* 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 more* Like for like sales rose 4.8 pct in five weeks to Dec. 27 * Black Friday delivers biggest sales week in firm's history * MD says Black Friday may have reached "high water mark" in UK (Adds detail, MD comments) By Kate Holton and James Davey LONDON, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Br
Read moreLONDON, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Sales at Britain's biggest department store group John Lewis rose nearly 5 percent in the five weeks to Dec. 27, driven by the "Black Friday" frenzy at the start of the period and by last-minute Christmas gift-buying at the end. While sales in the Black Friday disc
Read moreOil stocks dragged London shares deep into the red on Tuesday after crude prices hit a five-and-a-half year low. The FTSE 100 Index closed 86.51 points adrift at 6,547 as the price of a barrel of Brent crude dropped below $57, although it later recovered slightly. The price of a barrel of US light
Read more* Sales in 58 days to Dec. 25 up 2.9 pct * Sees full-year pretax profit up 11.5 pct * Shares rise some 4 pct, topping FTSE 100 index (Adds CEO comments, analyst reaction) By Paul Sandle LONDON, Dec 30 (Reuters) - Next signalled brighter prospects for British retailers on
Read moreUncertainty in Athens and falling oil prices were weighing heavily on UK stocks on Tuesday, with London's FTSE 100 snapping an eight-day winning streak. The FTSE 100 was down 0.9% at 6,576.11 after hitting a three-week high the previous session. Greek politics were in focus for those traders return
Read moreAnalysts at Cantor Fitzgerald have welcomed Next's better-than-expected festive trading update, saying prospects for its business remain good despite the downturn caused by the mild autumn weather. Next said it now expected full-year profits to be within £10m either side of £775m, £5m ahead of the m
Read more(Adds details, shares) LONDON, Dec 30 (Reuters) - British clothing retailer Next's sales rose 2.9 percent in the run up to Christmas mostly due to online and catalogue purchases, hitting the upper end of its predictions and it said full-year profit would rise by about 11.5 percent. T
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