As fear drives eurozone debt markets and economies markedly downwards, and the increased volatility makes good money for some, the underlying grievance of the Occupy Wall Street movement can now be seen mirrored clearly in the European crisis. The tension is effectively between those who believe that inequality is divisive and we should all pull together (Germany), …
Category archives: Retail
Daily snapshot
A eurozone recession “looks almost inevitable before the end of the year, even if the debt crisis does not intensify further”. A Treasury select committee is calling for a “radical overhaul” of the accountability and governance of the Bank of England, through the establishment of a supervisory board that would reduce the power of the governor …
Strange times
Republicans (and two Democrats) in the US Senate last week managed to block a $60bn bill to renew some of the country’s fading infrastructure (including roads, dams, bridges, energy and water systems). The reason? Funding was to have come from an additional 0.7 per cent tax on earnings over $1m.
Gap to close stores in US, open in China
GAP has announced that it will close 21% of its 889 US stores over the next two years, and triple its number of outlets in China by the end of 2012.
Non-food retailing down in the UK
Disposable income is down as the costs of food, fuel, and utilities increase, and a range of non-food retailers, from Mothercare to Tesco are struggling as cash-strapped consumers are more careful in their spending. Profits warnings were issued by Mothercare and SuperGroup and Tesco has had its worst UK sales performance for 20 years, although global …
UK Industry trends:
Petrol, driving, and car maintenance down 0-5%. Bicycle sales up. Doughnuts, sausage rolls and other baked goods up, around 5%. Ted Baker (the high-end fashion company) reports six month sales up 17% on the same period last year. Asda, the low-end retailer, increased the dividend paid to its US parent company by £50m (from £100m …
Tesco forced to postpone mortgages
Tesco, striving to build ‘the people’s bank’, had been expected to introduce mortgages this autumn. But plans have had to be postponed as the company struggles with IT systems and a “raft of tougher legislation.” Tesco has been very keen to move into banking, having been negatively affected by price rises on core purchases such …