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"(Reuters) - British retail sales grew at their strongest annual rate in almost two years last month, bolstered by dry weather and a rebound in demand for big-ticket items and household goods, industry data showed on Tuesday. The British Retail Consortium said the total value of retail sales grew by 4.4 percent in February compared with a year earlier, up from 3.0 percent growth in January. The data offers some grounds for optimism about the health of Britain's economy, after manufacturing and construction data over the past few days that has suggested the economy may be on the verge of its third recession in four years." Think you should check your sources a bit more carefully!

havent had chance to have a good look but will be looking for a downward trend on the FTSE with a RSI above 70 before thinking about a wee short. Long here though :) GL.

Put on another 50 points today, so may 3700 is not that far off?? Makes you wonder how longer the FTSE100 will continue on this bull run, its not too far off a 5 year high now. Anyone think that there is a correction on the horizon or are we looking at new records for the FTSE?

When you are a bit short on cash then its the price that counts not the experience. If they get the right stock at the right price and actually manage to sell it over Christmas then they will make money, profit will rise and so will the sp. At the end of the day its all about the bottom line.

Is a little optimistic at the moment. As far as the market is concerned there are still problems out there that need fixing, but a good Christmas will certainly help. If you were brave enough to dive in here in the 80's and are still holding then congrats. Make sure those stop losses are in place, cos it seems all the markets have pushed a little too high and we may be in for a drop, or has all Europe's problems suddenly gone away. GLA. FG

Paul Loft selling 40k of shares on the 19th but didn't really want to focus on that. Or the holdings RNS on the 28th

I hope you're right about stuff going along in the background. Not been much news recently so not been much to say. We might get a bit more chatter now there's three of us ;)

do you hold here?

cheers matey. so it's apple playing silly beggars is it. Now what was the name of the Samsung model.............

That's all well and good but how many other people will end up going elsewhere. At a time when sales in leccy goods are down this is very poor. Coming up to crimbo the warehouses should be overflowing with these things.

falling out of love with Argos. Fancied the new iPad. Not available in any Argos in the nearest three counties. Neither is the iPad mini. How the hell are they gonna make any dosh if they have no flippin stock. Very unhappy.

yesterday. It was looking as if we might have a retrace after hitting the 120's so I bailed. It was a nice run and I think there is more to come here, but the market may need more signs of improvement before we go too much higher.

and still going.!!!!!

steady day for HOME. Will be interesting to see how much is out on loan come end of the month.

I think that when the previous div was scrapped a lot of ii's sold up, hence the sharp drop in price. Now there is a turnaround plan in place and the interim div, although small has not been scrapped, may mean some of the ii's are returning. Just my opinion tho!

Just goes to show what a bunch of jokers the brokers are. Wonder who you would have to ask to get a truely independant view of the sp? It will be interesting to see how many are still out on loan come November. Still think there could be a decent rise here if and when some of the short positions are closed. Must admit to be a tad disappointed with the cut in div, but hey ho at least it wasnt cancelled :)

That being said its holding up ok ay the mo. Maybe its just enough for now?

This was not so much about the profits as they had been leaked ages ago, this was more about the restructuring of the business model. I don't think any of the analysts will be over excited about what's been announced, but I guess we will have to wait and see. I think we are pretty much back where we were prior to the general pullback on the ftse yesterday, but going forward who knows!

Terry Duddy, Chief Executive of Home Retail Group, said: "Against a challenging consumer backdrop, Argos has had a solid first half of the year supported by its multi-channel performance, with sales growth driven most notably by an improvement in consumer electronics. Homebase delivered a creditable performance in its peak trading period, given the adverse impact of poor weather conditions on its seasonal product sales and the difficult market conditions in big ticket categories. "During the first half of the year we took additional action to control costs, tightly managed our working capital and delivered a strong cash performance which has strengthened the Group's financial position. Market conditions remain fragile and hence we will continue to plan cautiously, however we are in good operational shape as we approach our peak trading period. "We continue to strengthen our customer propositions in an environment where customer shopping behaviours are changing rapidly, with both businesses improving product choice and delivering further value for our customers. "We have also concluded a comprehensive business review of Argos which highlighted a clear opportunity to transform the business through increased investment in digital technologies. The transformation plan aims to deliver growth by repositioning Argos as a digitally-led business from a catalogue-led business, leading the market growth of digital commerce through online, mobile and tablet, and offering customers more products with the fastest, most convenient fulfilment options. This plan provides the right approach for Argos to achieve a long-term sustainable performance and profit recovery."

§ Ongoing investment initiatives in both businesses to maintain leadership in multi-channel retailing: - Argos multi-channel sales penetration increased to 51% of total sales. Online Check & Reserve at 30% of total sales, remains the fastest growing channel - Argos is the second most visited internet retailer in the UK with over 440 million site visits in the last 12 months - Argos mobile shopping represented 7% of total sales, contributing in excess of £100m of sales in the period - Homebase multi-channel sales penetration increased to 5% of total sales with Reserve and Collect sales growing by 31% § Ongoing growth and development in both exclusive and own-brand products, including the introduction of Habitat product Financial highlights § Sales down 1% to £2,531m § Cash gross margin down 2% to £952m § Robust management of costs with operating and distribution costs reduced by £11m to £933m § Benchmark operating profit1 down 29% to £19m § Benchmark profit before tax2 down 37% to £18m § Basic benchmark earnings per share3 down 44% to 1.4p § Reported profit before tax of £51m; reported basic earnings per share of 4.6p § Strong cash generation in the period of £122m with closing net cash position of £316m § Interim dividend of 1.0p (2011: 4.7p) Argos business review § Comprehensive business review undertaken over the last six months, looking at all aspects of the Argos business § Review identified considerable strengths and strong customer franchise but a need to invest to restore Argos to sustainable growth § The transformation plan which will reinvent Argos as a digital retail leader and reposition it from a catalogue-led business to a digitally-led business has four key elements: - Reposition Argos' channels for a digital future - Provide more product choice, available to customers faster - Develop a customer offer that has universal appeal - Operate a leaner and more flexible cost base § Five-year plan is underpinned by a three-year investment programme, targeting £4.5 billion of sales by FY18 § The plan results in a total capital investment in Argos of c.£100 million per annum which in turn leads to a total Group capital investment of c.£175 million per annum over the next three financial years § The Group aims to maintain a positive net cash position throughout the three-year investment phase of the plan Terry Duddy, Chief Executive of Home Retail Group, said: "Against a challenging consumer backdrop, Argos has had a solid first half of the year supported by its multi-channel performance, with sales growth driven most notably by an improvement in consumer electronics. Homebase delivered a creditable performance in its peak trading period, given the adverse impact of poor weather conditions on its seasonal pro