Supermarkets cut fuel prices July 28, 2014 THE LATEST round of petrol price wars kicks off today, as three of the country’s largest supermarket chains lower the cost at the pumps. Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury’s have all slashed 2p per litre off the price of diesel and petrol. Morrisons has not yet followed suit, but says it “will be evaluating [its] pricing [...]
Ex-Asda bosses Archie Norman and Allan Leighton linked to Morrisons chairman role July 27, 2014 Former Asda bosses Archie Norman and Allan Leighton are said to be in the running to become the new chairman of troubled supermarket chain Morrisons. Norman and Leighton were credited with reversing Asda’s fortunes in the 1990s and are both seen as plausible candidates to help revive the chain, which has been losing market share [...]
Zeta Petroleum looks to London for second part of a dual listing July 27, 2014 ZETA Petroleum today becomes the latest oil and gas company to mull a London listing, as it looks to expand in Romania’s market. The company, which is already listed on Australia’s stock exchange, has stakes in three assets in Romania and sees the country as a strong platform from which to build an onshore European [...]
Dividend fears hit Tesco shares July 22, 2014 SHARES in Tesco slumped nearly four per cent yesterday on fears that dividends could be cut as analysts called for a complete overhaul in strategy under its new chief executive. JP Morgan analysts said Unilever director Dave Lewis, due to take over from Philip Clarke in October, would have to reset its UK margins from [...]
Tesco to splash £11m on Dave Lewis and Philip Clarke rescue operation July 21, 2014 Tesco will spend more than £1.8m on its new chief executive Dave Lewis but up to £9.6m on departing boss Philip Clarke as the supermarket puts its faith in the industry outsider to turn its sales around. Clarke’s shock departure and his replacement with Unilever’s president of personal care, who will start in October, comes [...]
Too big to succeed? How Tesco’s new leader can take on the toxic retailer July 21, 2014 The last-minute cancellation of his “40 years at Tesco” party suggests that Philip Clarke’s departure came as a big surprise. But in truth, his future at Tesco had been looking increasingly bleak for months. The man himself conceded as much in March, with his surprise statement at a conference that his days as chief executive [...]
Morrisons hands over Kiddicare to private equity group Endless July 14, 2014 Supermarket chain Morrisons confirmed yesterday it has sold its Kiddicare business to private equity group Endless Capital for £2m. The Yorkshire-based grocer bought the online baby products retailer in 2011 for £70m as part of its bid to build its online presence. However, the company announced in March that it had taken a £163m writedown [...]
Morrisons’ sale of floundering Kiddicare could come this week July 9, 2014 Morrisons is said to be on the brink of a deal to sell struggling maternity wear outlet Kiddicare to turnaround investor Endless. The likely sale, which has not yet been formalised, was reported by Sky News yesterday with the suggestion that an announcement could come as soon as the end of this week. Kiddicare was [...]
Sainsbury’s bids adieu to its cherished King July 9, 2014 Hundreds of Sainsbury’s shareholders gathered in Queen Elizabeth Hall yesterday for the Great Justin King Love-in, otherwise billed as the supermarket’s AGM. Van Morrison was blaring, there were “Goodbye Justin” t-shirts and the hall was packed with shareholders eager to bid farewell to their King (as it was actually his last day on the job). [...]
City Moves for 09 July 2014 | Who’s switching jobs July 8, 2014 Universities Superannuation Scheme Jeremy Hill will be returning to the pension scheme trustee company, taking up the role of group general counsel. A qualified solicitor, Hill first worked for the firm between 2009 and 2011. He has previously held leadership roles at Morgan Stanley Investment Management and Merrill Lynch Investment Management, along with positions at [...]