Blacks hires new chief exec as it narrows losses May 4, 2011 BLACKS Leisure yesterday named Julia Reynolds as its new chief executive as the outdoor retailer tries to complete a dramatic turnaround after surviving being on the brink of adminstration. Reynolds has been working as chief executive at lingerie retail website Figleaves.com which was bought by N Brown last year. She has overseen growth of sales [...]
A truly useful, if less than sexy, resource for the novice investor May 4, 2011 HOW TO BUILD A SHARE PORTFOLIO BY RODNEY HOBSON Harriman House, £16.99 Phillip Salter IF you own a handful of UK shares but lack a strategy beyond: “I like to shop at Tesco, so I bought a few of its shares,” this book will help you build a financial future upon more secure foundations. Written [...]
FTSE flat as investors await news of Fed’s monetary policy April 27, 2011 BRITAIN’S top share index ended flat yesterday ahead of Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s news conference which could provide clues on the Fed’s future plans for its monetary policy. The blue-chip FTSE 100 was down 1.2 points or 0.02 per cent at 6,068.16, having hit a 9-week closing high on Tuesday. Volume was only 87.6 [...]
Tesco Bank lags its parent supermarket brand April 26, 2011 WITH Tesco boss Phil Clarke saying that expanding its presence within the banking sector is one of his top priorities we’ve looked at BrandIndex data to make an assessment of the potential it has there. Tesco Bank itself does not fare especially well at the moment. On the index measure it is in 18th place [...]
FTSE buoyed by upbeat corporate results April 26, 2011 Strong corporate results and positive broker research buoyed the FTSE today, leading the market to its highest close in more than two months. The FTSE 100 closed 0.9 per cent higher at 6.069.36 in low volumes following the long Easter weekend and ahead of a second four-day weekend to celebrate the Royal wedding and Mayday. [...]
Retail sales up as public borrowing improves April 21, 2011 Retail sales rose unexpectedly in March helped by stronger food sales on the month, while public sector borrowing for the fiscal year ending in March came in below the government’s target, official data showed. The Office for National Statistics said retail sales volumes including automotive fuel rose 0.2 percent last month after dropping by 0.9 [...]
Tesco snaps up web movie firm Blinkbox April 20, 2011 TESCO yesterday announced the shock acquisition of video on demand service Blinkbox. The cost of the deal for 80 per cent of the firm was not disclosed but one industry source told City A.M. the price is likely to have been low, based on his knowledge of Blinkbox’s financial figures. Tesco has bought the stake [...]
Grocer takes on Amazon in film rentals April 20, 2011 TESCO’s acquisition of Blinkbox could see it go head-to-head with Amazon in a clash of the retail titans. Amazon recently bought movie rental site LoveFilm and is keen to develop its online movie streaming operations. It is understood Amazon plans to integrate LoveFilm into its Amazon Prime subscription service, giving its premium customers access to [...]
CITY VIEWS: WOULD YOU BANK WITH TESCO? April 20, 2011 RAFE HEYDEL-MANKOO | MERCER “Yes – the ease of having the bank on site with the supermarkets makes it convenient. Also, because of its volume it has the ability to cut costs compared to other banks, which makes it attractive.” ALASTAIR GRAHAM | GARP “Yes, it has simple and straightforward products that are understood by [...]
Lawyers eye IPO market to raise funds April 20, 2011 A SWATHE of City law firms are said to be considering plans to list on the stock market, ahead of sweeping changes to the way they are funded due later this year. Personal injury specialist Irwin Mitchell fired the starting gun yesterday, after it revealed it had hired investment bank Espirito Santo to advise it [...]