New data shows card transactions reached 990m in May July 11, 2014 Credit card transactions rose in the UK last month, at the fastest rate since 2005. At 990m, the number of transactions reached almost 1bn and totalled £47.1bn. The rise equates to an annualised increase of 9.1 per cent. Of that total, 70 per cent was spent on debit cards, with debit spend up 8.5 per [...]
Reynolds and Lorillard merger to light up tobacco industry July 11, 2014 Reynolds American and Lorillard look set to complete their merger, bringing together the US's biggest tobacco companies and shaking up the UK order. The two companies have a combined market capitalisation of $56bn. British American Tobacco holds a 42 per cent stake in Reynolds and Imperial Tobacco has announced an intention to buy assets from [...]
UK house prices in graphs: For one London square metre you could buy a new car July 11, 2014 Buying a square metre of Kensington and Chelsea property now costs roughly the same as a new entry-level Ford Fiesta. With one square metre costing £10,854, the area is the most expensive local authority in the country to live in. According to data from Halifax, average house prices in this and six other London boroughs [...]
World Cup 2014 effect hits Experian July 11, 2014 Experian, the credit rating company, has reported an 11 per cent contraction in like for like revenues in Latin America, apparently as the World Cup effect took hold. Credit checkers were spending less time at their desks as football fever gripped the continent. The depleted results were tempered somewhat by better figures from the UK [...]
Betfair sees profit before tax rise 61pc July 11, 2014 Betfair has seen its profit before tax rise 61 per cent to £61.1m during this financial year, according to preliminary results released today. The period, which does not include the World Cup, also saw EBITDA rise 24 per cent to £91m and dividends up 54 per cent to 20 pence per share. The results are underlying [...]
Associated British Foods adjusts earnings guidance as Primark profits rise July 10, 2014 Associated British Foods (ABF) has raised its annual earnings guidance after a 22 per cent rise in sales from its budget fashion brand Primark offset the continued weakness of the sugar market. ABF now said it expected its adjusted earnings per share to be above the 98.9 pence paid in 2012-13. Previous guidance had indicated [...]
Barratt Developments expects to build strong profit growth July 10, 2014 Housebuilder Barratt Developments has continued the trend of construction companies predicting increases in pre-tax profits, completions and average sales price. Like Bovis Homes, Taylor Wimpey and Galliford Try before it, Barratt announced a sizeable increase in the average cost of one of its houses; up 13 per cent to £220,000 in the financial year. Completions were [...]
Galliford Try acquires Miller Construction for £16.6m July 10, 2014 After posting record group profits yesterday, housebuilder Galliford Try today announced the acquisition of Miller Construction for £16.6m. Miller, which operates only in the UK, made a £4m loss last year but has exited several loss-making contracts and hopes to return to profit this year. Galliford and Miller Group have agreed the transfer of Miller Construction [...]
In photos: Country house prices are still below their 2007 peak. Which will you choose? July 9, 2014 As we reported yesterday, Knight Frank, a real estate consultancy company, has collected data showing that country house prices are on the rise across the country. What the report also shows is that prime country house prices are yet to reach their 2007 peak, unlike the average property price across England and Wales. Here's a graph [...]
Where will London’s newest Thames bridge be? Nine Elms bridge to be built July 9, 2014 Wandsworth Council is set to launch a global competition to find a design for a new £40m bridge in west London. The planned bridge will span the water at one of five possible locations, all linking Nine Elms to Pimlico. The pedestrianised crossing will also provide a quiet route for cyclists, and is likely to [...]
