London midday: Stocks flat as global services PMIs point to slowdown
6th Jan 2014 11:21
- UK, Eurozone, China services PMIs ease - Markets rangebound, little changed by midday - Takeover and break-up of RSA possible, says UBS - Retailers in focus ahead of sales updates techMARK 2,795.09 +0.23% FTSE 100 6,731.24 +0.01% FTSE 250 16,063.40 +0.27% The FTSE 100 was little changed on Monda
Read moreLondon open: Markets flat ahead of busy week, PMIs in focus
6th Jan 2014 08:15
- Services PMIs on tap, Chinese data weakens - RSA leads financials higher - Retailers in focus ahead of trading update, M&S falls techMARK 2,787.71 -0.03% FTSE 100 6,727.98 -0.04% FTSE 250 16,028.46 +0.05% UK markets opened broadly flat on Monday morning with gains in the financial sector offset
Read moreUK online sales rise but high street sales fall in Christmas trading
6th Jan 2014 07:50
UK online sales reached a new record in December while high street retail sales fell this Christmas, a new report from accountancy firm BDO revealed. December non-store sales jumped 31.1%, rising to growth of 55.7% in the week before Christmas. Traditional high street retail sales, on the other ha
Read moreLondon close: FTSE 100 gains as Next lifts retailers higher
3rd Jan 2014 16:57
- UK construction, mortgage data beats forecasts - UK house prices continue to rise, business lending falters - China service-sector data disappoints - Retailers rise as Next lifts guidance after Christmas techMARK 2,788.64 +0.59% FTSE 100 6,730.67 +0.19% FTSE 250 16,020.47 +0.64% UK markets push
Read moreSector movers: Retailers rise as Next spreads the Christmas cheer
3rd Jan 2014 16:03
Retail stocks had another strong showing on Friday after a bullish update from High Street bellwether Next, which ensured that investors put the negative readacross from the Debenhams profit warning firmly behind them. Fashion and homewares retailer Next raised its full-year profit guidance today f
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Next charges higher after strong trading report
3rd Jan 2014 15:15
Shares in Next rose to the top of the leaderboard today after the home and clothing retailer raised its full-year profit forecast after achieving a rise in fourth-quarter sales ahead of the UK retailer's expectations. The group also declared a 50p special dividend. Giving the group a further lift,
Read moreWeek ahead: Economic data, central banks and retailers in focus
3rd Jan 2014 12:00
Activity on financial markets is expected to ramp up significantly next week as trading returns to normal following a relatively quiet festive season in terms of corporate news and economic data. "The first week of each month is typically the busiest", according to Market Analyst Craig Erlam from
Read moreLondon midday: Retailers buoy markets, UK data comes in strong
3rd Jan 2014 11:31
- UK construction, mortgage data beats expectations - China services PMI eased in December - Next surges after bullish Q4 update, guidance techMARK 2,779.70 +0.26% FTSE 100 6,722.39 +0.07% FTSE 250 15,972.09 +0.33% Markets got off to a slow start on Friday morning but had pushed into positive terr
Read moreBroker tips: Next, Serco, Asset managers
3rd Jan 2014 11:27
Nomura has upgraded its rating for Next from 'neutral' to 'buy' after a bullish trading update on Friday, saying that the company has shown 'consistent execution'. Its target price for the stock has been hiked from 5,380p to 6,500p. "In our view, Next's strong delivery stems from its high hurdle ra
Read moreBroker snap: Nomura upgrades Next to 'buy'
3rd Jan 2014 10:29
Nomura has upgraded its rating for Next from 'neutral' to 'buy' after a bullish trading update on Friday, saying that the company has shown 'consistent execution'. The High Street retailer now expects pre-tax profit to total £684m-700m for the year to January 25th 2014, up 10-12.6% on the prior yea
Read moreLondon open: Markets lower after China data, but Next surges
3rd Jan 2014 08:16
- China services PMI eased in December - Markets on look-out for plenty of economic data - Next raises profit guidance - House of Fraser planning London listing techMARK 2,768.12 -0.15% FTSE 100 6,704.72 -0.20% FTSE 250 15,862.80 -0.35% UK markets opened slightly lower again on Friday as worsening
Read moreLondon pre-open: FTSE to extend Thursday's decline
3rd Jan 2014 07:26
City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open eight points below yesterday's close of 6,717.91, extending yesterday's losses after stocks in both the US and Asia declined overnight. The falls have been prompted by a raft of economic data out this week, which included less-than-impressive Chinese pur
Read moreNext raises full-year profit forecast
3rd Jan 2014 07:05
- Next raises annual profit guidance - Fourth quarter sales beat estimates - First half expected to slow down - Special divi of 50p declared Next has raised its full-year profit forecast after achieving a rise in fourth-quarter sales ahead of the UK retailer's expectations. The company expects pr
Read moreLondon close: Markets slip on mixed manufacturing data, but retailers gain
2nd Jan 2014 16:37
- FTSE 100 pulls back after recent strong run - Manufacturing growth eases in China, UK and US - Debenhams CFO departs after profit warning techMARK 2,772.41 -0.32% FTSE 100 6,717.91 -0.46% FTSE 250 15,919.09 -0.10% UK markets finished the first session of the new year in the red after a host of
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Randgold and retailers make gains
2nd Jan 2014 15:16
Randgold Resources made strong gains this afternoon, helped by a jump in the price of gold of more than two per cent. Rob Cohen, the Lead Portfolio Manager with Dynamic Funds, was also quoted as saying the company was a "good position to do acquisitions" and has a "really good balance sheet". Ha
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