London open: UK stocks rise ahead of data, but Thorntons plummets
23rd Dec 2014 08:58
UK stocks jumped again on Tuesday as the pre-Christmas rally continued, with markets extending a two-week high ahead of a barrage of economic data. London's FTSE 100 was up 0.6% at 6,618 early on, rising for the sixth straight session. The index closed at 6,576.74 on Monday, its highest finish since
Read moreSector movers: Grocers fall as Tesco faces fresh inquiry
22nd Dec 2014 15:44
Tesco dampened the food and drug retail sector on Monday as news of a fresh investigation into the struggling supermarket chain weighed on investor confidence. Accounting watchdog, the Financial Reporting Council (FRC), said that it has launched an inquiry into the "preparation, approval and audit"
Read more'Challenging conditions' to weigh on grocery markets for two years, says Sainsbury's CEO
21st Dec 2014 14:51
It could take up to two years before "extremely challenging" conditions in the grocery market improved, Mike Coupe, the chief executive of Sainsbury's, said on Sunday. "First, as of today, there's no sign the grocery market is going to return to volume growth and that would be a tipping point," he w
Read moreSector movers: Tesco leads grocers higher on customer-service push, strong data
18th Dec 2014 16:06
A surge in the share price of supermarket giant Tesco gave the UK food and drug retail sector a big boost on Thursday, as investors reacted to upbeat economic data and showed optimism about the company's turnaround efforts. Figures released on Thursday showed that the annual rate of retail sales gro
Read moreLondon close: Shares soar on upbeat Eurozone and bank news
16th Dec 2014 16:26
London shares bounced back on Tuesday in the wake of some long-awaited upbeat economic data in the Eurozone and positive news for UK banks. The FTSE 100 Index climbed 149.11 points to 6331.83 as Markit's purchasing managers' index (PMI) for euro-area manufacturing rose to 50.8 in December from 50.1
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Sainsbury hit by Kantar Worldpanel report
16th Dec 2014 14:36
Supermarket J Sainsbury fell on Tuesday after Kantar Worldpanel released a report revealing the group's sales fell 1.8% in the 12 weeks to 7 December while its market share fell. The Big Four grocers continue to be overshadowed by exceptionally strong growth from the discount end of the market, name
Read moreSector movers: Grocery stocks tank after yet another profit warning from Tesco
9th Dec 2014 15:20
Another profit warning from Tesco shattered already-fragile sentiment in the supermarket sector on Tuesday with grocery stocks falling sharply. Tesco's shares were down 7.4% at 173.4p in afternoon trade, having dropped as much as 16% early on, after the retail giant surprised the market with an unsc
Read moreLondon open: Stocks sideswiped by oil plunge, growth concerns, Tesco profit warning
9th Dec 2014 09:24
UK stocks dropped sharply for the second straight session on Tuesday as plummeting oil prices, macro concerns and a profit warning from retail giant Tesco hammered market sentiment. After losing 1% of its value the previous session, London's FTSE 100 was down a further 1.3% at 6,584 in early deals.
Read moreLondon close: FTSE 100 drops over 1% as oil and mining stocks drop
8th Dec 2014 16:29
Weakness in the oil and gas sectors and poor economic data from across the globe prompted a weak start to the week for the UK stock market, as equities pulled back from a two-week high. With crude prices tumbling to their lowest in over five years, oil producers and stocks in the oil services sector
Read moreLondon midday: UK stocks pull back from two-week high as global data disappoints
8th Dec 2014 12:16
Weak global economic data and a bout of profit taking following last week's strong US jobs report saw UK stocks decline on Monday. London's equity market reached a two-week high on Friday, while Wall Street indices reached new records after the news that the US economy added 321,000 jobs in November
Read moreLondon open: Stocks hit by weak data from Japan, China and Germany
8th Dec 2014 09:19
A steeper-than-expected recession in Japan and poor data from China and Germany dampened market sentiment on Monday, with UK stocks starting the week on the back foot. London's FTSE 100 was trading 0.5% lower at 6,712 early on after closing out last week at 6,742.84, its highest close since 21 Novem
Read moreSainsbury could become target of activist share raid, report claims
8th Dec 2014 08:31
Sainsbury could become the target of a share raid that could lead to an attempt to take over of the supermarket giant, a report by the Telegraph said over the weekend. According to the newspaper, activist hedge fund Crystal Amber Fund is believed to be holding discussions with a number of internatio
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: BP, Sainsbury, Premier Foods
7th Dec 2014 17:59
BP will shed middle managers and put projects on hold as it deals with the falling price of oil, the Sunday Times reported. Finance Director Brian Gilvary told the paper headcounts were falling across all operations and that it would cut the estimated price of oil it uses for budgeting. Gilvary said
Read moreSector movers: Sainsbury leads grocery stocks higher
2nd Dec 2014 14:28
Food and drug retailers were the best-performing stocks on Tuesday, with supermarkets leading the charge. The wider retail sector has performed well over recent sessions on the back of the recent plunge in oil prices, with shops hoping that less pressure on customers' wallets will lead to a pick-up
Read moreSunday newspaper round-up: Balfour Beatty, Canary Wharf, Vodafone
30th Nov 2014 15:25
Balfour Beatty could be broken up as John Laing Infrastructure Fund considers a billion-pound bid for the company's investment arm, the Sunday Times reported. John Laing is interested in bidding for Balfour's 60 private finance initiative (PFI) contracts. It would leave Balfour with a business worth
Read more