Mike Ashley-controlled retail conglomerate Frasers (FRAS) expects to write down the value of its assets by more than £100 million due to the current lengthy lockdown, one that has forced the closure of stores deemed non-essential and will last at least another seven weeks. Yet shares in the Sports Direct-to-House of Fraser owner rose 4% to 478p on Tuesday, joining in a wider reopening rally on ...

UK markets were flat in early trade on Tuesday as gains from rising commodity prices, mining and energy stocks and a firm reopening trade were neutralised by weakness from banking giant HSBC (HSBA), which ditched its long-term profitability targets. At 9am, the commodity-heavy FTSE 100 benchmark was struggling to make any ground, clawing single point gains at 6,613.56. Mid-caps were much ...

Despite all the upheaval of the past year, anyone glancing at the financial markets today might find it hard to believe investors were in the throes of despair 12 months ago. Following the global markets crash in February 2020, the recovery has been spectacular. The US Nasdaq 100 and S&P 500 indices are at all-time highs, Japan’s Nikkei index is at a multi-decade high, China’s Shanghai ...

Covid-19 vaccines are being injected into the arms of a grateful global populace, paving the way for a full reopening of the global economy, a rebound in intercontinental travel and an explosive release of pent-up demand. The world could be entering a new ‘Roaring Twenties’ decade as fortunate individuals still with jobs are liberated from their homes and start to splash the cash saved ...

Shares in French Connection (FCCN) charged 72.5% higher to 27p on Friday as the hard-pressed fashion retailer confirmed it is in takeover talks with Spotlight Brands and Go Global concerning possible takeover offers, although discussions with both potential acquirers ‘remain at a very early stage’. Retail sector watchers will be surprised to see the bidders don’t include Mike Ashley’s ...

UK stocks and the pound lost ground on Monday after Brexit talks stumbled yet again and a new strain of the virus led to even more draconian rules on personal movement. New emergency Tier Four restrictions created chaos for people travelling ahead of Christmas while many European countries have suspended inbound travel from the UK. At the close the FTSE 100 was down 113 points or 1.7% to ...

Unusually, UK stocks tumbled together with the pound on Monday after Brexit talks stumbled yet again and a new strain of the virus led to even more draconian rules on personal movement. New emergency Tier Four restrictions created chaos for people travelling ahead of Christmas while many European countries have suspended inbound travel from the UK. By midday the FTSE 100 was down 154 points ...

Mike Ashley’s retail group Frasers (FRAS) has pulled the annual guidance given less than a fortnight ago after being forced to shutter its stores in parts of England under the latest government Covid-19 restrictions, news that sent the shares 8.6% lower to 436.6p on Monday. From Sunday, in a bid to suppress a new fast-spreading strain of the virus, the government closed non-essential retail ...

UK shares and the pound started the week sharply lower after Brexit talks stumbled yet again and a new strain of the virus led to even more draconian rules on personal movement. New emergency Tier Four restrictions created chaos for people travelling ahead of Christmas while many European countries have suspended inbound travel from the UK. At 9am the FTSE 100 was 72 points or 1.1% lower at ...

UK shares rose on Thursday as the pound dipped against the euro and the dollar. Knife-edge Brexit talks were set to continue, with a new deadline of Sunday, while the UK economy expanded at its slowest rate since returning to growth in May, with GDP increasing by just 0.4% month on month in October. Overnight in the US, shares in Facebook dropped more than 5% as it faced a new antitrust lawsuit ...

Shares in Mike Ashley’s Frasers (FRAS) continued their strong run on Thursday, sprinting 11.4% higher to 489p as the Sports Direct-to-House of Fraser owner posted a rise in first half profit and raised full year earnings guidance. Fraser’s confident outlook reflects the successful reopening of its stores in England (2 Dec) after the national lockdown combined with a ‘continuing strong ...

UK shares made tentative gains on Thursday as fractious Brexit talks continued with a new deadline of Sunday. The UK economy reported its slowest expansion since returning to growth in May with GDP growing 0.4% month on month in October. In the US, shares in Facebook dropped more than 5% as it faced a new antitrust lawsuit from the US Federal Trade Commission. Meanwhile food delivery company ...

Shares in home shopping firm Studio Retail (STU) jumped 12% to 294p on Tuesday after the group agreed to a request from main shareholder Frasers (FRAS) that it launch a strategic review and consider putting out the for sale sign. With second biggest shareholder Schroders (SDR) backing the idea, Studio Retail is now ‘in play’, though it is unclear whether Frasers, controlled by maverick ...

UK stocks opened lower on Tuesday, with the blue chip benchmark off 0.21% at 6,541.85 early on, even as Britain began rolling out a Covid-19 vaccine. Investors continued to fret that a post-Brexit trade deal won’t be hammered out before a transition period expires at the end of December. Also creating uncertainty were the continuing efforts to get a bi-partisan stimulus package away in the ...

The UK’s benchmark FTSE 100 index closed almost flat at 6,555.39 as Brexit dominated the headlines on Monday, with the UK and EU now at a ‘critical stage’ in their talks over a trade deal. Cabinet Office minister Penny Mordaunt told the House of Commons that the UK and EU are at a ‘critical moment in the negotiations’ and warned the UK is prepared to walk away from talks if the EU ...

UK stocks had a mixed start to the week as the FTSE 100 increased 0.44% to 6,578.82 by lunchtime on Monday, with weakness in the pound helping the exporter-heavy index. Sterling was down against the euro and dollar as sentiment turned negative on the knife-edge Brexit trade talks currently playing out, with the European Union reportedly ‘downbeat’ over the chance of a deal being ...

Retail billionaire Mike Ashley’s Frasers (FRAS) is in talks to buy beleaguered department store Debenhams from the administrators. A rescue deal for the Covid-19 casualty would tighten Newcastle United owner Ashley’s grip on the distressed UK high street. Yet despite its history of saving distressed brands, hard-negotiator Frasers warned there is ‘no certainty that any transaction ...

The exporter-heavy FTSE 100 lost opening gains to to post modest losses in early trade on Monday as the pound dipped on fears that Britain's transition period out of the European Union would expire without the two sides agreeing on a free trade deal. At 9am, the benchmark FTSE 100 was down around 0.3% at 6,528.04, possibly ending a five-day run of gains as Britain also prepared to roll out ...

The collapse of Philip Green’s Arcadia Group, owner of Topman, Topshop, Burton and Dorothy Perkins, into administration is widely expected to see rival retailers bid for these brands. The announcement also prompted JD Sports (JD.) to abandon its plan to buy department store Debenhams out of administration, with the 200-year-old chain facing liquidation – notably because Arcadia had ...

London’s FTSE 100 edged 0.28% higher to 6,385.65 early on Monday morning as investors weighed optimism about a potential Covid-19 vaccine against fears of a more severe economic fallout from the pandemic as virus cases continue to rise. Investors continued to worry about a potential no-deal Brexit as the 31 December end to the transition period nears, with few signs of a trade deal being ...