Economy
The latest news, updates and analysis on the economy and how it is affecting the UK retail industry. Sign up to the Daily Briefing and let Retail Sector’s business journalists keep you in the picture.
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Jun- 2022 -22 June
Frasers Group increases stake in Hugo Boss
Frasers Group, a British retail and intellectual property group, has increased its stake in German fashion brand Hugo Boss. Frasers announced it now has 3.4 million shares – a 4.9% stake – in Hugo Boss and holds buy options over another 26% shareholding. The group said its investment in the…
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22 June
Inflation hits 40-year high in May
Inflation reached a 40-year high in May 2022 as the Consumer Price Index hit 9.1%, up from the 9% reported in April 2022. This was largely driven by food and non-alcoholic beverages, transport and housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels. Food price inflation was driven largely by staples with…
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21 June
Quarter of UK retailers four weeks from collapse, survey finds
More than a quarter of UK retailers are just four weeks away from going bust due to supply chain issues, according to a Brightpearl survey. The results of the survey of 500 UK retailers, found that 85% of retailer businesses have been hit by supply chain issues in the last…
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20 June
Boots takeover in doubt amid financing struggles
There are reportedly growing concerns that the proposed takeover of Boots could collapse as the ongoing cost-of-living impacts prospective buyers and lenders. According to The Sunday Times, the news comes as New York-based Apollo and Mukesh Ambani reportedly teamed up with a bid of £5.5bn earlier this month – which…
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20 June
Deliveroo appoints new chief financial officer
Deliveroo has announced that it has appointed Scilla Grimble as its new chief financial officer. Grimble, who is currently chief financial officer at MoneySupermarket.com Group plc, is expected to commence her appointment by no later than June 2023. She was previously interim chief financial officer at Marks and Spencer where…
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17 June
N Brown reports 2.1% fall in first quarter sales
N Brown has revealed its sales dropped 2.1% to £165.1m during the first quarter of the year. In the 13 weeks to 28 May 2022, N Brown experienced a 7.2% drop in sales (£31.1m) among its heritage brands, while its strategic brands, JD Williams, Jacamo and Simply Be, experienced a…
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16 June
BoE raises interest rates to 1.25%
The Bank of England’s (BoE) Monetary Policy Committee has voted to raise interest from 1% to 1.25% – marking its fifth rise in a row as it bids to offset the impact of rising inflation. The Monetary Policy Committee voted by a majority of 6-3 to increase the rate to…
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16 June
Halfords lowers FY23 profit expectations despite ‘resilient’ performance
Halfords Group plc has announced it has downgraded its profit expectations for the year despite seeing its profit before tax increasing 49.8% to £96.6m. In its preliminary results for the 52 weeks to 1 April 2022, the retailer posted revenues of £1.36bn – up almost 20% compared with pre-pandemic levels.…
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15 June
Games Workshop profits to hit £155m in FY results
Games Workshop has announced that its profit-before-tax is set to hit £155m in the year to 29 May 2022, while estimating its core revenue will “not be less than” £385m, with receivable royalties of £28m. Alongside its latest trading update, the group announced it would share bonuses amounting to £10m…
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14 June
UK unemployment rate hits almost 50-year low
The UK unemployment rate is close to a 50-year low point, having dropped by 0.2% to 3.8% for February to April 2022, and those unemployed for up to six months increased over this three-month period, marking the largest increase since late 2020. According to the Office for National Statistics, the…
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