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☆ Christmas shopping comes early for Britons in grip of cost crunch
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( James Davey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SummarySummary Companies 30% of Britons began Christmas shopping before mid-OctFigure last year was 18% - NielsenIQ survey findsBudgets stretched by inflationLONDON, Nov 15 (Reuters) - More Britons began their Christmas shopping early this year as they navigate a worsening cost-of-living squeeze by budgeting their spending, market research group NielsenIQ said. Nielsen said sales growth at British supermarkets picked-up over the last month on a value basis, masking a drop in volumes once inflation is accounted for. It said growth was 5.3% in the four weeks to Nov. 5 year-on-year, having increased 4.7% in last month's data set. NielsenIQ said that crisps and snacks and soft drinks were the only two categories to see volume growth in the four week period with growth of 2.9% and 0.6% respectively. General merchandise volume sales fell 7.6%, it said.

☆ Retailers acclerate shift to forest friendly fibres at COP27
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Virginia Furness | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Maxim ShemetovLONDON, Nov 14 (Reuters) - Retailers including H&M (HMb.ST), Kering <PRTP.PA and Inditex (ITX.MC) will purchase over half a million tonnes of low-carbon alternative fibres for clothing and packaging to help reduce global emissions, they said Monday. The announcement by 30 retailers coincides with COP27 climate talks taking place in Egypt until the end of this week to seek to step up ambition on curbing global warming. Retailers agreed to purchase 550,000 tonnes of alternative fibres - made from waste textiles and agricultural residues instead of forest fibres - which will prevent the release of around 2.2 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, NGO Canopy, which convened the group, said. Lower carbon fibres make up a tiny fraction of the 7.5 million tonnes of man-made fibres produced each year, which Rycroft said was in part because of the challenge of accessing finance to scale new technologies. The agreement will help to unlock finance for 10-20 low footprint pulp mills to produce these alternative fibres by securing offtake aggrements from retailers, Canopy said.

In Germany, the HDE retail association is forecasting the strongest slump in Christmas sales since 2007, with retail sales in the crucial November-December period seen dropping by 4% year on year on a price-adjusted basis. In the United Kingdom, a raft of surveys indicate half or more Britons plan to spend less this Christmas. Should September's sharp drop in retail sales be repeated in December, it would be the worst outcome since comparable annual records began in 1989. Official data showed UK retail sales volumes, excluding fuel, dropped 6.2% year on year in September. Another association Acotex expects retailers to offer slight discounts during the holiday season as consumer demand slows.

☆ European shares ease from eight-week highs as U.S. midterm results pour in
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Shreyashi Sanyal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The pan-European STOXX 600 index (.STOXX) fell 0.6% by 0930 GMT, with the retail sector index (.SXRP) down 1.1%. Britain's Marks & Spencer (MKS.L) slipped 3.6%, down the most on the sector index, as it warned of a "gathering storm" of higher costs and pressure on household budgets. Among other stocks, Germany's Commerzbank shed 5.2%, weighing down the banks index by 0.9%. German speciality chemicals maker Lanxess (LXSG.DE) dropped 3.6% as it cut the top end of its forecast range for annual profit on weaker demand. Reporting by Shreyashi Sanyal in Bengaluru; Editing by Uttaresh.V and Arun KoyyurOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Britain's M&S warns of 'gathering storm' of higher costs and weak consumer
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( James Davey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SummarySummary Companies H1 profit down 24%Expects profit decline in full yearFacing higher labour, energy, currency costsLONDON, Nov 9 (Reuters) - British retailer Marks & Spencer (MKS.L) warned on Wednesday of a "gathering storm" of higher costs and pressure on household budgets, as it reiterated full-year profits would fall. Profits fell, despite an 8.5% rise in revenue to 5.54 billion pounds, due to higher costs. Prior to Wednesday's update, analysts were on average forecasting a profit before tax and adjusting items of 397 million pounds for the 2022-23 fiscal year, down from 523 million pounds in 2021-22. Marks & Spencer (M&S), whose shares have halved this year, said total food sales increased 5.6% in the first half, while clothing and home sales rose 14%. "Across all M&S markets it is highly likely that conditions will become more challenging in FY24," M&S said.

☆ Morning Bid: Bank man fried
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

"We are in the best of hands," FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried said on Twitter, after announcing a bailout that has not quite soothed market jitters. Bitcoin was falling in Asia on Wednesday, so was FTX's collapsing token and Binance's token had the wobbles. As Spectra Markets' Brent Donnelly and others have previously noted, naming rights are a reasonable signal of irrational exuberance. FTX's 19-year deal for naming rights at the Miami Heat basketball team's home arena looks to face a similar fate, as does its sponsorship of the Mercedes F1 team. China's factory gate prices dropped for the first time since December 2020, and consumer inflation moderated, underlining faltering domestic demand.

