B&Q owner says DIY sales driven by household energy concerns as profit forecast trimmed November 24, 2022 Kingfisher has seen customers forking out to improve their household energy efficiency, as the B&Q owner shaved its full-year profit outlook. In a trading update for the third quarter, the retail titan posted sales of £3.3bn, a 0.2 per cent boost on the previous year. The Screwfix owner previously reaped the rewards of a pandemic [...]
UK economy arrests decline but recession still coming November 23, 2022 The UK economy has arrested a decline, but it still looks likely to tip into a long recession, a closely watched survey out today has unveiled. S&P Global and the Chartered Institute of Procurement and Supply’s (CIPS) flash purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for November inched up to 48.3 points from 48.2 in October. It is [...]
Pets At Home: Animal ownership ‘not just Covid trend’ as profit slips November 23, 2022 The chief of Pets At Home has said pet owners are keen to treat their animals still, as the FTSE 250 firm posts subdued profit before tax. In interim results, the London-listed business posted underlying profit before tax of £59.2m, some 9.3 per cent below its previous half-year sum of £65.3m. Profit slipped due to [...]
Energy boss calls on suppliers to offer innovative solutions to survive November 22, 2022 Energy suppliers have to offer creative options to customers if they are to survive, argued the boss of Utility Warehouse.
Harrods sees £15m drop in business rates assessment as retail undergoes dramatic revaluation November 21, 2022 More than half a million retail properties across England and Wales have now been revalued with new rateable values, which will be used to calculate business rates liabilities from 1 April 20023 to 31 March 2026, having been published showing a fall of 10 per ccent overall for the sector. The Valuation Office Agency, an [...]
Exclusive: ‘We’re beyond the point of Pizza Fridays,’ warns City workplace insider November 19, 2022 The City and businesses across the UK have hearing about “digital transformation” for years. But it took the watershed year of 2020 to really highlight just how businesses and organisations need to align technology solutions to their business goals. While the real life test case for digital transformation was playing out in front of our [...]
The Tory knives are out as Jacob Rees-Mogg calls Hunt’s Budget cuts ‘undeliverable’ November 18, 2022 The Chancellor’s spending cuts may prove “undeliverable” as Jeremy Hunt faces criticism from a range of senior Tories for raising taxes as he seeks to rebuild the UK’s battered public finances. Former business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg accused the Chancellor of taking the “easy option” in Thursday’s autumn statement rather than bearing down harder on public [...]
Fuller’s boosted by commuters returning to London as gov offers ‘close to zero support’ for pubs November 17, 2022 The government has not issued any “meaningful support” for the pub sector, the boss of Fuller, Smith & Turner, told CityA.M., following the autumn budget. Although the country now had a “very strong” Prime Minister and “very solid” Chancellor in place, the pub sector had been offered “close to zero support” amid a worsening economic [...]
OBR: UK is already in recession and taxes on course for post World War II high November 17, 2022 The UK is already in a recession that will burn a huge hole in the public finances, forcing the government to hike taxes to their highest level since just after the Second World War in the 1940s, the country’s fiscal watchdog warned today in forecasts published alongside Jeremy Hunt’s autumn statement. The Office for Budget [...]
Size matters: Why tiny Qatar decided it needed to host the World Cup November 16, 2022 Sport business and geopolitics expert Professor Simon Chadwick explains the economic, security-related and nation-building reasons why Qatar is hosting the World Cup. With the start of the men’s World Cup in Qatar imminent, fans are looking ahead to the action starting. Some will be anticipating Harry Kane retaining his Golden Boot, though others may feel [...]