Whitbread share price rises after investors told to expect top end results February 25, 2015 The figures Shares in Whitbread opened 2.35 per cent up after the hospitality giant told investors to expect full-year results to come in towards the top end of current expectations, as sales at its cheap hotels and Costa Coffee chain continued to rise. Overall the group achieved a rise in like-for-like sales of 5.8 per [...]
Morrisons share price edges up as it names former Tesco man David Potts as chief exec February 25, 2015 Shares in embattled supermarket Morrisons opened one per cent higher this morning, after it named its new chief executive: former Tesco Asia boss David Potts. The supermarket launched its search for new boss in January, after chief executive Dalton Philips announced his departure. The appointment is part of a fresh start for the company: chairman Andrew [...]
TSB share price edges up as profits double February 25, 2015 The figures TSB shares opened 1.5 per cent higher this morning, after it reported statutory profit before tax of £170m in 2014, over 100 per cent up on the previous year. The group is strongly capitalised with a Common Equity Tier one capital ratio of 19.7 per cent. TSB landed 500,000 new bank accounts over [...]
Mark Carney silent on Bank of England’s mystery dove as he predicts interest rate hikes February 24, 2015 Interest rates will rise gradually over the next two years, Mark Carney told MPs yesterday, playing down the chance of another rate cut. One member of the monetary policy committee (MPC) is tempted to vote for a rate cut, according to the minutes of its last meeting. However, Bank of England governor Carney refused to [...]
Our key takeaways from Mark Carney’s speech on UK interest rates February 24, 2015 During a speech to MPs earlier today, Bank of England governor Mark Carney said an interest rate hike before the end of the year looked likely. Reading out highlights from the central bank's quarterly inflation report, he told parliament’s treasury select committee that the rise would take place despite low consumer inflation, which [...]
Apple share price climbs towards trillion dollar valuation February 24, 2015 Apple, the maker of iPhones, MacBooks and soon-to-be Apple watches, saw its share price tick up today, meaning it was edging that little closer to hitting the never-before-seen trillion dollar valuation. Apple's share price fell as much as 0.9 per cent to 131.44 in early morning trade, before paring gains to 133.5. Yesterday, it closed [...]
The UK has the sixth best digital economy in Europe February 24, 2015 The UK is one of Europe's leading digital economies, ranking as the sixth best country in Europe a new report has found. It's ahead of the majority of the rest of Europe when it comes to digital in areas such as connectivity, internet use and the integration of digital technology, according to the European Commission [...]
Yellen: Fed will drop the word “patient” before it hikes interest rates February 24, 2015 The US Federal Reserve's rate-setting committee will lose patience before it hikes interest rates, promised Fed boss Janet Yellen today – although she remained cagey about when that would happen. In prepared remarks to the Senate Banking Committee, she suggested there is no "given point" at which the Federal Open Markets Committee (FOMC) will decide [...]
The UK economy according to the OECD in six charts February 24, 2015 Andy Haldane, the Bank of England's chief economist, said last year that the economy "appears to be writhing in both agony and ecstasy." While the economy was growing at a faster rate that most of its rich counterparts, most people weren't benefiting from this because real wages were falling, and productivity, or output per hour work, [...]
HSBC share price hits two-year low in Hong Kong February 24, 2015 HSBC shares listed on Hong Kong's Hang Seng index, tumbled as much as 3.9 per cent to HK$69.15, after it posted figures showing pre-tax profits tanked 17 per cent to $18.6bn (£12.1bn) in 2014, down from $22.5bn the year before. The bank's shares listed on the FTSE 100 closed down 4.2 per cent at 573.3p yesterday, [...]