Asda boss Andy Clarke adds £500m fuel to the supermarket price war with Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons as well as discounters Aldi and Lidl ahead of supermarket Christmas earnings bonanza January 10, 2016 Asda is throwing a further half a billion pounds at the supermarket price war as boss Andy Clarke predicted another "challenging" year for the sector. "There is currently no growth in the food market and the rise of the limited assortment discounters means that we must take radical action to win back our customers," said [...]
Oil prices: Royal Dutch Shell oil boss Ben van Beurden thinks prices will double ahead of crucial BG Group deal shareholder vote January 10, 2016 The boss of Royal Dutch Shell Ben van Beurden has said he is confident that oil prices will return to higher levels just days after they plummeted to an almost 12-year low as the giant gathers support for its billion pound takeover of BG Group. “The oil prices we are seeing today are not sustainable and are going [...]
FTSE 100 index remains under 6,000 mark as fears over the Chinese economy linger January 8, 2016 After the FTSE 100 index faltered in late morning trading, it has rebounded back towards the gains it made at the open – but still remains below the 6,000 mark. The rebound comes as concerns over weakness in the Chinese economy continue to weigh on European markets. The UK's blue-chip index rose 0.44 per cent to 5,979 points in early afternoon [...]
Iran official says oil prices could fall as low as $25 by March this year January 8, 2016 An Iranian official has warned the price of oil could slump to $25 per barrel by March, once international sanctions over its alleged nuclear programme have been removed. Fereidun Fesharaki, a former oil adviser to the Iranian prime minister, told The Times that Brent crude, the international benchmark, could drop to between $25 to $30 [...]
The yuan and dollar currency cross must devalue significantly January 8, 2016 At least two large and previously successful hedge funds have recently closed, citing as reasons the breakdown of their crystal balls and interestingly blamed on the growth of algorithmic trading. We argue differently. What is making investing hard is that global flows are increasingly dominated by the two major economies: the US and China. The [...]
Watchstone, formerly known as Quindell, sells property business for £1 January 8, 2016 Watchstone Group, the company formerly known as Quindell, has sold its property and maintenance companies for just £1 as it seeks to draw a line under the insurance outsourcer's controversial past. In a statement to the London Stock Exchange today, it said property insulation business, BE Insulated, and property maintenance service provider, Carbon Reduction Company, had been sold to the [...]
There’s nowhere to hide for Marks & Spencer’s shop-floor boy turned chief executive Steve Rowe January 8, 2016 It was only a matter of time before Marc Bolland left Marks & Spencer, and with his tenure at the retailer nearing six years, many will be asking how he lasted as long as he did. Under Bolland, times have been tough: general merchandise has been in decline for 17 of the past 18 quarters, [...]
Apple just bought emotion-detecting startup Emotient as rivals Facebook and Google continue Silicon Valley’s push into artificial intelligence January 7, 2016 Apple just bought emotion-detecting startup Emotient, taking a deeper plunge into artificial intelligence. Emotient, founded in 2012, uses AI software to analyse facial expressions and detect people’s emotions. The firm’s primary audience has been advertisers hoping to evaluate viewers’ reactions to adverts. Exactly what Apple plans to do with it is unclear, but Apple has [...]
Wall Street sinks and FTSE 100 index closes below 6,000 after another turbulent day in China January 7, 2016 The Dow Jones recorded its worst four-day start to a year on record, following another day of turmoil in China, which also left the S&P 500 on track for its worst start to a year since 1928. The Dow Jones industrial average fell 2.32 percent, to 16,514.1, the S&P 500 dropped 2.37 per cent, and the Nasdaq lost [...]
Investec: Challenger banks including OneSavings Bank, Aldermore are undervalued as investors are spooked by worries over buy-to-let regulation January 7, 2016 Concerns over increased regulation of the buy-to-let residential property market have prompted investors to undervalue some of Britain’s leading challenger banks, analysts at Investec have claimed. In a new note out today, Investec analysts upgraded their recommendation on OneSavings Bank, a FTSE250-listed lender, from “hold” to “buy” off the back of recent share price fluctuations. [...]