ASOS announces new interim CFO as fast fashion chain attempts to rebuild after £32m loss February 10, 2023 Online fashion giant ASOS has brought in an experienced new interim CFO with as it continues its post-pandemic overhaul to plug on-going losses. The pandemic darling announced that 75 per cent of its new 12-person decision-making team has been filled, as part of a major turnaround bid called ‘Driving Change’. Its new ‘reinforced leadership and [...]
Watches of Switzerland revenues tick past £400m as buyers ‘invest in a rational indulgence’ February 9, 2023 Watches of Switzerland has seen its revenues soar in the three months ending 29 January with the group crediting a demand for luxury watches for the sales boost. The UK-based retailer, which stocks Swiss watches such as Rolex and Tag Heuer, brought in revenues of £407m in its third quarter, up 17 per cent from [...]
SocGen takes bad loan hit but claims 2023 is a ‘transitional year’ with ‘key deals’ ahead February 8, 2023 Societe Generale, France’s third biggest bank, favoured financial prudence over quick returns to shareholders as it prepared for the arrival of a new chief executive in May tasked with reviving its valuation in an uncertain economic climate. SocGen said it had hiked provisions for bad loans fivefold in the fourth quarter, cutting its net income [...]
High Street retail race: Marks and Spencer predicted to overtake John Lewis by 2026 February 8, 2023 Marks & Spencer will overtake John Lewis in the rankings of the UK’s biggest retailers by 2026, according to a new sales forecast. Tesco will retain its position as the largest retailer, followed by Sainsbury’s, but Amazon is on track to move into the top three within the next few years, industry title Retail Week [...]
More than £18bn was added to non-food retail sales by inflation as 80 per cent of retailers prepare to raise prices February 8, 2023 Inflation is set to add £18.2 billion to UK non-food retail sales this year, a report suggests. Sales values are expected to hit £249 billion in 2023, but the 2.6 per cent increase – or an additional £18.2 billion of spending on last year – will be driven entirely by rising consumer prices, according to [...]
Lidl boasts £10m sales growth after winning shoppers from M&S, Waitrose and Sainsbury’s February 7, 2023 The value retailer praised its fruit and veg range for the year on year increase – with its market share for vegetable shopping reaching a high of 10.2 per cent.
House prices are poised to slide in 2023 but straight into the hands of the lucky few February 7, 2023 There’s a pretty wild variety of house price predictions doing the rounds. Capital Economics have forecast they could fall 12 per cent, while experts at property search site Zoopla are a bit more optimistic. The consensus seems to be somewhere around a six per cent fall in 2023. One thing is certain: house prices are [...]
Retail experts warn of ‘challenging’ months ahead as sales growth slows February 7, 2023 Senior retail figures have warned that the coming months will be “challenging” for the sector, after sales slowed over January, falling below the three-month average growth of 5.2 per cent to 4.2 per cent Helen Dickinson OBE, chief executive at British Retail Consortium (BRC), said consumer confidence remains “stubbornly low” and looming rises in household [...]
The Notebook: Victoria Scholar on tech stocks, strikes and cheap cars February 6, 2023 Falling out of love with Big Tech US technology giants have been reporting their latest financial earnings in recent weeks with a mix of the good, the bad, and the ugly. Until the turn of 2021/22, Big Tech was a firm favourite among investors, scoring impressive share price gains in the years building up to [...]
Shell caps off bumper trading year with record £32.2bn profits February 2, 2023 Shell capped off a highly lucrative year of trading with bumper fourth quarter earnings of £7.9bn - with full year profits of £32.2bn.