Morrison rules out any further discount plans May 3, 2012 WM MORRISON’S chief executive said yesterday the supermarket would not succumb to offering more vouchers after aggressive discounting by rivals like Tesco hurt its first quarter sales. Dalton Philips warned that, as economic conditions remained uncertain, squeezed consumers would continue to seek out even more promotions. But he brushed off concerns that the grocer was [...]
DID MORRISON’S FIRST QUARTER FIGURES MEET EXPECTATIONS? May 3, 2012 CLIVE BLACK SHORE CAPITAL This is a disappointing update from Morrison, even if it is against its toughest comparatives for the year. There is no doubt about that to our minds and the performance recorded underscores our concerns about the performance of the group in recent weeks. PHILIP DORGAN PANMURE GORDON First quarter sales are [...]
FTSE rise fuelled by solid earnings May 3, 2012 The FTSE 100 pushed higher in early deals, recovering some of the previous session’s falls as investors turned their attention to a European Central Bank (ECB) meeting and tomorrow’s key US jobs report. ECB chiefs meet today after a week in which a string of bleak economic data, including manufacturing figures, has cast a shadow. [...]
Morrisons sales dip in tough market May 3, 2012 Morrisons posted a fall in underlying sales in its first quarter, reflecting tough comparatives with a bumper period of trading last year and customers switching to rivals who are promoting more heavily. The supermarket chain, which trails market leader Tesco, Wal-Mart’s Asda and J Sainsbury in UK market share, said on sales at stores open [...]
RAPID responses April 30, 2012 Gordon’s legacy [Re: A recession made in Downing Street – but not caused by cuts, Thursday] It is right to continue to criticise Gordon Brown for our economic position. By basing future expenditure plans on income levels at the top of a boom (and still running a deficit then), he left us in an unsustainable [...]
Troubling times for retailers to the squeezed middle April 29, 2012 SPARE a thought for the squeezed middle. No, not the ordinary family as defined by Ed Miliband, but the places they shop and the things they buy. The mid-market consumer firm is finding the going very tough indeed. There has been much written about Tesco’s troubles in recent months, punctuated by a series of ignominious [...]
Daisy to buy Wordlwide for £28m April 13, 2012 The FTSE 100 edged down in early trading as investors digested data showing a slowdown of growth in China’s economy. Official figures released overnight showed that China’s economy grew at its slowest rate in almost three years. Gross domestic product increased by a rate of 8.1 per cent in the first quarter, down from 8.9 [...]
FTSE down as China growth slows April 13, 2012 The FTSE 100 edged down in early trading as investors digested data showing a slowdown of growth in China’s economy. Official figures released overnight showed that China’s economy grew at its slowest rate in almost three years. Gross domestic product increased by a rate of 8.1 per cent in the first quarter, down from 8.9 [...]
Firms won’t be forced to offer third way pensions April 9, 2012 THE GOVERNMENT will not force companies to offer new “defined ambition” pensions, minister Steve Webb said yesterday as he announced plans to find a third way for private sector workers to save for their retirements. Webb wants more businesses to offer pensions that guarantee some certainty for employees, despite the near extinction of defined benefit [...]
Making things is not a soft option in the UK today March 26, 2012 IN THE last twenty years, I have watched the decline of British manufacturing, particularly in my own textile sector. While prices for food and luxury goods have risen steadily, high street clothing prices have become so cheap that UK manufacturers cannot be competitive in the mass market. According to the Working Futures report, which analyses [...]