Success for the lucky few that don’t rely on the high street March 22, 2012 IT’S bleak out there on the high street, about that there is no doubt. Non-food sales volumes fell by 1.5 per cent in February compared to a month earlier (see facing page). With Christmas long gone and the heavily-discounted January sales a distant memory, consumers have little to look forward to. Inflation might be less [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS March 20, 2012 ARM HOLDINGS Barclays has upgraded the Cambridge-based chipmaker from “equalweight” to “overweight” and raised its target price to 725p, saying it sees smartphone and tablet growth driving an upside to its expectations, as well as a return to positive estimate momentum. The broker expects ARM to maintain the upper hand versus Intel in tablets, and [...]
Premier Foods profit tumbles by 29pc March 19, 2012 Britain’s Premier Foods PLC (PFD.L) reported a 29 percent decline in profit from its ongoing businesses in 2011 and said it expected trading to remain challenging, impacted by high levels of promotional activity and cost inflation. The group, which owns brands such as Hovis, Mr Kipling and Batchelors, said that it made a trading profit [...]
Budget week will see Italy, inflation and retail in focus March 18, 2012 TODAY I anticipate a quiet start to the week, with a lack of economic announcements from the UK and the US. All eyes are likely to focus on the Eurozone as we get further indication of the health of one of its largest economies. Italy reports industrial order and sales numbers at 9am for January. [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING March 14, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES FINANCIAL AUTHORITY URGED TO DROP OPAQUE CHARGES The new Financial Conduct Authority should use its powers to remove opaque banking charges and make it cheaper for new lenders to enter the market, a panel that represents the interests of retail customers has urged. In a paper to be published today, the Financial Services [...]
Marston’s up despite fears over Budget March 14, 2012 PUB operator Marston’s reported solid trading yesterday despite a tough period for the leisure sector and said it was looking ahead to a strong 2012. Like for like sales over the last 23 weeks were up 3.5 per cent on last year at the British brewer – which has 2,150 outlets across the country – [...]
Weatherspoon blames tax as expansion plans cut March 9, 2012 British pubs operator JD Wetherspoon said it would cut back expansion plans, blaming a harsh tax regime for exacerbating tough trading conditions, and was cautious about prospects for the second half following a decline in sales. The company, which has over 800 pubs across Britain, said it would scale back new openings to 40 pubs [...]
Inflation slows across world thanks to cooling energy prices in late 2011 March 6, 2012 INFLATION across the developed world dropped again in January as energy price rises slowed, figures suggested yesterday. Data from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development showed inflation fell to 2.8 per cent in the year to January across its 34 member countries. That represents a small decline from the 2.9 per cent seen in [...]
The rise of gourmet cinema March 5, 2012 WE settled into our indecently capacious seats, placed our drinks on the sidetables and leaned back, sighing with satisfaction. This was certainly the First Class cabin of cinemas: leg room enough for a couple of giants; an array of buttons for seat adjustment and waiter-summoning and, of course, a substantial food menu masterminded by one [...]
Eurozone growth stays shaky February 29, 2012 EUROZONE growth prospects looked uneven after data out yesterday showed unemployment held steady in Germany in February, where credit conditions continued to ease – and weaker signs came from France, where household spending dropped unexpectedly sharply. Eurozone inflation was revised down to 2.6 per cent in the year to January, which economists believe reflects low [...]