What the other papers say this morning – 09 April 2014 April 8, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES Heartbleed bug threatens web A flaw has been discovered in a encryption method used on about two-thirds of all websites, including Google, Amazon, Yahoo and Dropbox, potentially exposing web traffic, user data and stored content to cyber criminals. The heartbleed bug was found in the OpenSSL software by a team of security engineers [...]
Strong results for meat supplier Cranswick as pig rearing grows April 7, 2014 SAUSAGE maker Cranswick has bucked tough conditions in the grocery market and record pig prices to post strong fourth quarter results yesterday. The FTSE 250 firm, which supplies supermarkets including Sainsbury’s with upmarket sausages and cooked meats, said underlying sales excluding acquisitions were up 12 per cent in the year to 31 March. Analysts forecast [...]
Clothing sales at M&S set to come up short April 7, 2014 MARKS & SPENCER chief executive Marc Bolland is expected to come under renewed pressure this week when the retailer posts yet another fall in underlying sales for its key clothing arm. The high street retailer is expected to report a decline of around one per cent in like-for-like general merchandise sales – which included clothing [...]
London Report: M&S in focus as clothing sales forecast to fall April 7, 2014 HIGH street bellwether Marks & Spencer will be in the spotlight this week as the giant retailer updates the City for the three months to the end of March. Analysts predict that the company’s clothing sales will fall for the 11th quarter in a row, inviting questions about what the firm can do to revamp [...]
SSP poaches WH Smith exec April 2, 2014 SSP CHIEF executive Kate Swann has poached one of her top former employees at high street retailer WH Smith to lead the travel concession group’s UK & Ireland business. The private equity-owned group, which owns chains like Delice de France and also runs outlets for Marks & Spencer, said yesterday that Simon Smith, managing director [...]
Marks & Spencer plans to open 250 new shops overseas April 1, 2014 MARKS & Spencer (M&S) is gunning for a 40 per cent boost in profits from international stores and hundreds of new outlets abroad in just three years, as the firm lays out a major expansion plan. Announced in Paris yesterday, the fresh strategy will mean a huge jump in the number of M&S stores outside [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 01 April 2014 March 31, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES US overseas cash pile rises to $947bn American companies have stockpiled nearly a trillion dollars of cash offshore to avoid paying higher tax bills at home, according to an analysis released yesterday. The growing overseas cash pile has also become the most visible sign of corporate America’s unwillingness to place bigger bets on [...]
Profits at Next set to overtake Marks & Spencer March 20, 2014 PROFITS at fashion and homeware retailer Next are set to top those at rival Marks & Spencer for the first time after the group rounded-off a buoyant year of sales with a strong Christmas trading period. The group, which has over 800 shops in the UK and overseas, said sales rose 5.5 per cent in [...]
Analyst Views: Do Next’s results bode well for another strong performance this year? March 20, 2014 JOHN STEVENSON | PEEL HUNT While maintaining a cautious tone regarding economic recovery, the forward guidance from Next is significantly stronger than in recent years and leaves market expectations at the bottom end of Next’s own range. Such confidence in outlook will raise pressure on competitors Marks & Spencer and Debenhams. KATE CALVERT | INVESTEC [...]
Next overtakes M&S as CEO delivers economic warning March 20, 2014 High street fashion store next had, in its own words, a great year last year. In a landmark moment, it's overtaken Marks and Spencer as the biggest clothes retailer by profits in the UK. It's upped its sales growth forecast significantly – from between one and four per cent to between four and eight per cent. [...]