UK bags Europe’s M&A top spot with $247bn of deals in 2018 as TMT mergers grow February 19, 2019 The UK enjoyed the highest value of M&A deals in Europe last year as telecoms and media takeovers spiked. High value purchases like Comcast’s $39bn purchase of Sky pushed mergers involving UK companies to $247bn in 2018, data compiled by law firm Clifford Chance found. Read more: Watchdog delays final report on Sainsbury's-Asda merger Both domestic and [...]
MPs urge government to slap penny tax on new clothes in bid to cut fashion industry waste February 19, 2019 An influential group of MPs has called for a 1p tax on new clothes in a bid to tackle consumer waste within the fashion industry. The penny tax, which would be levied on every new item of clothing sold by Britain’s retailers, has been proposed this morning by the cross-party Environmental Audit Committee to raise [...]
McColl’s profits plummet after supply chain disruption but investors welcome recovery signs February 18, 2019 Profits halved at McColl’s in 2018 as like-for-like sales also slipped, it said today, blaming supply chain disruption as a key partner went under, even as overall revenue grew. But shares grew 13 per cent to 57.2p as investors welcomed the retailer cutting debt as like-for-like sales improved. The figures Profit before tax plunged to [...]
Should investors be more concerned about China’s slowdown? February 18, 2019 The rise of China has been astonishing and its growing influence on the world is one of the economic forces discussed in our inescapable investment truths for the decade ahead. But economies don’t grow in a straight line. China is facing a transition period. It is a country we monitor closely and we believe its [...]
Reeling in the sales: Angling Direct posts surging revenue on back of international growth February 18, 2019 The UK’s largest fishing equipment retailer said this morning that it was forecasting a spike in full-year revenue, as the group ramped up its online operations and enjoyed a bump in sales from anglers in Germany, Russia and France. Angling Direct is expecting to post revenues of £42m for the 12 months to the end [...]
FTSE 100 hits fresh four-month high on US-China trade talk optimism and European banking boost February 15, 2019 The FTSE 100 ended a good week in strong fashion as optimism over the US-China trade dispute and the possibility of fresh stimulus measures for Eurozone banks boosted markets. The UK’s blue chip index rose to a fresh four-month high and closed 0.6 per cent up for the day at 7,237 points. European markets also rose as [...]
London Fashion Week to bring £600m of sales to the West End February 15, 2019 London Fashion Week is expected to bring a £600m windfall to the West End, in what is set to be a crucial boon for the capital’s shopping district at a time on mounting pressure for its retailers. A combination of fashion fans and foreign tourists are set to descend on the West End during February [...]
Better-than-expected January sales buck retail fears as discounts lure in shoppers February 15, 2019 Retail sales beat expectations in January, as shoppers seized on New-Year deals despite a wider slowdown in spending amid political uncertainty. According to new Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures which buck a recent trend of gloomy retail surveys, month-to-month sales volumes in the sector climbed one per cent during January, trumping consensus estimates of [...]
Mark Kleinman: Aviva’s missed deadline ensures brickbats February 15, 2019 Viva Aviva? For such a stalwart of blue-chip boardrooms, Sir Adrian Montague suddenly can’t put a foot right. Four years after taking over the chairmanship of Aviva when John McFarlane scuttled off to Barclays, he’s ended up in a rather large pickle of his own making. Sacking Mark Wilson as the insurer’s chief executive last [...]
Investors fear slowdown as US Christmas retail drops February 14, 2019 US retail sales fell at their fastest rate in nearly a decade in December, stoking fears of a global slowdown, as shoppers watched their pennies over the vital Christmas period. Sales plunged 1.2 per cent, their largest monthly decline since the country was trying to recover from the financial crisis in September 2009. Read more: [...]