London's FTSE 100 surged by 2.3% on Thursday to close at its best level this year as a massive gain in the share price of heavyweight supermarket group Tesco gave fellow retailers a lift. Increased hopes for central-bank stimulus in Europe, a stabilisation of oil prices and improving economic data f
Read moreTesco's shares surged nearly 14% after it said it would cut costs substantially next year, close 43 unprofitable stores and lower prices, as chief executive Dave Lewis attempts to turn around the struggling supermarket chain. The news came as the company unveiled a "broad-based improvement" in UK tr
Read more* General merchandise sales down 5.8 pct in third quarter * CEO blames "unsatisfactory" performance in online distribution * Shares fall more than four pct (Adds CEO comments, analyst reaction) By Sarah Young and Paul Sandle LONDON, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Delivery problems at
Read moreUK stocks surged strongly on Thursday amid hopes for more central-bank stimulus in Europe, assisted by strong gains from supermarket heavyweight Tesco as investors welcomed its turnaround plan and resilient Christmas sales. London's FTSE 100 was trading 1.6% higher at 6,522 by midday. The announcem
Read moreAfter an "unimaginatively bad 2014", things are starting to improve at supermarket giant Tesco after a much better-than-expected Christmas trading performance, according to analysts at Shore Capital. Shore retained its 'hold' recommendation for investors, but said that measures being taken by new ch
Read moreDespite Marks & Spencer's disappointing Christmas trading update on Thursday, brokers Investec and The Share Centre have retained their positive recommendations on the stock. While the food division continues to outperform the industry with like-for-like (LFL) in the third quarter ended 27 December
Read moreBig gains from Tesco and a strong finish on Wall Street helped drive UK markets higher on Thursday morning, as investors awaited a flurry of economic data and a policy decision by the Bank of England (BoE). Heavyweight grocer Tesco was leading the risers early on after investors applauded the superm
Read more** M&S biggest loser on the FTSE & heads towards 2-mth lows after seeing its Christmas blighted by online delivery problems ** Posts 5.8 pct drop in underlying sales of clothing, gifts & home ware in Q3, far underperforming analyst expectations for a 3 pct drop ** Stock, down 2.4 pct,
Read moreLONDON, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Shares in most of Britain's top supermarket groups rose on Thursday, helped by a surge in Tesco as investors welcomed Tesco's restructuring plans, but Marks & Spencer fell after a weak trading update. Tesco rose 5 percent, lifting shares of rivals such as Sainsbur
Read moreUK stocks were set to jump on Thursday morning, following a strong finish on Wall Street the previous session, after a slight rebound in oil prices and minutes of the latest Federal Reserve meeting. City sources predict the FTSE 100 will open 70 points higher than Wednesday's close of 6,419.83. US
Read more(Repeats to more clients) LONDON, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Marks & Spencer posted a worse than expected 5.8 percent drop in underlying sales of clothing, gifts and homeware in its Christmas quarter, exacerbated by online delivery problems. The performance was a fourteenth consecutive quarter
Read moreLONDON, Jan 8 (Reuters) - Marks & Spencer posted a worse than expected 5.8 percent drop in underlying sales of clothing, gifts and homeware in its Christmas quarter, exacerbated by online delivery problems. The performance was a fourteenth consecutive quarterly decline in general merchandis
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