Thursday newspaper round-up: HMV, Cadbury, Tesco
14th Jan 2010 06:12
HMV, the music and book retailer, is in advanced talks with Luminar over a partnership deal that analysts believe could lead ultimately to a takeover of the embattled nightclub operator. The Times understands that the two companies are discussing the possibility of setting up a small number of pilot
Read moreLondon close: Commodity slide hits Footsie
13th Jan 2010 16:32
Footsie ended the day firmly in the red with low commodity prices helping to offset positive broker coverage. With the oil price below $80, oil titans Royal Dutch Shell and BP found themselves on traders' sell lists. BG Group also slipped even after HSBC upped its price target for the stock from 13
Read moreLondon afternoon: Leading shares mixed
13th Jan 2010 14:57
Leading shares are mixed having picked up a little over the lunch time session, helped by a firmer start on Wall Street. With the oil price below $80, oil titans Royal Dutch Shell and BP find themselves on traders' sell lists, but BG Group makes headway after HSBC upped its price target for the st
Read moreTesco/British Land JV completes £315m refinancing
13th Jan 2010 13:46
A 50/50 joint venture between British Land and supermarket chain Tesco has completed the refinance of its retail portfolio with a new £315m five-year term loan. Tesco BL Properties Limited (TBL), set up in 1999, used the funds to repay the existing bank loan on its scheduled maturity date. A new l
Read moreBroker tips: Tesco, building materials, chipmakers
13th Jan 2010 12:17
A 'solid' Christmas at Tesco's UK stores has impressed JP Morgan, which raised its price target on the supermarket chain and promised to review its rating if the performance continues. UK like for like sales in the six weeks to 9 January, excluding petrol and VAT, rose 4.9%, better than the 3.7% pr
Read moreBroker snap: Tesco re-rating on the cards
13th Jan 2010 09:06
A 'solid' Christmas at Tesco's UK stores has impressed JP Morgan, which raised its price target on the supermarket chain and promised to review its rating if the performance continues. UK like for like sales in the six weeks to 9 January, excluding petrol and VAT, rose 4.9%, better than the 3.7% pr
Read moreWednesday tips round-up: Tesco, Balfour Beatty, Dechra
13th Jan 2010 06:36
Tesco is leagues ahead of its UK competition in terms of global reach, scale and ambition. In fact, it is the only UK supermarket with any overseas operations at all, and one of just a few British retailers with international stores. The stock trades on a 2011 price earnings ratio of 13.2 times.
Read moreLondon close: Footsie finishes below 5,500
12th Jan 2010 17:17
Equities staged a rally in the afternoon session but it was not enough to push the Footsie back into the black, largely because of weak miners, which took fright at moves by the Chinese central bank to cool down the economy by increasing the reserves ratio for Chinese commercial banks. Fresnillo, L
Read moreLondon afternoon: Chinese banking move sparks selling
12th Jan 2010 14:47
News that China has raised the reserve requirements for its banks in an attempt to choke growth in the economy has spooked global markets, including London. The prospect of China slowing down economic expansion does not sit well with miners such as Fresnillo, Lonmin, Kazakhmys, Vedanta and Xstrata,
Read moreSector movers: Tesco lifts food retail sector
12th Jan 2010 14:37
A strong Christmas trading update from Tesco has given the food retail sector a lift. The supermarket giant said it enjoyed its best Christmas in three years as shoppers braved the winter weather to stock up on festive treats. In the six weeks to January 9, the firm posted a 5.1% year-on-year ris
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: Miners head lower
12th Jan 2010 12:18
Footsie is well down on the day as world economic concerns take the spotlight. The fallers are dominated by mining companies. News that China is trying to dampen down the growth in its economy hit commodities. Disappointing results from aluminium producer Alcoa didn't help, either. Fresnillo, Lo
Read moreLondon midday: Retreat picks up pace
12th Jan 2010 12:11
The market's retreat is picking up pace, as the losses suffered by miners lengthen in the wake of disappointing results from Alcoa, the US aluminium producer. Alcoa, which kicked off the fourth quarter earnings reporting season in the US, declared a slightly worse than expected loss from continuing
Read moreLondon open: Dull start despite Tesco cheer
12th Jan 2010 08:52
It's retail all the way today with Christmas trading statements from a host of a names including Tesco and Debenhams. So far, investors don't seem over impressed even though supermarket giant Tesco enjoyed its best Christmas in three years as shoppers braved the winter weather to stock up on festiv
Read moreLondon pre-open: Early gains expected
12th Jan 2010 07:40
Footsie is expected to post slight gains in early dealings after a higher close in the US last night. Supermarket giant Tesco said it enjoyed its best Christmas in three years as shoppers braved the winter weather to stock up on festive treats. In the six weeks to January 9, the firm posted a 5.1%
Read moreTesco Christmas sales beat expectations
12th Jan 2010 07:03
Supermarket giant Tesco said it enjoyed its best Christmas in three years as shoppers braved the winter weather to stock up on festive treats. In the six weeks to January 9, the firm posted a 5.1% year-on-year rise in like-for-like sales excluding petrol and VAT at its UK business, ahead of expecta
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