UK investment advisers return to market as standards boost confidence August 15, 2013 The number of retail investment advisers operating in the UK increased by five per cent in the period December 2012 to July 2013, according to figures from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The FCA believes this is down to advisers re-entering the market. Consumer confidence in particular has been boosted by the professional standards set [...]
Sunny weather sparks sharp growth in UK retail sales August 15, 2013 UK retail sales smashed expectations in July as a heatwave drove more customers into stores (release). Year-on-year, UK retail sales increased by 3.0 per cent, beating already optimistic expectations of a 2.5 per cent increase from 2.2 per cent growth the month before. Growth came primarily from the food and non-store retailing sectors, with the [...]
BT teams up with Virgin Media in football battle against Sky August 15, 2013 BT and Virgin Media have announced a three year deal that will give Virgin Media TV customers access to BT Sport TV channels (release). The deal will come into effect from this weekend, and will give Virgin Media’s 3.8m XL customers access to BT Sport 1, BT Sport 2 and ESPN. The deal will boost [...]
Record number of students accepted to university August 15, 2013 UCAS, the UK's university admissions service, has said the number of students accepted onto university courses reached a record high of 385,910 today – a nine per cent increase on the year before. Students across the country are waiting to find out their A level results today, with many hoping to continue on to higher [...]
H&M reports first fall in monthly sales since March August 15, 2013 High street fashion retailer H&M has reported an unexpected fall in like-for-like sales in July – the first monthly drop since March. Comparable sales fell one per cent in local currencies, against forecasts of a one per cent increase. Total sales for the month were up nine per cent in local currencies, slightly missing expectations [...]
Central London property investors report boom in business from Tech City August 15, 2013 Central London-focused property investment and development company Derwent London has reported a significant increase in business in London’s “Tech Belt” as it pre-tax profits more than doubled in the first half of the year (release). Profits before tax rose to £219.8m from £102.8m in the same period the year before, while basic earnings per share [...]
Cineworld breaks out the popcorn as box office hits send profits soaring August 15, 2013 Cineworld has reported a 24 per cent growth in pre-tax profits and a 22 per cent jump in group revenues in the first half of the year (release). Pre-tax profits rose to £16.5m from £13.3m in the same period the year before, while group revenues rose to £201.6m from £165.4m. Basic earnings per share rose [...]
Before the open – 15/08 August 15, 2013 The Nikkei dropped sharply last night after finance minister Taro Aso denied prime minister Shinzo Abe was not considering a corporate tax cut – as the Nikkei newspaper had previously reported on Tuesday. Many have said such a tax cut would be a huge shot in the arm for Japan, which is languishing under huge [...]
Imperial Tobacco warns of weakness in EU and Eastern Europe August 15, 2013 Imperial Tobacco has reported it is on track to deliver full-year performance in line with expectations after making good progress to reform its strategy in the nine months ending 30 June 2013 (release). Since its half yearly report, Imperial Tobacco said it had realigned its “geographic footprint” based on the markets set to generate returns [...]
Bloomberg confirms it is internally testing bitcoin ticker August 15, 2013 Bloomberg staff are testing a bitcoin terminal internally, a spokesperson for the service has said. Confirming speculation from various bloggers and enthusiasts, spokesperson Vera Newhouse told CoinDesk: Bloomberg is testing Bitcoin data, but this is only accessible to internal users and not Bloomberg Professional service subscribers. We often prototype new functions and dashboards; some that [...]