FTSE pulled down by poor showing from energy stocks March 15, 2012 Britain’s leading share index slipped yesterday, weighed down by weakness in heavyweight energy stocks after recent gains, with investors also looking ahead to futures and options expiries. At the close, the FTSE 100 index was down 4.71 points or 0.1 per cent at 5,940.72, having shed 0.2 per cent in the previous session following five [...]
Tesco’s UK chief Richard Brasher set to step down March 14, 2012 TESCO’S chief executive of UK operations Richard Brasher is set to step down just one year after taking the position. Group chief executive Philip Clarke will assume responsibility for Tesco’s home operations. Richard Brasher joined Tesco in 1986 and was appointed to its board eight years ago today, on 15 March 2004. He took the [...]
Tesco: the fastest growing of the top four global grocers March 14, 2012 TESCO may be losing market share in the UK, but the supermarket chain is forecast to grow faster than its three main global rivals over the next three years, according to research by retail analyst IGD. The grocer is set to grow at an annual rate of 6.8 per cent between 2011 and 2015, compared [...]
Supermarket’s pension age to increase to 67 March 14, 2012 TESCO is looking to make major changes to its pension scheme, which will see the supermarket’s 172,000 staff wait two years longer to obtain their full pension. The grocer has begun a consultation about extending the retirement age for members of its pension scheme from 65 to 67 from 1 June as it looks to [...]
Sainsbury’s closes gap in online sales March 12, 2012 SAINSBURY’S has claimed to have become the second-biggest online grocer after its orders topped 165,000 a week. The supermarket said a 20 per cent rise in orders per week, with an annualised turnover of £750m, makes its website the fastest growing online grocery business. Overall, Sainsbury’s still ranks third behind Tesco and Asda, but the [...]
CITY VIEWS: DO YOU SHOP ONLINE? March 12, 2012 GEMMA COSTER FRIENDS LIFE “I don’t shop online, although I keep thinking I should do it because it does seem like a great idea. However, I haven’t got round to it yet. I definitely will though, as it seems convenient.” LEIGHTON GOULD EURO MONEY “I shop online at Tesco and I get it delivered, as [...]
Chief executives earn trust with honest answers March 12, 2012 WHEN Vincent de Rivaz, chief executive of EDF, recently gave an interview, he knew that trust in energy companies was at an all-time low. The interview was the perfect opportunity to start rebuilding it. So he mentioned “trust” – 61 times in fact – and little else. Unsurprisingly he was pilloried. EDF will wrongly blame [...]
WM Morrison aided by hunt for bargains March 8, 2012 A NEW breed of super shopper is hunting down bargains and posting tips on social networks, supermarket chain WM Morrison said yesterday. The chain, the UK’s fourth largest grocer, yesterday reported a profit of £947m in 2011 – up 8.4 per cent on the previous year. Chief executive Dalton Philips attributed some of the gains [...]
Morrisons profit up – but predicts tough 2012 March 8, 2012 Britain’s fourth-biggest grocer Wm Morrison said the UK grocery market was likely to remain subdued in the coming year despite easing inflationary pressures as it posted a eight per cent rise in year profit. “We expect a challenging year in 2012,” the firm said on Thursday, adding that it still expected to deliver profitable growth. [...]
Apple can even generate buzz with no product March 6, 2012 APPLE’S new iPad has had an impact even before it is unveiled. The product’s overall Buzz score on YouGov’s BrandIndex has increased by two points since the announcement of its release less than a week ago. Looking at longer term trends over the last year, we have seen the uninterrupted rise in its recommend scores [...]