Weaker than expected retail sales drags Wall Street down August 17, 2021 US stocks edged down during the open today after official figures showed US retail sales were much weaker than expected in July. The blue-chip S&P 500 dropped 0.55 per cent to 4,455.46 points and the Dow Jones lost 0.83 per cent to fall to 35,328.87 points. The tech-heavy Nasdaq extended the traditional benchmark’s losses to [...]
Collection of rare and unusual single malt whisky to go on sale August 17, 2021 “Prime” and “ultimate” connote excellence, but they also mean first and last. Diageo’s Prima & Ultima collections play with that ambiguity, by bringing together a selection of exquisite single malt whisky, which are also the first or last of their kind. The age and rarity of these spirits would make them enticing enough, but each [...]
Ocado sales dip as pre-pandemic habits return, supermarket data finds August 17, 2021 The UK’s return to normality has been accompanied by a return to pre-pandemic shopping habits, with online and overall grocery sales declining. The latest grocery market share figures from Kantar for the period ending 8 August show that grocery sales fell by four per cent. The latest twelve weeks saw the lowest level of online [...]
Wall Street ends hot streak and opens lower amid China growth slowdown August 16, 2021 Wall Street fell from last week’s record highs at Monday’s open amid concerns about the impact of the crisis in Afghanistan and after China missed expectations on a range of data, signalling that its economy was slowing down. The S&P 500 slid down 0.4 per cent from Friday’s all-time high of the year, while the [...]
HSBC buy Axa’s Singapore operations in bid to boost Asia fee income August 16, 2021 HSBC has agreed to acquire Axa’s Singapore operations in a bid to boost its fee incomes in the Asia market. HSBC said in a statement that the combined unit comprising HSBC Life Singapore and Axa Singapore would be the seventh-largest life insurer and the fourth-largest retail health insurer in Singapore. HSBC currently ranks 10th in [...]
FTSE: Ultra and Future soar but it’s not enough to lift London’s main index August 16, 2021 The FTSE 100 started off the week with a fall, as a rout on energy and mining shares could not be undone by a surge in the shares of Ultra Electronics and publishing house Future. The blue-chip FTSE 100 dropped 0.8 per cent, dragged down by miners Glencore, Anglo American and Rio Tinto and oil majors BP and Royal Dutch [...]
Turnover of independent spirit distilleries hits £1.87bn thanks to lockdown drinkers August 16, 2021 Independent spirit distilleries’ turnover increased by eight per cent last year, as locked down Brits concocted their own cocktails. Turnover reached £1.87bn last year, up from £1.72bn the previous year, according to private equity investment firm Growthdeck. Consumers spent an additional £566.8m on spirits as bars and pubs were forced to close for months due [...]
The Very Group owners select trio of banks for £4bn float August 13, 2021 The owners of fashion retailer The Very Group have selected a trio of investment banks to organise a £4bn flotation. Banks Barclays, Morgan Stanley and UBS have been appointed to coordinate an initial public offering (IPO) to take place next year, according to Sky News. This would mark the first time the Barclay family – [...]
Amazon transfers £8.2bn of UK revenue to Luxembourg, report says August 11, 2021 Amazon has shifted some £8.2bn worth of UK revenues to European tax haven Luxembourg, a new report has claimed, as the ecommerce giant bats off calls for a tax inquiry. The retail heavyweight declared £13.7bn in UK revenues in 2019, however, filings for its UK-based companies said it only reported £5.5bn in sales. The report, [...]
Fashion retailer The Very Group refinances debt after raising £575m bond August 11, 2021 Online fashion retailer The Very Group has raised a £575m bond that will expire in 2026 to refinance its debt. The bond was raised through the issuing of senior secured notes due in 2026 and will be used to refinance and extend the group’s existing debt. The 6.5 per cent notes were rated “B3 stable” [...]