What you need to know before the open May 21, 2014 A lower open for European markets this morning, with stocks expected to fall further from highs recently seen, following US and Asian counterparts. We've got central bank minutes out later today from both the Bank of England and Fed. Corporate news SSE’s reported a 9.6 per cent rise in profit before tax, to £1.55bn, despite [...]
Burberry eyes Japan as EasyJet chief joins board May 21, 2014 Fashion house Burberry has reported record sales and profit for 2013/14. Reported pre-tax profit leapt 27 per cent to £444m, with revenue up 17 per cent to £2.3bn. Adjusted profit before tax rose eight per cent to £461m, ahead of estimates. Further investment in Japan, enhanced beauty infrastructure and a smooth management transition – with [...]
M&S warns new website will hit clothing sales May 20, 2014 MARKS & Spencer warned yesterday that the launch of its new website will deliver a further blow to its already fragile general merchandise sales, as the high street retailer reported a third year of falling profits. Chief executive Marc Bolland admitted the website “will take four to six months to be at full strength” as [...]
Bottom Line: Bolland has until the autumn to do better May 20, 2014 RELAUNCHING a retail website is not easy. Behind the flashy new design and faux editorial content that draws shoppers towards key products is layer upon layer of complex infrastructure – payment systems and forms and code and algorithms. Somewhere in that complex maze of programming, Marks & Spencer tripped up. Before its new site went live [...]
Greencore splashes out on new factory to fuel growth in the US May 20, 2014 GREENCORE, the food group that supplies retailers with everything from sandwiches to Yorkshire puddings, announced plans to step up its expansion in the US as it reported an eight per cent rise in half-year revenues yesterday. The London-listed group, whose biggest clients in the US include Starbucks and 7-Eleven, said it will spend £20m on [...]
Staples forecasts fall in takings May 20, 2014 Staples yesterday forecast a fall in sales in the current quarter as customers shift to e-retailers, mass merchants and drugstores to buy their office supplies. Shares of the largest US office supply retailer fell as much as 11 per cent in morning trading, after the company reported its fifth straight fall in quarterly sales. First-quarter [...]
New York Report: Retailers lead a broad drop on Wall Street May 20, 2014 US STOCKS fell in a broad sell-off yesterday, with major indexes hitting session lows in afternoon trading, led by losses in the retail sector after disappointing results from Staples and TJX Companies. All 10 primary S&P 500 sector indexes fell, and nearly three-fourths of Nasdaq-listed names were down for the day. The S&P 500’s top [...]
Investment Comment: How to invest in markets that are now hitting all-time highs May 20, 2014 The UK and US are consistently beating growth expectations – but sensible investors should proceed with caution THE GOOD news? The UK economy is recovering very well, consistently beating growth expectations. We’re seeing increasing levels of merger and acquisition activity, while the FTSE 100, S&P 500 and Dow Jones indices have all been at, or [...]
What you need to know before the US open May 20, 2014 US stocks futures were flat today, following two days of advances for the S&P 500 and some fairly sombre equities releases. European shares have continued to feel the heat, as political angst ahead of the EU elections outweighed supportive noises from the ECB. Three policymakers are set to speak this afternoon, with economists hoping for [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 20 May 2014 May 19, 2014 FINANCIAL TIMES EU banks face debt sale clampdown European regulators are seeking to clamp down on the sale of debt by banks to their own retail customers, amid fears savers do not realise the risks posed by such assets. The European Banking Authority is concerned about the sale of bank debt that could be bailed [...]