming, they met analyst expectations. The drop in inflation was largely driven by energy prices, which fell [...]
Lidl by Lidl, the discounters are still on the rise – Bottom Line August 27, 2014 Fresh data, but no fresh hope for the mid-market grocers. Tesco dropped its market share to 28.8 per cent in the 12 weeks to 17 August, down from 30.2 per cent last year. Sainsbury’s also edged down. By contrast, premium player Waitrose grew its market share to 4.9 per cent – and its take at [...]
Fuel price decline lifts spending power for embattled consumers August 25, 2014 The drop in fuel prices and lower inflation on other essential items is helping to prop up discretionary incomes in the UK, according to figures released this morning. Fuel prices fell by 2.9 per cent in the year to July, according to research conducted by Asda, while food prices also dipped by 0.4 per cent. [...]
Venezuela plans to fingerprint shoppers to stop food shortages August 22, 2014 The President of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, has announced plans for a major mandatory fingerprinting system to combat the increasingly dire food shortages and rampant smuggling afflicting the Latin American state. He said the fingerprinting system would be similar to the one the country uses for voting and was intended to stop Venezuelans buying too much [...]
Food spending falls for first time in 25 years as supermarkets wage price wars August 21, 2014 Spending on groceries has fallen for the first time since records began 25 years ago, laying bare the challenges facing Britain’s supermarkets in winning over cash-strapped shoppers. The amount spent in food stores fell 1.3 per cent in July compared with the same time last year, according to the Office for National Statistics, which put [...]