Morrisons loses market share to its competitors January 14, 2014 WM MORRISON’S troubles over Christmas were further underscored yesterday by figures that showed that the grocer was the only one of the big four supermarkets to suffer a fall in overall sales in the past 12 weeks. Kantar Worldpanel data showed the retailer’s market share dropped to 11.5 per cent in the 12 weeks to [...]
Slump for Asos despite stellar Christmas sales January 14, 2014 ASOS shares slid yesterday despite the online fashion retailer posting another set of glowing results, boosted by sales in Europe and a surge in UK customers clicking online in the run-up to Christmas. The retailer’s shares fell as much as seven per cent before closing down three per cent yesterday, with analysts pointing to an [...]
Bottom Line: Time to take stock after an incredible year January 14, 2014 LAST year was huge for Asos. As the online retailer launched both Russian and Chinese language sites and increased sales by 40 per cent from 2012, shares rocketed – climbing 140 per cent in just 12 months and giving the firm a market capitalisation of close to £6bn. That’s huge. If chief executive Nick Robertson chose [...]
Moss Bros to beat forecasts after surge in its Christmas revenues January 14, 2014 SUIT specialist Moss Bros said yesterday it expected to post a full-year profit ahead of market expectations after a surge in sales over the Christmas period. The firm, which sells and hires out formal clothing, said sales at stores open over a year jumped 12.9 per cent ahead of the same period a year ago for [...]
Best of the Brokers for 15 January 2014 January 14, 2014 BSKYB UBS has hiked BSkyB from hold to buy with a target up from 880p to 1,100p due to a belief in Sky’s resilience despite increasing competition from the new BT Sport channel. UBS also said the firm could be a takeover target for Fox or a merger partner for Vodafone or Telefonica’s O2. DIAGEO [...]
New York Report: Resilient retail sales prompt rise in shares January 14, 2014 US STOCKS rose yesterday, erasing much of the previous session’s steep drop, as a strong December retail sales reading eased concerns that economic growth might be slowing. Google rose 2.4 per cent to $1,149.40, giving a large boost to the outperforming Nasdaq, a day after the company announced plans to acquire Nest Labs. The $3.2bn [...]
US retail sales thump estimates in December January 14, 2014 A nice strong beat for the US economy. Retail sales grew by 0.2 per cent in the US this December, while economists had only expected growth of 0.1 per cent. Some bad news in revisions to earlier data however. November's growth has been knocked down from 0.7 per cent to 0.4 per cent. And traditional [...]
What you need to know before the open – 14/01 January 14, 2014 Europe is expected lower this morning after a late sell-off in the US. A slide in Asia saw the Nikkei fell 3.1 per cent – a one-month low – with the yen rising abruptly in trading today. The focus is on UK inflation numbers this morning. The expectation is for CPI to stay at the [...]
Asos storms forward as Christmas sales leap 38pc January 14, 2014 Asos' stellar Christmas has demonstrated the draw of online shopping over the high street – the fashion giant saw sales jump 38 per cent to £36m in the four months ended December. Analysts had predicted a 35 per cent rise in sales over the festive period; the store said it's enjoyed "another strong Christmas", with [...]
Christmas fails to avert footfall slump for retail January 13, 2014 THE RECENT upturn for the British economy did not extend to high streets last year, as the full extent of the drop in footfall to bricks-and-mortar retailers during 2013 is revealed. The full figures for 2013 footfall released by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Springboard show that Christmas sales failed to spur growth for [...]