Greggs on a Christmas roll - UPDATE
11th Jan 2012 07:11
Bakery and hot snacks vendor Greggs was on a roll over Christmas, with like-for-like (LFL) sales growth of 5.1% in the five weeks to January 7th. Total sales grew by 10.8% for the period. For 2011 as a whole, total sales were up 5.8% from 2010 but the crucial LFL sales figure only rose 1.4%. The
Read moreGreggs to open on motorways
19th Oct 2011 07:32
Not content with having an outlet on just about every high street in the country, baked snacks retailer Greggs is to start peddling its wares at motorway service stations. The company is to start a trial with Moto, the operator of service stations, with two outlets being opened under a franchise ag
Read moreLondon midday: Stocks tread water ahead of US jobs data
7th Oct 2011 12:46
Losses are reasonably modest considering that some heavyweights from the banking sector are in the doldrums following a downgrade of 12 financial institutions by ratings agency Moody's. Stocks seem to be treading water ahead of a key employment report due out in the US before the opening bell in N
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie up 2% as BoE injects more money
6th Oct 2011 12:07
The Footsie has held onto gains following the Bank of England's surprise move to increase its asset purchase programme by a bigger-than-expected £75bn. In an announcement at midday, the central bank revealed that it has maintained its key Bank Rate at the historically low level of 0.5%, but raised
Read moreLondon open: Miners in demand ahead of rate decisions
6th Oct 2011 08:35
Strong gains were made on the Footsie in early trade as investors await key policy rate decisions from the Bank of England (BoE) and the European Central Bank (ECB). Meanwhile, the market extended Wednesday's gains on hopes that the European Union is planning for a co-ordinated recapitalisation of
Read moreGreggs on a roll
6th Oct 2011 07:30
Bakery chain Greggs served up a 0.8% increase in third quarter like-for-like sales and remains confident in its full year prospects despite the persistently tough retail environment. The Newcastle based baker reported total third quarter sales of 5.4%. Year to date sales increased 4.6% while equiva
Read moreLondon pre-open: Rally still has legs
6th Oct 2011 07:22
A strong showing on Wall Street yesterday has given renewed heart to London, where the top-share index is set to open around 50 points up from yesterday's close of 5,102. Bikes and car parts seller Halfords was thankful for its recently acquired Autocentres business, which notched up a 3.1% year-o
Read moreThursday preview: Central banks may be poised to act
5th Oct 2011 15:58
Attention on Thursday will be directed toward the Bank of England (BoE) and the European Central Bank (ECB), both of which are expected, by some at least, to announce changes to recent policy. Though there has been talk of the Old Lady of Threadneedle Street cutting the UK benchmark interest rate f
Read moreLondon midday: Banks plummet, retailers buck trend
4th Oct 2011 12:29
A decent performance from the retail sector was not enough to pull the market higher by lunchtime, as investors bailed out of banking, engineering and mining stocks on concerns over the global economy. Jean-Claude Juncker, chairman of the Eurogroup finance minister committee, has said that there wi
Read moreFriday tips round-up: Lloyds, Anglo Pacific, Greggs...
12th Aug 2011 06:50
Lloyds makes most its profit in the UK, and the news on the British economy has been fairly grim. Like all UK banks, it also faces regulatory uncertainty. It has to sell 632 branches under its competition agreement with the EU and the Independent Commission on Banking (ICB) wants it to offload a fur
Read moreLondon close: Footsie bounces after morning sell-off
9th Aug 2011 16:45
Following another steep decline in early trading, the Footsie clawed its way back, surging nearly 400 points since the mid-morning to finish 1.89% higher. The blue chip index closed up 96 points. All eyes are on the Federal Reserve's monetary policy meeting, with markets eagerly waiting to hear of
Read moreRetailers count costs of riots
9th Aug 2011 14:42
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) said it is seeking "urgent action" on the riots that have engulfed parts of London and other English cities. Many properties across the city lay in ruins after being set ablaze in a third night of riots that appear to have been sparked by the police shooting a ma
Read moreFTSE 250 Movers: New World bounces back
9th Aug 2011 12:44
In what has been a very volatile day of trading in London, a number of yesterday's big fallers are attracting the attention of bagain hunters. Among them is New World Resources, the central Europe focused coal miner, which is back on the up after its share price came tumbling down on Monday in line
Read moreLondon pre-open: Footsie set to dive below 5,000
9th Aug 2011 07:30
Investors had better get used to the value of the Footsie starting with the number four as the blue-chip index is set for a triple-digit dive at the outset, following last night's nightmare on Wall Street. City traders predict the top-share index will open at around 4,960, down 109 points from last
Read moreGreggs feels the pinch
9th Aug 2011 07:07
Even Greggs, the bakery chain famous for cheap takeaway snacks, is suffering from the tough consumer environment. Like-for-like sales in the 26 weeks to 2 July were up by just 0.4% from the same period a year ago. "Trading conditions have proved to be more challenging than we had expected and we
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