Coronavirus: Supermarkets rebound but leisure stocks suffer March 13, 2020 Supermarket stocks made gains this morning after being dragged down by a mass FTSE 100 sell off sparked by mounting coronavirus fears. Sainsbury’s share price jumped 8.02 per cent to 188.97p, Tesco was up 10.46 per cent at 233.3p and Morrisons climbed 7.98 per cent to 178p. Grocers are positioned well to ride out the [...]
Morrisons moves to support supply chain through coronavirus outbreak March 13, 2020 Morrisons will make immediate payments to smaller businesses and re-classify suppliers to help 1,000 more firms as it moves to protect its supply chain from the impact of coronavirus. The grocer will temporarily scrap its 14 day payment terms and pay small suppliers as soon as an invoice is received. Morrisons also said it will [...]
Disneyland theme parks closed due to coronavirus March 13, 2020 Disneyland theme parks in California, Florida and Paris have been closed due to the global outbreak of coronavirus. The theme parks will be closed from this weekend to the end of the month, and Disney has also suspended all new cruise departures for the same period. In a statement the company said: “We are proceeding [...]
Coronavirus: Just Eat and Deliveroo offer contactless delivery March 13, 2020 Food delivery services have launched contactless delivery options to prevent the spread of coronavirus. Takeaway.com, the Dutch company that recently bought Just Eat, and Deliveroo have both committed to providing deliveries without physical contact. Takeaway said the measure is applicable to all restaurants on its platform throughout Europe. Drivers are being instructed to ring the [...]
John Lewis tumbles down ranking of best high street employer March 13, 2020 Struggling department store John Lewis has tumbled down the rankings of high street employers after a tough year in which the retailer has suffered a drop in profit and slashed worker’s bonuses. John Lewis & Partners held the top spot in 2018, but fell to eight last year and has tumbled a further three places [...]
Moss Bros to be taken private in £22.6m deal March 12, 2020 Suit retailer Moss Bros is on the brink of being taken private after the owners of Crew Clothing offered to buy it in a deal worth £22.6m. Brigadier Acquisition Company offered to buy the high street chain for 22p per share, a premium of 60 per cent on yesterday’s closing price. Crew Clothing owner Menoshi [...]
Coronavirus: Cineworld shares crash on debt breach warning March 12, 2020 Cineworld’s shares spiralled today as it warned a worst-case scenario for coronavirus could throw its future into doubt. If a worst-case scenario transpires, Cineworld said it could breach its debt terms as it would be forced to close cinemas for up to three months. Were that to happen, Cineworld would lose up to three months’ [...]
Betway hit with record £11.6m fine by UK gambling regulator March 12, 2020 Online betting firm Betway has been fined a record £11.6m by the gambling regulator over social responsibility and money-laundering failures linked to its treatment of high-spending customers. The Gambling Commission said that Betway had allowed £5.8m to flow through its business which “has been found, or could reasonably be suspected to be, proceeds of crime”. [...]
WH Smith shares plunge on £40m coronavirus profit warning March 12, 2020 Shares in WH Smith fell more than 15 per cent this morning after the retailer warned that it could take a £40m profit hit due to the coronavirus outbreak. The newsagent chain said it expects profit to be down between £30m to £40m in the financial year ending 31 August against previous expectations, while revenue [...]
Intu raises going concern doubts as losses deepen March 12, 2020 Embattled retail landlord Intu raised doubts over its ability to continue as a going concern this morning as it reported a sharp increase in losses last year amid store closures and rent reductions. The figures Shares plunged 16 per cent this morning as the company reported a £2.02bn loss for the year, compared to a [...]