Big four supermarkets will keep getting squeezed says Moody’s June 10, 2015 The leading big four supermarkets are expected to lose another four per cent of their market share by 2020 to discounters Aldi and Lidl, as competition in the grocery retail market intensifies. A report published today by credit rating agency Moody’s predicts Aldi and Lidl’s combined market share will reach 12-15 per cent by 2020, [...]
Stan Chart and Sainsbury’s lead FTSE 100 risers – London Report June 10, 2015 BRITAIN’S main equity index rallied from three-month lows yesterday, led by advances in banking group Standard Chartered and supermarket chain Sainsbury. Standard Chartered rose 5.8 per cent, with traders citing the possibility that British finance minister George Osborne might announce changes in a tax on the British banking industry when he spoke last night. Any [...]
Sainsbury’s sales fall for sixth successive quarter – with 2.1 pc fall June 10, 2015 Sainsbury's sales have fallen again, showing the supermarket giant is yet to shrug off the challenges facing the big four. The figures: Like-for-like sales were down 2.1 per cent for the first quarter of 2015. Food deflation and a competitive market were blamed for the poor sales figures, which were down 2.1 per cent for the [...]
Price war prompts a record high of bets against Supermarket giants June 9, 2015 HEDGE funds are making record bets against the health of the supermarket sector, with the average interest in the UK’s four listed grocers breaking the 11 per cent barrier for the first time. Sainsbury’s and Morrisons are now the two most-shorted constituents of the FTSE 100 behind oilfield services provider Petrofac, according to a report published [...]
Supermarket price war attracts short sellers to record positions in sector June 9, 2015 It's no secret UK supermarkets have been under the cosh both in terms of the ongoing price war with discounters Aldi and Lidl, as well as several problems of their own making. Now it seems short sellers are making hay while the sun shines. The sector has attracted record interest from short sellers, with [...]
Morrisons back on the offensive: Has the retailer put its darkest days behind it? June 8, 2015 David Potts wasted no time in stamping his mark on Morrisons when he took the helm of the retailer in March. After years of haemorrhaging sales, the ailing supermarket was in urgent need of a turnaround. And for the 58 year-old retail evangelist, that meant not only making sweeping changes at the top – including [...]
FTSE dips despite Diageo gains after takeover reports – London Report June 8, 2015 TAKEOVER speculation sent some FTSE shares higher but overall the UK’s top index was offset by poorer performances elsewhere in the market yesterday. It finished near the previous session’s two-week low The blue-chip FTSE 100 index closed 0.2 per cent lower at 6,790.04 points after falling to a two-month low in the previous session. Diageo [...]
Morrisons cuts prices on 200 items as boss David Potts swings the axe in supermarket price wars June 8, 2015 Morrisons is the latest supermarket to swing the axe in the ongoing price wars, with price cuts on hundreds of products. David Potts, the former Tesco executive who replaced Dalton Phillips at the top, has made his first move in the battle of the supermarkets as it tries to compete with discounters and its big [...]
From the “Gatwick gusher” to Greece via Alton Towers: Five charts that sum up the week June 5, 2015 Greece missed a huge repayment to the IMF, there was an update from Gatwick's answer to Dallas and a new study showed love doesn't come cheap. Here are five charts that sum up the week: Greek stocks suffered after Athens missed its deadline The Greek debt crisis riled European markets as the cash-strapped country hovered [...]
Fifa imploded and Morrisons bumbled through: Here’s what got us talking this week June 5, 2015 Fifa imploded. Greek talks went on (and on) and on. And somewhere in the Surrey hills, even more oil was found. Here's what got us talking this week 1. Working nine to five… but not if you're at the top If your office starts to look a bit thin on the ground [...]