UK retail sales increase at strongest rate since February 2010 in December January 17, 2014 Christmas was a pretty mixed bag for some retailers, but figures from the Office for National Statistics suggest that the squeeze on consumers is easing, and they were able to make the most of bargain and discount shopping. December retail sales jumped 5.3 per cent from a year earlier, up 2.6 per cent in the [...]
Ocado delivers Christmas cheer January 16, 2014 OCADO said its online grocery service for Morrisons launched “on time and on budget” last week as it reported bumper Christmas sales. Sales rose 21.3 per cent to £111.1m for the six weeks to 5 January as it benefited from extra capacity at its new fulfillment centre in Warwickshire. Ocado boss Tim Steiner said the [...]
Computacenter posts higher revenue January 16, 2014 IT services provider Computacenter reported a rise in full-year group revenue that exceeded analysts’ estimates, boosted by a strong demand for its maintenance services in the UK. Revenue grew six per cent in 2013, said Computacenter, whose clients include Lloyds Banking Group, Serco Group , British Telecom, Deutsche Bank, WM Morrison and EDF. Computacenter reported [...]
These festive victors have found a way of winning online and in store January 16, 2014 Argos, Primark, Halfords, Homebase, Dixons and Ocado: the raft companies who saw sales leap over the Christmas period, and present a stark contrast to the big names (M&S, Tesco and Morrisons) that reported gloomy – and sometimes grim – results last week. It's become something of a cliche to keep emphasising the need for transition [...]
Inside Track: The EU’s rules to cap bankers’ bonuses aren’t working January 15, 2014 CREATE a loophole and bankers will leap through it quicker than you can say “deferred compensation”: that seems to be one of the axioms of the aftermath of the financial crisis. Examine the consequences of the European Commission’s cap on the multiple of salaries that banks can dish out in variable pay, though, and the [...]
Fulham facing tap-up probe over Morrison January 15, 2014 FULHAM could face a fine after the Premier League confirmed last night it was investigating a complaint from West Ham over what they believe equates to the tapping up of Ravel Morrison by their relegation rivals. Cottagers boss Rene Meulensteen, who worked with the midfielder at Manchester United, said on Tuesday that a bid for Morrison [...]
Morrisons loses market share to its competitors January 14, 2014 WM MORRISON’S troubles over Christmas were further underscored yesterday by figures that showed that the grocer was the only one of the big four supermarkets to suffer a fall in overall sales in the past 12 weeks. Kantar Worldpanel data showed the retailer’s market share dropped to 11.5 per cent in the 12 weeks to [...]
FA Cup: Fulham chase Morrison as they reach round four January 14, 2014 FULHAM 3 vs NORWICH CITY 0 FULHAM manager Rene Meulensteen is confident of landing West Ham midfielder Ravel Morrison this month, despite revealing shortly after his team’s safe passage into the FA Cup fourth round that a bid had been rejected. Goals from Darren Bent, Ashkan Dejagah and top-scorer Steve Sidwell decided the third round [...]
London Report: Banks lift FTSE as new leverage rules welcomed January 13, 2014 ARALLY in banking shares helped the FTSE 100 rise to a two-month closing high yesterday as investors welcomed the prospect of lighter rules on leverage for the sector. Supermarket WM Morrison was the top FTSE gainer on speculation it may sell some property and return some of the proceeds to shareholders, while oil and gas [...]
Morrisons shares buoyed by £800m property sell-off January 13, 2014 Morrisons topped the FTSE 100 this morning after a weekend report from the Sunday Times that the UK supermarket is planning a £800m property sell-off to raise money and placate vexed investors. The move follows the store's lamentable Christmas sales, revealed last week. It delivered a 5.6 per cent drop in sales, along with a [...]