Tesco chief Leahy to retire June 15, 2010 THOSE with an innate fear of homogeneity may break into a cold sweat at the mention of Tesco, but there is no question that the supermarket is a robust business play. Faced with a decidedly tricky first quarter – roaring petrol prices eating a hole in shoppers’ pockets; depressed food inflation; a raft of potholes [...]
UK inflation retreats from a record high June 15, 2010 FALLING food and petrol prices dampened inflationary pressures last month and caused the consumer prices index (CPI) to retreat from its 17-month April high to an annual rate of 3.4 per cent in May. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said that the largest downward contribution to the change in the CPI annual rate came [...]
Fading Eurozone fears push banks up while bid activity sends BSkyB higher June 15, 2010 A RALLY by banks, fuelled by demand in European bond auctions on easing debt concerns, helped Britain’s top share index higher yesterday, with BSkyB up after an approach by News Corp. The FTSE 100 closed up 15.69 points or 0.3 per cent at 5,217.82, the highest closing level since 15 May, and taking its winning [...]
Supermarket showdown as rivals report June 13, 2010 SUPERMARKET giants Tesco and J Sainsbury are this week expected to report fairly flat sales growth for the first quarter of the year, signalling a slowing of consumer activity across the food sector. Tesco is expected to report sales growth of between zero and 1.5 per cent tomorrow for the first quarter according to analysts, [...]
US data set to give clues on economic outlook June 13, 2010 US stock investors will keep a close eye on Europe this week, looking for signs the debt crisis may be stabilising, while industrial production, housing starts and inflation data may offer more clues on the US economic outlook. On Friday, an official said the European Union has reached agreement with Greece on how to move [...]
Manufacturing output in surprise drop June 11, 2010 Manufacturing output unexpectedly fell in April, official data has shown – suggesting Britain’s recovering economy got off to a slow start in the second quarter. Figures from the Office for National Statistics also showed producer input costs eased less than expected in May, although factory gate inflation slowed slightly more than expected. The ONS said [...]
Shop price inflation falls June 8, 2010 THE growth in shop prices lost momentum in May as consumer uncertainty forced retailers to keep prices low, according to the latest survey from the British Retail Consortium (BRC). Overall annual shop price inflation fell to 1.8 per cent last month compared to two per cent in April despite big rises in some costs. Transport [...]
Clothes push retail sales up 0.3pc in April May 20, 2010 IMPROVING clothing and department store sales offset flat food sales to push British retail revenues slightly higher than expected in April, according to the Office for National Statistics. Including petrol and diesel, high street sales rose 0.3 per cent last month, above analysts’ forecasts of 0.2 per cent and up 1.8 per cent year-on-year. The [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING May 18, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES BC PARTNERS WINS MORE TIME Investors in BC Partners have granted the UK-based private equity group an extension to the investment period on its latest fund, in a sign that buy-out groups are winning more time to deploy their $500bn of unspent capital. The extension of BC Partners’s investment period from November until [...]
RPI inflation sees sharpest jump since ‘91 May 18, 2010 NEW chancellor George Osborne yesterday called on the Bank of England to accelerate plans to reintroduce house prices into the benchmark rate of inflation, after the housing-linked index in April recorded its biggest monthly increase in two decades. The consumer price index (CPI) – the official inflation measure which does not currently take housing into [...]