Sweet tooth for peckish Primark-owner Associated British Foods as it snaps up Africa’s largest producer of sugar April 8, 2016 Primark-owner Associated British Foods (ABF) has finally filled a long-standing hole this morning, completing a £262m purchase of Illovo Sugar Limited, Africa's largest producer of the sweet stuff. The extra calories failed to put much energy behind ABF shares in London, however, with the firm up just 0.41 per cent to 3,401p in the first minutes [...]
Market close: FTSE holds steady, but Glencore leads the commodities sector down March 29, 2016 The FTSE 100 clocked a so-so first day back in the office after Easter, remaining unchanged at 6,105. However, there was more than just leftover Easter eggs for traders to sink their teeth into. Commodities giants were left bruised after a note from Barclays warned that the sector could be in for a fresh rout. [...]
BHS is slipping further behind rivals Primark and Debenhams in high street fight March 9, 2016 Retailer BHS’ woes appear to be worsening. As the embattled retailer recently announced significant job losses, it is a suitable time to explore consumer perception of the brand, and what this means for the longer-term prosperity of an old high street favourite. But how did it come to this? YouGov BrandIndex points to two issues the [...]
Companies warned over the risk of foreign exchange swings as volatility set to continue throughout 2016 March 1, 2016 International companies are being warned that swings in the value of the pound mean risk is building in the foreign exchange market as levels of uncertainty in 2016 are anticipated to be similar to last year. The pound has dropped considerably against both the dollar and the euro so far this year as worries around a [...]
Primark parent Associated British Foods says half year figures will be better than expected as currency headaches lift February 22, 2016 Primark parent company Associated British Foods has said its half year results should come in slightly better than expected, as currency woes have partially lifted. The group said it expected "some progress" in adjusted operating profit for the six months to 27 February, but said adjusted earnings per share would come in slightly lower – a [...]
Ralph Lauren shares plunge as luxury fashion group slashes forecasts, blaming mild weather February 4, 2016 Ralph Lauren shares have plummeted by nearly 18 per cent after the US fashion brand reported a worse-than-expected decline in third quarter sales, blaming the mild winter weather and fewer tourists visiting its stores. The luxury goods group, whose brands include Polo Ralph Lauren and Club Monaco, said net revenues fell by four per cent, or one [...]
Tesco, Sainsbury’s and M&S are among most praised companies by NGOs but VW and Royal Dutch Shell make “naughty” list of most criticised January 18, 2016 Tesco, Sainsbury's and M&S are certainly not having the best of times on the high street these days, but there's one place their winning at least. The three are among several of the biggest global companies to make a "nice" list of companies which pressure groups and campaigners across the world, from the likes of Which? to Greenpeace, have [...]
FTSE 100 index falters as the price of oil slides January 14, 2016 The FTSE 100 index opened down this morning as the price of oil continued to linger around $30 a barrel. The UK's blue-chip index opened 1.68 per cent down at 5,860 points. "For the first time this year the FTSE 100 managed to post two positive days in a row yesterday, buoyed by a rebound in [...]
Currency headwinds dampen growth at Primark parent Associated British Foods – but sugar is starting to look sweeter January 14, 2016 Primark parent Associated British Foods has been further buffeted by currency headwinds, with the business expecting it to knock off £25m from full year profit. The figures The group grew revenue three per cent in the 16 weeks to 2 January – but this turned into a two per cent decline when factoring in actual exchange [...]
Deceptive demographics: Attitude matters more to marketers January 11, 2016 Here's a shocker for you. There are actually 19 year-old guys who watch Dance Moms, and 73 year-old women who watch Breaking Bad and Avengers,” Netflix’s Todd Yellin told the SxSW conference in Texas last year. Marketers have long recognised the limitations of segmenting consumers demographically. Finding out a customer’s age and gender data, Yellin argued, [...]