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 [...]
AB Foods given lift by Primark and sugar arm April 24, 2012 ASSOCIATED British Foods yesterday forecast a significant rise in full year profits, fuelled by its Primark chain and sugar business. The food and retail group said earnings in the six months to 3 March rose by five per cent with higher sugar prices giving the FTSE 100 group momentum. The company, whose brands include Silver [...]
FTSE in modest rise as investors eye Fed April 24, 2012 The FTSE 100 saw a modest rally this morning led by banking and commodity stocks as investors looked for signs that the Federal Reserve will inject more liquidity into markets. London’s blue chip index was dented yesterday by uncertainty over who will be the next president of France, the collapse of the Dutch government and [...]
AB Foods buoyed by Primark April 24, 2012 Associated British Foods forecast a “substantial” rise in full-year earnings as under-pressure British shoppers turned to its Primark discount fashion stores and it benefited from high sugar prices in the first half of its financial year. The London-based food and retailing group said earnings per share rose five per cent to 34.4 pence in the [...]
AB Foods hit as Primark growth slows February 27, 2012 SHARES in Primark-owner Associated British Foods dipped yesterday despite an upbeat outlook from the firm, after it admitted sales growth at its discount fashion cash cow had slowed in recent months. The company said it expected like-for-like sales at Primark to have grown by two per cent in the first six months of its financial [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: WHAT’S THE OUTLOOK FOR AB FOODS? February 27, 2012 DARREN SHIRLEY | SHORE CAP We do not anticipate any material changes to group forecasts post today’s update, though given the breadth of ABF’s operations we would not be surprised if we tweak divisional forecasts post speaking to management. We commenced 2012 with ABF our preferred stock of the FTSE 100 food producers … we [...]
Primark fuels AB Foods profits February 27, 2012 Primark-owner Associated British Foods expects growth in its half year profits to be driven by its discount fashion chain, which has gained as under-pressure British shoppers seek out bargain prices, and by a strong performance from sugar. Western European shoppers have cut back on spending as unemployment has risen and wage rises stagnate, but Primark [...]
THE WEEK AHEAD February 26, 2012 Today A diverse group of FTSE 100 reporters will kick off a busy week in the corporate calendar this morning, with banking giant HSBC likely to be top of many investors’ watch list. Analysts are expecting the bank’s geographical diversity to offset any potential weakness in it investment banking division, with profits expected to hit [...]
Banks hit by latest ratings blow February 16, 2012 The FTSE 100 fell this morning with the banking sector pegging back the index as Moody’s threatened to downgrade 17 banks and securities firms and the Greece bailout hit yet more hurdles. The ratings agency said it might cut the long-term credit rating of UBS, Credit Suisse and Morgan Stanley by as much as three [...]
FTSE rally loses steam as energy stocks dip January 20, 2012 The FTSE 100 edged down this morning as energy and resource stocks pinned the market back after solid gains over the week. Greece and its private bondholders resumed debt swap talks today amid signs they are edging towards the deal needed to prevent a chaotic default by Athens. That helped to give financial stocks a [...]