Wednesday newspaper round-up: Interest rates, Egg, BP
4th Aug 2010 06:34
Interest rates may have to rise far more sharply than households and markets expect as the Bank of England moves to head off inflation risks, the former deputy governor said yesterday, the Times reports. Sir John Gieve told a City of London audience that solid economic growth could prompt the Bank
Read moreMARKET TALK: UK High Street Spending Shows Strength - Capital
27th Jul 2010 11:24
1024 GMT [Dow Jones] July's UK CBI distributive trades survey suggests High Street spending is roaring away, says Capital Economics, with the reported sales balance leaping to +33, its highest level in three years, from -5. CE says the underlying picture is probably a bit weaker than this and it is
Read moreLloyds In Talks To Sell GBP140M Of Retail Assets - Report
25th Jul 2010 14:14
LONDON (Dow Jones)--Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LLOY.LN) is in talks to sell GBP140 million of retail assets, the Mail on Sunday reports, without citing sources. It adds that Legal & General Property may buy the assets, but says other parties have also held talks over the assets sale. The 'LXB
Read moreAsda Ends Below-Cost Alcohol Sales
22nd Jul 2010 15:05
LONDON (Dow Jones)--Wal-Mart Stores Inc.'s (WMT) U.K. grocer Asda Group Ltd. Thursday said it has made an official commitment to the British government not to sell alcohol below the cost of duty plus value-added-tax. "I see this as a small but important first step in the process towards creating
Read moreAutonomy boss sells Blinkx shares
21st Jul 2010 16:49
Autonomy boss Dr Mike Lynch has sold shares in AIM-quoted video search engine operator Blinkx, which was spun out of Autonomy in 2007. Dr Lynch, who is a non-executive director of Blinkx, raised £487,500 from selling 750,000 shares at 65p each. He still owns more than 23.2m shares in Blinkx, equiva
Read moreTesco UK Grocery Market Share Falls To 30.7% For 12 Wks-Kantar
20th Jul 2010 14:19
LONDON (Dow Jones)--Tesco PLC's (TSCO.LN) U.K. grocery market share fell slightly to 30.7% in the 12 weeks ended July 11, according to Kantar Worldpanel market share data Tuesday. Tesco, the U.K.'s biggest retailer by sales, saw its market share fall from 30.8% for the same period last year.
Read moreDairy Crest Key Brands Sales Up 3% In 1Q; Plans To Cut Debt
20th Jul 2010 08:02
LONDON (Dow Jones)--U.K. dairy company Dairy Crest Group PLC (DCG.LN) Tuesday said first-quarter sales of its five core brands have increased 3% from a year earlier and it expects to make a "meaningful reduction" to its year-end debt. Dairy Crest, which makes Cathedral City cheese, Country Life
Read moreOcado Faces Down Ghosts Of The Past In Its Bid To Go Public
15th Jul 2010 11:05
By Barbara Kollmeyer Of MARKETWATCH Ten years after the highly publicized failure of U.S. online grocery delivery service Webvan, Britain's Ocado is gearing up for its own stock market debut, but facing ghosts of the past as well as accusations the price tag is too high. Its U.S. predece
Read moreExecutive pay deals waved through
14th Jul 2010 16:56
After the shenanigans at Tuesday's annual general meeting (AGM) for British Airways Wednesday's AGM for retailer J. Sainsbury was a relatively civil affair, although the thorny issue of executive remuneration raised its head, as expected. Chief executive Justin King, whose remuneration package la
Read moreUPDATE:Sainsbury Chairman Defends Senior Exec, CEO Pay Policy
14th Jul 2010 12:50
(Adds Chairman comment, detail.) By Simon Zekaria Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--J Sainsbury PLC's (SBRY.LN) Chairman David Tyler Wednesday defended the U.K. supermarket chain's senior executive remuneration policy and the pay awarded to Chief Executive Justin King at the compa
Read moreSainsbury Chairman Defends Senior Executive, CEO Pay Policy
14th Jul 2010 12:15
By Simon Zekaria Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES LONDON (Dow Jones)--J Sainsbury PLC's (SBRY.LN) Chairman David Tyler Wednesday defended the U.K. supermarket chain's senior executive remuneration policy and the pay awarded to Chief Executive Justin King at the company's annual shareholders meeting.
Read moreOcado Seeks To Scare Away Ghosts Of Webvan In Bid To Go Public
14th Jul 2010 00:52
By Barbara Kollmeyer Nearly 10 years ago after the highly publicized failure of U.S. online grocery delivery service Webvan, the United Kingdom's Ocado Ltd. is gearing up for its own stock market debut, facing ghosts of the past as well as accusations the price tag is too high. Its U.S. pr
Read moreWednesday preview: M&S, Barratt Devs., JD Wetherspoon
13th Jul 2010 16:17
After the sparky proceedings at the British Airways annual general meeting (AGM), Wednesday's AGM of Marks & Spencer's shareholders may seem like a model of decorum but it is not expected to pass without incident. Director remuneration is likely to prove the hot issue. The new chief executive, Mar
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Banks, Taylor Wimpey, Google
12th Jul 2010 06:42
A battle to break into Britain's crowded high street banking market is in the offing with an American private equity firm and a British consortium both gearing up for acquisitions. The New York-based JC Flowers is in talks to take control of Kent Reliance, a building society with only one branch. T
Read moreMARKET TALK: Sainsbury CEO Share Sale Dampens Qatari Rumours
9th Jul 2010 08:37
0737 GMT [Dow Jones] Sainsbury (SBRY.LN) Chief Executive Justin King's share sale Thursday dampened speculation that the Qataris are preparing a 500p a share bid for the grocer, Arden Partners analyst Nick Bubb says. "There never really seemed too much justification in the first place for the view t
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