Food prices set to rise ‘across the board’ as inflation fears build January 28, 2025 The BRC's shop price index showed that food prices rose 0.5 per cent month-on-month, up from 0.1 per cent in December
Weak UK sales pull Primark down despite international growth January 23, 2025 Lower sales in the UK and Ireland pulled Primark’s performance down in the last quarter of 2024 despite double-digit growth in countries like Spain, Portugal and the US. Primark’s parent company ABF Foods told markets this morning that sales in the UK and Ireland, which account for approximately 45 per cent of its market, declined [...]
How much does tax really affect your decision making? January 22, 2025 From VAT on school fees to business taxes, we’re living through a live experiment with the effects of tax on people’s choices. Evidence suggests the results could be far from clear-cut, says Tim Sarson Last week, I was lucky enough to be on the panel for the Women in Tax network’s annual debate. The question [...]
What is driving the FTSE 100 surge? January 17, 2025 The FTSE 100 has hit a new all-time high today, with the index within touching distance of 8,500 for the first time. Since the start of the week, London’s main index has grown almost three per cent, outperforming the Nasdaq, the S&P 500, and the Dow Jones. The strong performance from the FTSE 100 came [...]
Retail’s Christmas results don’t match up to the gloom in the market January 17, 2025 If you were to judge the health of the retail market solely from the last two weeks of festive trading results, you would think the market is in rude health. But that would be a significant departure from the actual sentiment in the market, which has taken on a sense of almost unrelenting gloom in [...]
US inflation rises slightly but core prices weaker than expected January 15, 2025 US inflation rose at a slightly weaker pace than expected last month, but it is unlikely to be enough to prompt the Federal Reserve into cutting interest rates in the near future. The latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that the headline rate picked up to 2.9 per cent in December, up [...]
Inflation falls to 2.5 per cent in boost for Chancellor Rachel Reeves January 15, 2025 The inflation figures come amid a sell-off in the gilt market, which has raised doubts about the government's fiscal plans and even prompted calls for the Chancellor to resign.
Fortnum & Mason to ‘limit price rises’ as it battles surging costs January 14, 2025 Iconic London store Fortnum & Mason has vowed to limit increasing prices in the wake of tax rises by the Labour government. The retailer, which can trace its roots back to 1707, has said the outlook for its operating costs in 2025 “remains challenging”. The company pointed to inflation, labour costs, tax increases, raw materials, [...]
Ineos boss Sir Jim Ratcliffe: UK chemical manufacturing ‘having the life squeezed out of it’ January 13, 2025 Ineos boss Sir Jim Ratcliffe has warned British chemicals manufacturing is having the “life squeezed out of it” by the government, and is on the verge of extinction. The business titan slammed the de-industrialising of Britain, which started in the 1970s and 1980s, and criticised the government for a lack of energy strategy and high [...]
M&S: City broker slashes share price target on lower profit prospects January 10, 2025 Berenberg has downgraded its share price target for Marks and Spencer following lower estimates of long-term growth for the high street darling. The broker downgraded its price target from 410p to 384p, a cut of six per cent, due to a decrease in its profit estimate. “The potential for upside surprise now looks more limited [...]