Ed Miliband re-launches PM campaign with new battle against zero-hour contracts November 17, 2014 Businesses and unions are digging in for an election-year battle over zero-hour contracts and what they mean for workers Ed Miliband re-launched his campaign to be the next Prime Minister last week, with a new attack on zero-hour contracts and the treatment of workers. Businesses hit back immediately, arguing the contracts give workers flexibility, allow [...]
Vince Cable puts pressure on companies over all-male boards October 8, 2014 Vince Cable is taking aim at some at a host of British companies that have no women on their boards. Cable is planning to write to the chairman of close to 30 FTSE 350 firms that have all male boards voicing his concern that they have failed to embrace diversity, Sky News reports. Companies that [...]
Who is the richest person in China? Alibaba’s Jack Ma tops new list September 23, 2014 Alibaba founder Jack Ma is now the richest man in China – but he still falls outside the list of the world's 10 richest people. A report published today puts the 50-year old founder of Alibaba Group Holding in pole position among China's wealthiest for the first time, after the ecommerce giant's record breaking [...]
JD Sports trading at record level September 17, 2014 JD SPORTS said yesterday it enjoyed record trading in the first half of the year as the sports retailer doubled profits. Revenue increased by 27 per cent to £721.5m in the six months to 2 August as sales at its sports stores, JD and Size?, jumped 28 per cent. The strong performance helped drive pre-tax [...]
London Report: Shares slip as FTSE waits for Scotland verdict September 17, 2014 BRITAIN’S top share index yesterday slipped and underperformed gains on rival European bourses, as the uncertainty raised by Scotland’s vote on independence pegged back the UK stock market. The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed down by 0.2 per cent, or 11.34 points, at 6,780.90 points. Engineering conglomerate Smiths Group was the worst FTSE stock in [...]
JD Sports share price jumps 7 per cent as it posts record profits September 17, 2014 Shares in JD Sports rose seven per cent in mid-morning trading as the retailer posted record first-half results as its pre-tax profits soared, rising 170 per cent to £16.4m. Revenue also jumped to £721.4m, an increase of 27 per cent. The bulk of the growth was in the company's UK and European sectors. Peter Cowgill, [...]
London Report: Scotland and MPC minutes the main focus for the City September 14, 2014 ALL EYES will be on the result of Thursday’s Scottish referendum, with market watchers keen to know whether or not the 300-year-old union will continue. As far as more normal risk events are concerned, the main one will be Wednesday’s release of the latest set of MPC meeting minutes. That will be complemented by the [...]
Jackets and swim trunks propel Pentland near £2bn in revenues June 23, 2014 HIGHER international sales of Speedo swimwear and Berghaus jackets helped leisure group Pentland boost revenues by 10 per cent last year to £1.9bn, according to annual results. The group, which owns a variety of iconic UK fashion brands like Boxfresh, Mitre and Ellesse and licenses for footwear by Kickers, Lacoste and Ted Baker, reported a [...]
JD Sports half-time report good as World Cup gives sales a boost June 17, 2014 JD Sports has enjoyed a boost in sales in the build-up to the World Cup, the retailer said yesterday. However, the company remained tight-lipped on like-for-like sales figures, warning they would be “misleading” because of the different trading conditions in the lead up to the tournament. In an interim management statement covering the 18 weeks [...]
Analyst Views: Does JD Sports’ half-time statement bode well for the future? June 17, 2014 NICK BUBB | INDEPENDENT ANALYST It’s not often that retailers don’t provide like-for-like sales figures because they would look too good, yet that is what JD Sports stated in its trading update. Apart from the World Cup boost, it was moderately encouraging to hear that the struggling outdoor and fashion divisions are doing better. FREDDIE [...]