Machin also noted a trend of more eating at home as consumers look to save money by cutting down on restaurant visits. Katie Bickerstaffe, joint CEO, told reporters that its customers had already bought about 30% of their clothing and homewares Christmas gifts. "People are planning forward a little bit now," she said, highlighting very high demand for Christmas pyjamas. Similarly, Sainsbury's said last week consumers were buying cakes, mince pies and chocolates in advance of Christmas. ($1 = 0.8747 pounds)Reporting by James Davey and Sarah Young; Editing by Kate Holton and Alexander SmithOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ FTSE inches lower amid global caution; M&S slips on cost warning
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

SummarySummary Companies FTSE 100 down 0.3%, FTSE 250 off 0.3%Nov 9 (Reuters) - UK's blue-chip shares edged lower on Wednesday amid a cautious global mood as investors awaited the outcome of U.S. midterm elections, while Marks & Spencer fell after the retailer warned of higher costs. The export-oriented FTSE 100 (.FTSE) fell 0.3% by 0829 GMT, while the domestically-oriented FTSE 250 (.FTMC) also shed 0.3%. Global markets were subdued as investors braced for U.S. inflation data due this week and eyed results of midterm polls that could signify a power shift in Washington. Marks & Spencer (MKS.L) dropped 1.2% as it warned of a "gathering storm" of higher costs and pressure on household budgets, and reiterated full-year profits would fall. Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; editing by Uttaresh.VOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

LONDON, Nov 9 (Reuters) - Some European retailers this week forecast or reported better full-year sales after working to keep prices low to attract cash-strapped shoppers although others, including Marks & Spencer (MKS.L) and Adidas (ADSGn.DE) warned on profit. Many consumers have turned to cheaper private-label products, boosting sales for retailers like Dutch grocer Ahold Delhaize and Primark owner Associated British Foods (ABF.L), as they face a prolonged cost-of-living crisis. On Wednesday, Ahold raised its annual outlook for the third time this year, expecting low-double-digit earnings per share growth versus a prior mid-single-digit guidance. Carrefour said it would step up its expansion in e-commerce, open more discount stores and cut costs as it detailed its new turnaround strategy, . LUXURY GAPHaving less disposable income has meant many shoppers are holding back on buying mid-market clothes and other discretionary items.

☆ Ocado enters South Korea with Lotte Shopping deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( James Davey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Paul ChildsSummarySummary Companies Lotte Shopping becomes Ocado's 12th partnerOcado to build six robotic warehouses by 2028Ocado shares soar 34%LONDON, Nov 1 (Reuters) - Ocado (OCDO.L), the British online supermarket and technology group, has entered South Korea, one of the most mature e-commerce markets in the world, through a partnership deal with Lotte Shopping (023530.KS), the companies said on Tuesday. Lotte, South Korea's second largest grocer, becomes Ocado's 12th partner across 10 countries. Ocado's in-store fulfilment technology will also be rolled out across Lotte stores from 2024. Lotte Shopping, part of South Korea's Lotte Group conglomerate, operates department stores, hypermarkets, supermarkets and e-commerce, with more than 1,000 stores nationwide and an annual revenue of 9.5 billion pounds ($10.9 billion). Ocado Group's shares have been hurt this year by the performance of Ocado Retail, its retail joint venture with Marks & Spencer (MKS.L).

Goldman Sachs analysts predict gross finance costs for the listed UK real estate firms it covers may rise by 75% over the next five years. UK REITs are using less leverage now than before the financial crisis. Leisure and retail property vacancy rates also remain above pre-pandemic levels, Local Data Company figures show, at 10.6% and 15.4% respectively. The stock market also signals growing investor caution around UK commercial property, with an index of 15 UK REITs down 44% so far in 2022 (.TRXFLDGBPREIC) compared with a 9.8% fall in the wider FTSE 350 (.FTLC) . UK REITs index vs 30-year gilt yield($1 = 0.8906 pounds)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterEditing by Tomasz JanowskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

With Jeremy Hunt taking up the role on Friday, Britain has had four finance ministers in just four months. Prior to the 2016 Brexit vote, Britain had four finance ministers in 23 years, underlining a sense of stability that is now gone. The response was brutal: the pound slumped, government borrowing costs surged, lenders pulled mortgage deals and the Bank of England had to intervene to stop some pension funds from going under. While Truss had touted low corporation tax as a way to attract business investment, the executives said they wanted stability. British business investment, which flatlined after the 2016 Brexit vote and then fell sharply during the pandemic, was 6% lower in the second quarter of this year than its level of six years ago, in stark contrast to international peers.

☆ Factbox: UK retailers raising staff pay amid cost-of-living crunch
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Toby MelvilleSept 22 (Reuters) - Retailers in Britain are looking to increase pay and attract staff in a tight labour market, as workers are increasingly taking to strike action amid a cost-of-living crisis in the country. read moreRegister now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterMARKS & SPENCERMarks & Spencer (MKS.L) said on Sept. 21 it would pay a minimum of 10.20 pounds, up from 10.00 pounds, from Oct. 1. read moreSAINSBURY'SSainsbury's (SBRY.L) said on Sept. 13 it will from Oct. 16 pay a minimum of 10.25 pounds, up from 10.00 pounds, and 11.30 pounds in London, up from 11.05 pounds. read moreTESCORetailer Tesco (TSCO.L) in September started to offer better perks to its workers including free food and essentials. read moreMORRISONSMorrisons on June 10 said it would pay a minimum of 10.20 pounds from October, with London workers paid a minimum of 11.05 pounds.

☆ Britain's M&S raises staff pay for second time in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterA Marks and Spencer (M&S) logo is seen on the outside of a store in Cheshire, Britain August 18, 2020. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterThe additional autumn pay review, a first for M&S, follows an initial pay increase in April to 10.00 pounds an hour from 9.50 pounds. The clothing and food retailer said its new package to support workers would cost it 15 million pounds. It includes a one-off 250 pounds M&S voucher for 4,500 salaried colleagues at pre-management levels in stores and support centres. ($1 = 0.8818 pounds)Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by James Davey; editing by Kylie MacLellan and Jason NeelyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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