Avatar’s success gives boost to struggling cinemas but future is still uncertain January 23, 2023 The highly anticipated Avatar sequel has ranked as the sixth-highest grossing movie ever, giving cinemas a much needed boost, although some analysts warn they are not yet in the clear. After six weeks on the big screens, “Avatar: The Way of Water” surpassed a staggering £1.6bn ($2bn) in box office sales on Sunday, Disney estimates. [...]
Slow fashion: Retailers embrace second-hand clothing to draw in thrifty eco-conscious fashion lovers January 23, 2023 High street retailers are following in the footsteps of their online rivals, offering more second-hand clothes to lure in shoppers wanting to steer clear of fast fashion and hunt for bargains amid a cost of living crisis. The second-hand clothing market has exploded over the last decade to an estimated £6.5bn last year, largely thanks [...]
FTSE 100 close: Blue chip index ends higher as disappointing retail sales figures fail to dent JD Sports, Frasers and Burberry January 20, 2023 London’s FTSE 100 index closed the week marginally higher, clawing back some some of this year’s earlier gains following a poor performance yesterday. The capital’s premier index climbed 0.3 per cent to 7,770.59 points, while the domestically-focused mid-cap FTSE 250 index rose 0.7 per cent to close at 19,702.63. JD Sports, Frasers and Burberry were [...]
Markets Wrap January 20, 2023 Another eventful week of trading comes to a close, and we end the week quite differently to how we started it. Last week we saw solid upside in stocks with no real fundamental driver, as banks kicked off the Q4 earnings season and the US posted a relatively strong Michigan consumer sentiment figure. The theme [...]
Retailers blame Royal Mail strikes for Brits abandoning online shopping in the run up to Christmas January 20, 2023 Thousands of Brits appear to have abandoned online purchases following a series of strikes by Royal Mail employees, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics. Figures released by the ONS show that the proportion of online sales slipped by 0.5 per cent to 25.4 per cent in December. Retailers laid the blame on [...]
Dunelm sales rise as shoppers buy heaters and thick duvets January 19, 2023 Homeware and furnishings retailer Dunelm has revealed a jump in sales for the past quarter as shoppers bought heaters and thick duvets to offset the rocketing cost of heating their homes. The Leicestershire-based retailer said annual profits are set to beat market expectations following a strong Christmas period. Total sales increased by 18 per cent [...]
Boohoo shares slide after PrettyLittleThing owner admits consumer squeeze has hit profits January 19, 2023 Online fashion retailer Boohoo expects full year revenue to be below market expectations as it continues to suffer from the squeeze on consumer spending. The company anticipates revenue will fall by 12 per cent over the financial year ending 28 February, after it reported a fall in revenue in a trading update released this morning. [...]
Cazoo no you can’t: Motor retailer halves ambitions despite third quarter sales fillip January 18, 2023 Cazoo has halved its sales ambitions for the year, saying it was now looking to sell between 40,000 and 50,000 cars, rather than the predicted 80,000 to 100,000. The online car retailer told analysts and investors it was shrinking its ambitions to a “more modest” top line, as it sought to return to profitability without [...]
Currys’ share price up after ‘better-than-expected’ Christmas trading January 18, 2023 Currys’ share price has spiked more than seven per cent, after it told investors this morning its Christmas profits were better than expected. The technology retailer reported better than forecast profits over the Christmas period, with sales in the UK offsetting a slow down in Scandinavia. The company said UK trade rose in the 10 [...]
Burberry: China’s covid restrictions flatten sales as Europeans ramp up luxury item spend January 18, 2023 Heavy Covid restrictions in China weighed down sales for luxury British fashion giant Burberry in the third quarter of last year. In the 13 weeks to December, the UK firm reported £756m in retail revenue in its comparable store sales around the world, a one per cent increase on the previous year. Sales in China [...]