Greggs share price falls after City broker says ‘sell’ January 21, 2025 Greggs’ share price has fallen nearly four per cent after a leading City broker downgraded its rating for the high street chain to ‘Sell’. Panmure Liberum analysts suggested that Greggs’ time of ‘supernormal’ growth – sales rose by nearly 20 per cent in 2023 – may be over. Analysts suggested that Greggs’ roll-out of evening [...]
Pub chain Marston’s toasts record festive sales boost January 21, 2025 Pub chain Marston’s has reported a “solid” festive quarter and record sales on Christmas day in another good sign for the hospitality sector. Total retail sales in the 16 weeks to January 18 were up three per cent, driven by growth in both food and drink sales, Marston’s said. Like-for-like sales during the same period [...]
‘Reason for cautious optimism’: UK consumer confidence rebound on cards January 20, 2025 Consumer confidence is set for a pick-up this year as the economy starts to improve and the UK adjusts to higher costs, according to a new survey. While the end of last year was gloomy for both businesses and consumers, analysts at Deloitte have said there is “reason for cautious optimism” going into the summer. [...]
UK economy: Only three sectors report growth as Reeves’ woes deepen January 20, 2025 The number of sectors seeing higher output in December was at its lowest level since September 2023.
What is driving the FTSE 100 surge? January 17, 2025 The FTSE 100 has hit a new all-time high today, with the index within touching distance of 8,500 for the first time. Since the start of the week, London’s main index has grown almost three per cent, outperforming the Nasdaq, the S&P 500, and the Dow Jones. The strong performance from the FTSE 100 came [...]
Next: Lord Wolfson warns Budget will make it ‘harder’ to enter workforce January 17, 2025 The boss of retail giant Next has warned that tax rises announced in the Budget will make it “harder and harder for people to enter the workforce”. Lord Wolfson told the BBC that the government’s move to hike national insurance (NI) would disproportionately hit entry-level jobs. “The axe has fallen particularly hard on those entry-level, [...]
Superdrug hails record Christmas as sales surge January 17, 2025 Superdrug has hailed its Christmas trading as its best ever after sales rose by more than five per cent in the final weeks of 2024. The high street retailer said it was boosted by one gift set being sold every second throughout December. Own Brand top sellers included the Studio London Ultimate Brush Collection, the [...]
Retail’s Christmas results don’t match up to the gloom in the market January 17, 2025 If you were to judge the health of the retail market solely from the last two weeks of festive trading results, you would think the market is in rude health. But that would be a significant departure from the actual sentiment in the market, which has taken on a sense of almost unrelenting gloom in [...]
FTSE 100 hits all-time high as investors bet on interest rate cuts January 17, 2025 The FTSE 100 has hit a new all-time high this morning, surpassing the previous peaks it reached in spring last year, as investors ramp up their bets on an interest rate cut by the Bank of England next month. The value of London’s 100 largest listed companies has grown 3.2 per cent in the last [...]
UK retail sales plunged in December as Budget fallout spread January 17, 2025 UK retail sales dropped during December, despite expectations of a Christmas bounce as consumers pulled back on spending. In a worrying sign for the economy, retail sales fell 0.3 per cent in December. Analysts had pencilled in growth of 0.4 per cent. November’s retail sales growth was also revised down by the Office for National [...]