Broker snap: Slowdown at Sainsbury
23rd Mar 2011 10:57
Financial services firm Matrix expressed disappointment over Sainsbury's weak trading statement, as the supermarket giant grew like for like (LfL) sales by less than expected during the fourth quarter. Sainsbury revealed slowing fourth quarter sales in the 10 weeks to 19 March, with an increase of
Read moreLondon open: Market unsettled as Sainbury's disappoints
23rd Mar 2011 09:00
Budget days are normally quiet, but supermarket giant J Sainsbury's slightly disappointing trading update has unsettled the mood. Caution ahead of today's speech by the Chancellor will also be keeping some on the sidelines. Supermarket giant Sainsbury's grew like for like sales by slightly less th
Read moreLondon pre-open: Stocks to retreat
23rd Mar 2011 07:33
Selling on Wall Street last night and in Asia this morning look like knocking London back for a second day. Worries about the nuclear situation in Japan and violence in Libya and the Middle East are still unsettling investors. Caution ahead of today's Budget speech will also be keeping some on the
Read moreSales growth slows at Sainsbury's
23rd Mar 2011 06:56
Supermarket giant Sainsbury's grew like for like sales by slightly less than expected during the fourth quarter following a widely-predicted slowdown since Christmas. Like for like sales excluding fuel but including VAT rose 1% in the 10 weeks to 19 March compared with 3.6% in the third quarter and
Read moreWednesday preview: BoE minutes, Budget, Sainsbury
22nd Mar 2011 18:38
Corporate news is set to take a back seat to economic news as Wednesday sees the release of the minutes from the most recent meeting of the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), and it is also the day the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, delivers his second Budget speech. The MPC has become
Read moreBroker tips: Power companies, Sainsbury, Aveva
18th Mar 2011 13:07
The unfolding events in Japan are likely to have shifted the public's perception of nuclear energy, but it is still very early to say exactly how this will affect the UK power sector, according to broker Matrix. "We have analysed a number of speculative global policy responses to show the impact on
Read moreBroker snap: Sainsbury's growth to slacken in 2011
18th Mar 2011 11:08
Although supermarket giant Sainsbury is still leading the pack in terms of sales growth, Nomura lowers its forecasts, saying that the 2011 calendar year is increasingly likely to be a low growth period for the UK grocery market. The Japanese broker expects the group to post a fourth quarter like-fo
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Tesco, BAE Systems, Budget...
7th Mar 2011 06:47
Britain's leading supermarkets have been accused of misleading planning authorities by claiming to create tens of thousands of jobs when actually they employ fewer workers than they did two years ago. Tesco and J Sainsbury have made extravagant claims about the number of jobs they create in order t
Read moreRetailers warn government on costs
3rd Mar 2011 13:26
Retailers have warned the government not to increase taxation and other costs on the sector. The warning came at a meeting with chief secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander organised by the British Retail Council (BRC), which included Sainsbury's chief executive Justin King and John Lewis Partne
Read moreSupermarkets profiteering from rising food prices
1st Mar 2011 14:19
Expanding food margins have outpaced the rising cost of food, leading to claims of profiteering at the UK's biggest supermarkets. Food prices in the UK have risen more sharply than any other member economy of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and have "significantly
Read moreSainsbury boss raises nearly £200,000
15th Feb 2011 16:35
Sainsbury chief executive Justin King has raised nearly £200,000 by selling shares in the supermarket group. He has sold 50,000 shares at 390.15p each, which leaves him with 1,392,878 shares in Sainsbury. This is the first significant deal by King since last July when he sold 172,446 shares awar
Read moreSABMiller non-exec tops up
19th Jan 2011 15:49
SABMiller non-executive Geoffrey Bible has taken more than £1.2m worth of shares in the brewing giant following its third quarter trading update. Bible, who has been with the company since 2002, took 55,000 shares at 2,211p a time having previously had none. The purchase came on the same day SABMi
Read moreGovernment's low-cost alcohol initiative lacks bottle
18th Jan 2011 14:24
The coalition government is set to announce new measures on Tuesday designed to cut back on the practice of retailers offering deep discounts on alcoholic drinks. Though the new proposals will not prevent shops from selling alcoholic drinks as "loss leaders", it is understood that the government wi
Read moreSainsbury's manager jailed for Nectar fruad
14th Jan 2011 17:12
A former IT manager at supermarket chain Sainsbury's was today jailed for 20 months after being convicted of stealing Nectar points worth more than £80,000. James Stevenson, 45, an employee with the supermarket chain for 20 years, awarded himself more than 17m points using false accounts. In court
Read moreThursday newspaper round-up: Oil price, food prices, euro
13th Jan 2011 06:07
Business leaders expressed alarm last night after the price of oil leapt to its highest level in more than two years, trading within a whisker of $100 per barrel. The chief executive of Sainsbury's added his voice to concerns that the soaring price could derail the economic recovery. Justin King sai
Read more