Wetherspoons boss calls for pubs to open alongside non-essential shops February 15, 2021 Wetherspoons chairman Tim Martin has urged the government to reopen pubs at the same time as non-essential shops, as the Prime Minister prepares to lay out his “roadmap” for exiting lockdown. Martin called for a clear timeline for pubs across the UK to resume selling pints, warning the industry is “on its knees” from months [...]
Neil Woodford’s shock comeback raises eyebrows in the City February 15, 2021 News that the disgraced fund manager Neil Woodford is looking to make a comeback in investment management has taken many in the Square Mile by surprise. The former star manager gave an emotional interview to the Sunday Telegraph yesterday in which he apologised for the collapse of his investment company and said he is working [...]
Russian budget retailer Fix Price targets London listing February 15, 2021 Russian budget retailer Fix Price this morning announced plans to launch a London listing. The company, which is the largest value retailer in Russia, said the potential initial public offering on the London Stock Exchange would allow it to pursue growth and international expansion. Fix Price, which launched in 2007, has more than 4,200 stores [...]
The Week Ahead: Barclays, Natwest, retail sales, public borrowing February 15, 2021 City A.M. takes a look at some of this week’s market-shaping events. Barclays – Full year results (Thursday) The past 12 months have been difficult ones for banks in general, but UK banks have underperformed relative to their peers, Hewson said, with the unknowns of what a final Brexit deal might look like also weighing [...]
High street redundancies: Which retailers have cut jobs in the pandemic so far? February 13, 2021 Thousands of high street jobs have evaporated during the coronavirus pandemic, as retail chains have fallen under the pressure of lockdown restrictions on trading. The UK high street, which was already struggling before the pandemic, is set to look very different when shoppers return after lockdown following high profile collapses that have cost many retail [...]
Britain’s billboards are lighting up despite lockdown restrictions February 13, 2021 The billboard industry – also known as out-of-home (OOH) advertising – earlier this month received a welcome shot in the arm comparable to the good news surrounding the UK’s vaccination efforts. The latest expenditure report from the Advertising Association and WARC forecast OOH media channels will recover and expand significantly this year, with digital OOH [...]
Made.com considers public listing amid pandemic boom February 12, 2021 Online retailer Made.com is said to be mulling an IPO after a bumper year of sales amid the pandemic. The furniture specialist is in talks with banks about its options, which could include a public listing valuing the company at more than £500m, according to Sky News. City A.M. understands Made.com has not yet appointed [...]
Cannabis rally goes up in smoke as shares plummet February 11, 2021 Cannabis stocks gave up its earlier highs on Thursday afternoon with leading US firms plummeting between 20 and 40 per cent. Cannabis stocks were among the most traded by German retail investors this morning, as a buying frenzy that has lit up the sector intensified. Tilray was the most traded stock on German trading platform [...]
City workers’ favourite spots in trouble as vacant units soar over lockdown February 11, 2021 The City’s after-work drinking spots, dry-cleaners and restaurants are all in trouble as new figures reveal the number of empty units have soared to a five-year high. The number of vacant units in the City of London increased a staggering 47 per cent, according to the Local Data Company, as the pandemic decimates the area’s [...]
Westfield London owner posts €7.6bn loss after rent squeeze as UK tenants go bankrupt February 10, 2021 The shopping centre landlord that owns Westfield London, Stratford City and a swathe of similar mega-malls across Europe and the US has seen its like-for-like rental income drop 24 per cent.