London close: Footsie finishes in the red
13th Apr 2010 16:16
Footsie finished slightly in the red but recovered from earlier lows as the benchmark index slumped in the afternoon following a poor start on Wall Street. US aluminum producer Alcoa fell after revenue came in short of expectations, which weighed on the mining sector in the UK. Kazakhmys, Fresnill
Read moreLondon afternoon: Losses pared
13th Apr 2010 14:25
Footsie perked up over the lunch time session despite expectations of a weak start on Wall Street. Retail sales data has given a boost to retailers such as Kingfisher, Marks & Spencer, Next and Tesco. UK retail sales in March rose at their fastest rate in almost four years thanks to the earlier t
Read moreSector movers: Sales rise offsets Debenhams caution
13th Apr 2010 12:47
Retailers have come into focus and it appears that is a rise in sales across the sector in March rather than a rise in profits at Debenhams that has lifted sentiment. UK retail sales in March rose at their fastest rate in almost four years thanks to the earlier timing of Easter this year, new figur
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Kingfisher flies high
13th Apr 2010 12:44
Retail sales data has given a boost to retailers such as B&Q owner Kingfisher, clothes retailers Next and Marks & Spencer and the supermarkets Sainsbury's and Tesco. Sales in March rose at their fastest rate in almost four years thanks to the earlier timing of Easter this year, new figures from the
Read moreLondon midday: Equities drift lower
13th Apr 2010 12:07
Mining stocks remain a drag on the Footsie but retailers see some support following the release of upbeat retail sales data. UK retail sales in March rose at their fastest rate in almost four years thanks to the earlier timing of Easter this year, new figures from the British Retail Consortium show
Read moreSector movers: Broker upgrades lift retailers
7th Apr 2010 14:15
Retail stocks are flying off the shelves after some positive broker coverage. Kingfisher, the company behind the DIY retailer B&Q, is higher after Charles Stanley lifted its rating on the firm to 'accumulate' from 'hold'. 'We expect trading conditions to slowly improve in most markets as the globa
Read moreFTSE 100 bosses back Tory national insurance plans
1st Apr 2010 09:14
Leading lights from UK business have come out in support of Conservative plans to halt Labour's planned rise in National Insurance (NI). Bosses of large UK companies, including Justin King, chief executive of the supermarket operator J Sainsbury and Mick Davis chief executive of the mining giant Xs
Read moreLondon close: Footsie breaks 5,700
25th Mar 2010 16:14
Shares kept moving north through the afternoon session as Wall Street's march towards 11,000 helped propel the Footsie past 5,700 to a fresh 21-month high. London's leading index, which hasn't closed this high since 18 June, was headed by Thomas Cook as investors booked into the travel company foll
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Consumer businesses dominate
25th Mar 2010 15:01
Trading statements and results from retail and consumer businesses dominate the movers in the Footsie. Tour operator Thomas Cook reported a steady increase in bookings for the summer. "As the Winter 09/10 season draws to a close, trading has continued to show steady progress and Summer 10 bookin
Read moreLondon afternoon: Sunny outlook for Thomas Cook
25th Mar 2010 14:31
Footsie continued its upward trajectory over the lunchtime session, receiving a boost from the firm start on Wall Street. Tour operator Thomas Cook has moved to the top of the Footsie leaderboard after it echoed bullish comments from rival TUI about holiday bookings. The travel giant has reported
Read moreBroker tips: Next, easyJet, Man Group
25th Mar 2010 13:33
Preliminary results from fashion chain Next were slightly better than Panmure Gordon had been anticipating, with profit before tax coming in at £504.6m versus Panmure's prediction of £497.1m. The final dividend, at 47p, was also a lot more generous than Panmure Gordon's forecast of 41p, and 'shows
Read moreBroker snap: Next exceeds expectations
25th Mar 2010 13:31
Preliminary results from fashion chain Next were slightly better than Panmure Gordon had been anticipating, with profit before tax coming in at £504.6m versus Panmure's prediction of £497.1m. The final dividend, at 47p, was also a lot more generous than Panmure Gordon's forecast of 41p, and 'shows
Read moreLondon midday: Footsie above 5,700
25th Mar 2010 12:06
Footsie has climbed above 5,700 for the first time since June 2008 as a string of updates from the retail sector are mostly well-received. Next leads the risers in the FTSE 100. Pre-tax profits soared in 2009 after the desperate consumer environment the fashion retailer feared at the beginning of t
Read moreLondon open: Footsie higher as retailers reassure
25th Mar 2010 08:44
Footsie has opened steadily as investors mull the implications of the Budget and a series of updates from the retail sector. Pre-tax profits soared at Next in 2009 after the desperate consumer environment the fashion retailer feared at the beginning of the year failed to materialise. Pre-tax profi
Read moreLondon pre-open: Flat start expected
25th Mar 2010 07:36
A flat start is expected from the Footsie as investors mull a series of updates from the retail sector. Pre-tax profits soared at Next in 2009 after the desperate consumer environment the fashion retailer feared at the beginning of the year failed to materialise. Pre-tax profits climbed to £505.3m
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