Ocado posts strong results – but the company is worried about the ongoing supermarket price war September 13, 2016 Ocado, the food delivery service, celebrated a positive set of results today but said the supermarket price war will drag on for some time. The group's share price slumped nine per cent in early trading on the news. The figures Sales at the group were up 15.4 per cent, reaching £314m for the 12 weeks to 7 August. Ocado's retail [...]
All eyes will be on Morrisons’ interim results this week to see if the strategy of CEO David Potts has delivered September 13, 2016 WM Morrison is on a mission to be leaner and meaner. Under CEO David Potts, 'in' have come aggressive price cuts while 'out' are a series of ill-fated ventures including a minority stake in US online grocery business Fresh Direct and M-Local, a hastily assembled collection of convenience stores. Potts has turned his focus to the [...]
These are the FTSE 100 social media winners and losers September 12, 2016 FTSE 100 firms are finally getting the hang of social media and even jumping on the Snapchat bandwagon to build their profile, new research reveals. Seven firms in the blue-chip index now have official accounts on the fledgling messaging service with a further six using the platform in some form. Read more: Google, Facebook and Twitter blasted over [...]
Investors eye strong earnings at Morrisons September 11, 2016 Supermarket chain Morrisons is expected to deliver its best half yearly performance in four years this week. The chain, which is in the middle of a back-to-basics turnaround, has been slashing prices and doing deals with competitors to try and tempt customers through its doors. Analysts are expecting like-for-like sales growth of 0.7 per cent [...]
The tie-up between Morrisons and Amazon is growing closer September 11, 2016 Morrisons has ramped up its ties with Amazon unveiling plans to add the online retail giant's lockers to its supermarkets across the country. Hundreds of Amazon lockers used for click and collect deliveries will be introduced this year, letting customer pick up items at their convenience rather than having to be at home for a delivery. Read more: Now Amazon's getting into [...]
See us after class: Disappointing back to school week for FTSE 100 as retailers drag it lower September 9, 2016 The FTSE 100 had a decidedly wobbly start to the school year, finishing the first full week of September 1.7 per cent lower than it started. Having come tantalisingly close to the 7,000 mark last week, it finished today at 6,776.95 points, 1.2 per cent down. "You’d be forgiven for falling asleep this afternoon," complained SpreadEx financial analyst [...]
Morrisons steps up battle with rival supermarkets as it slashes prices of kitchen staples such as meat, poultry and vegetables September 4, 2016 Britain's fourth largest supermarket provided some Autumn cheer for consumers by announcing a series of price cuts to key products in a move that could spark a price war. Morrisons announced that prices of staples such as meat and poultry will be slashed by 20 per cent with some vegetable prices a third lower. Industry leaders said [...]
Dollar bounces back after US non-farm payroll falls to 151,000 in August September 2, 2016 The number of new job openings in the US fell to 151,000 in August, down from 255,000 the month before – missing economists' expectations of 180,000. Unemployment held at 4.9 per cent, figures published today showed – against expectations of a fall to 4.8 per cent. The disappointing figure pushed the dollar 0.4 per cent down against the [...]
Campbell’s shares slump in the pre-market after “disappointing” results September 1, 2016 Consumer demand for fresher produce is putting the squeeze on the world's largest maker of soup, Campbell's. The soup brand has posted a net loss attributable to the company of $81m (£61m), or 26 cents per share, compared with a profit of $17m a year earlier. Net sales dipped 0.35 per cent to $1.69bn in the fourth quarter ended [...]
Janet Yellen says case for rate hike has “strengthened” in recent months August 26, 2016 The case for rate hikes has "strengthened in recent months", chair of the US Federal Reserve Janet Yellen has said. Speaking at Jackson Hole, the Fed chief said: "In light of the continued solid performance of the labour market and our outlook for economic activity and inflation, I believe the case for an increase in the [...]