Tuesday preview: Tesco, Debenhams, housing activity
11th Jan 2010 15:38
The Christmas trading statement from supermarket giant Tesco, covering the six weeks to 9 January, will probably see the company's like for like sales growth trailing in the wake of its main rivals. Rival supermarket operator Sainsbury has set the bar fairly high, after it reported the final quart
Read moreMonday newspaper round-up: Cadbury, Royal Bank of Scotland, Tesco
11th Jan 2010 06:37
Cadbury will fight for its independence on Monday with a defence document that includes only headline trading figures and no audited management forecast for 2010. The confectionery company, behind Dairy Milk and Trident gum, will fight Kraft's £10.5bn hostile cash and share offer by unveiling a mea
Read moreWeek Ahead: Tesco, Game, HMV
8th Jan 2010 09:30
Thursday looks like being a busy day for investment analysts covering the retail sector, with Halfords, Home Retail and Mothercare all bringing out Christmas trading updates. Before that, however, they will have to get to grips with the Christmas trading statement from supermarket giant Tesco. Riv
Read moreLondon midday: Bank sits on hands
7th Jan 2010 11:51
London drifted lower ahead of the announcement of the Bank of England's quantitative easing and interest rate decision, which, as expected, left both the level of interest rates and the scale of the quanititative easing programme unchanged. Mining stocks are proving to be a millstone round Footsie'
Read moreLondon open: Miners offset strong supermarkets
7th Jan 2010 08:14
Miners are leading London's top stocks lower in early dealings on Thursday, offsetting strong demand in supermarket groups. Eurasian Natural Resources, Kazakhmys, Randgold Resources, Antofagasta, Xstrata and BHP Billiton are among the worst performers. On the positive side, Sainsbury, Tesco and Mo
Read moreLondon close: More gains for FTSE 100
6th Jan 2010 16:34
It was another day of gains for the FTSE 100 after the leading share index hauled itself into the blue in afternoon trading. Marks & Spencer was among the stocks dragging Footsie lower and finished firmly in the red. It was not the numbers from the fashion and food retailer that upset the market s
Read moreFTSE 100 movers: M&S update disappoints
6th Jan 2010 14:07
Two stocks stand out in the FTSE 100. Fashion and food retailer Marks and Spencer has fallen after reporting strong Christmas trading while sounding caution on 2010 prospects. But data search and interpretative software specialist Autonomy is the top riser after saying it expects to report 2009 re
Read moreLondon afternoon: Leading shares mixed
6th Jan 2010 13:50
The list of Footsie constituents is now almost evenly split between risers and fallers but the blue-chip index remains in negative territory, weighed down by Marks & Spencer, which remains out of favour after a disappointing trading update. It was not the numbers from Marks & Spencer that upset th
Read moreLondon midday: No sparks from Marks
6th Jan 2010 11:52
Leading shares were attempting their second rally of the morning as the lunchtime session started, but almost two-thirds of FTSE 100 constituents remain in the red. Chief among them is M&S. The cold weather may have seen woolly jumpers and slippers fly off the shelves at Marks & Spencer in the days
Read moreWednesday paper round-up: Snow, Bonus tax, Cadbury
6th Jan 2010 06:25
The heaviest snowfall in almost 50 years is hitting parts of Britain as Arctic weather brought nationwide chaos, the Telegraph reports. As the country was plunged into one of its worst winters for decades, the Met Office issued an emergency weather warning for all counties of the UK. The South, inc
Read moreLondon close: Strong run continues
5th Jan 2010 16:40
Strength in the financial sector helped Footsie continue its strong start to 2009, closing near its highest levels in more than a year. RBS added to yesterday's stellar gains and is joined higher by fellow banks Barclays and Lloyds. The latter pair have been selected by Deutsche Bank as the best t
Read moreLondon afternoon: Cadbury melts as Nestle withdraws
5th Jan 2010 14:26
The Footsie moved sideways over the lunch time session, with strength in financials and miners continuing to offset weakness among retailers. RBS adds to yesterday's stellar gains and is joined higher by fellow banks Barclays and Lloyds. The latter pair have been selected by Deutsche Bank as the b
Read moreLondon midday: Banks buoy Footsie
5th Jan 2010 12:18
Strength in financial stocks is helping Footsie offset declines in the retail sector. RBS adds to yesterday's stellar gains and is joined higher by fellow banks Barclays and Lloyds. Also among today's big gainers is the hedge fund manager Man Group, which has benefited from some upbeat coverage fr
Read moreLondon open: Retailers lead Footsie lower
5th Jan 2010 08:15
London's top stocks have opened lower as retailers fall back at the beginning of the Christmas sales reporting season. High street retailer Next is lower even though it increased full-year profit forecasts again in response to better than expected sales in the run up to Christmas. Sales for the 2
Read moreRetailers adopt different tactics over VAT rise
31st Dec 2009 10:36
Shoppers hit the high street today for last-minute bargains ahead the VAT rise tomorrow but face confusion in the new year as retailers adopt different tactics to the tax rise. A number of high street chains said they will delay raising the VAT for the time being, while others are freezing the rise
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