Government to ban cheap alcohol sales March 22, 2012 THE GOVERNMENT will today announce the introduction of a minimum price for alcohol as part of measures that aim to reduce the social impact of excessive drinking. New legislation will force retailers to charge a minimum of 40p per unit of alcohol. Prime Minister David Cameron has also promised to ban bulk-buy discount deals in [...]
TNT Post bids to rival Royal Mail’s service March 22, 2012 TNT POST is further encroaching on Royal Mail territory by launching an end-to-end delivery trial in London as part of a long-term plan to rival the government-owned postal service. Following a successful trial in Liverpool, TNT postal workers will hit the streets of west London from mid-April to test the waters for extending the company’s [...]
Sainsbury’s sees boost in market share March 21, 2012 J SAINSBURY boss Justin King said the retailer’s success “was not dependent on others failing” as the group continued to win market share from rivals like Tesco and posted a surge in fourth-quarter sales. Justin King described himself as a “competitive guy” as the UK’s third largest supermarket reported a 2.6 rise in like-for-like sales [...]
ANALYST VIEWS: HOW HAS THE RETAILER FARED COMPARED TO RIVALS? March 21, 2012 CLIVE BLACK | SHORE CAPITAL Sainsbury has delivered what can only be considered a very sound and resilient performance against the backdrop of demonstrably challenging times. Indeed, the group deserves credit for the sales momentum delivered in the fourth quarter and in the face of some deep fuel related discounts by competitors. RICHARD HUNTER | [...]
Sainsbury’s sales and market share rise March 21, 2012 J Sainsbury, Britain’s third-biggest supermarket group, beat forecasts for fourth quarter sales growth as it won market share from rivals. “We continue to outperform the market and gain market share,” said chief executive Justin King. He said although the economic climate was likely to remain challenging Britain’s roster of summer events, including celebrations to mark [...]
FTSE SUFFERS BIGGEST FALL IN TWO WEEKS March 20, 2012 BRITAIN’S top share index suffered its sharpest fall in two weeks yesterday, as concerns over materials demand in top consumer China hit commodities-linked sectors, marring a rally that had been part-driven by hopes for improving global growth. The benchmark FTSE 100 index closed down 69.7 points, or 1.2 per cent, at 5,891.41, having rallied more [...]
Miners peg back FTSE as UK inflation dips again March 20, 2012 Miners pegged the FTSE 100 back in early trading as fears that demand from China for metals was falling sapped investor confidence. BHP Billiton, the world’s biggest miner, fell 1.9 per cent after saying it was seeing signs of “flattening” iron ore demand from China. The sector is pinning its hopes on continuing fast growth [...]
Tesco Thai property float soars March 19, 2012 The property fund of Tesco’s Thai unit jumped nearly 10 per cent in its trading debut yesterday as investors who were shut out of Thailand’s largest IPO in six years scrambled to get a piece of the high-yielding security. The IPO raised about £378.8m, the biggest in Thailand since 2006, but the supply of units [...]
Clarke takes charge as UK chief departs March 15, 2012 TESCO chief executive Philip Clarke is expected to take the reins at the retailer’s UK business for at least a year until sales show signs of improving, after former head Richard Brasher abruptly stepped down. Tesco announced yesterday that Brasher was stepping down from the board of Britain’s biggest retailer with immediate effect, and would [...]
The clock is ticking for Philip Clarke March 15, 2012 HAVING initially rejected predecessor Sir Terry Leahy’s dual role of running the UK on top of being group chief executive, just one year later Clarke has conceded “there is just not room for two captains in the same team”. There would have been plenty of space had things been going well. But this is a [...]