Halfords: Sales jump but retailer warns tariffs could hit supply chain April 15, 2025 Motoring and cycling specialist Halfords has reported an uptick in sales but warned US President Donald Trump’s tariffs could push up costs across its supply chain. The retailer and services provider told markets this morning that sales grew 2.3 per cent in the year to March 28. Its share price rose more than 13 per [...]
Retail sales rise in March but tariff turmoil signals trouble ahead April 15, 2025 Retail sales rose in March despite low consumer confidence, according to new data, but tariff uncertainty is likely to dampen the recovery. Total retail sales increased by 1.1 per cent year on year in March, with 1.6 per cent growth in food sales and 0.6 per cent growth in non-food sales. While this was below [...]
Chinese TikTokers spark debate on source of luxury goods as they fight tariffs April 14, 2025 A debate over the source of luxury goods has taken TikTok by storm after Chinese manufacturers jumped on the app to ‘lift the veil’ on luxury production. According to multiple hugely popular videos on the social networking site – notably a user called @senbags2 – luxury goods are made in China, then shipped to Italy [...]
Retail bosses warn of dumping from Chinese firms into Europe April 14, 2025 UK retail bosses have warned that Trump’s tariffs will cause low-quality goods to be dumped into Europe from China via distributor sites like Amazon. Unable to sell competitively in the US due to US President Donald Trump’s 104 per cent tariffs on goods from China, as well as his decision to end the de minimis [...]
Demand for London offices hits post-financial crisis high April 14, 2025 Demand for office space in Greater London and the South East rose to its highest first-quarter level since the financial crisis in 2025, according to new data. Around 1.2m sq ft of space was let in London during the first quarter of 2025, up 39 per cent on the final quarter of 2024, according to [...]
UK house prices hit record high in April despite stamp duty changes April 14, 2025 The average UK house price rose 1.4 per cent in April despite fears of a market slowdown in the wake of changes to stamp duty. UK house prices hit a new record high of £377,182, according to Rightmove. Analysts said that lower mortgage rates have offset the impact of stamp duty changes and the typical [...]
Consumer confidence flattens as recovery stalls despite wage growth April 11, 2025 Consumer confidence was flat in the first quarter of the year despite high wage growth, as economic uncertainty weighs on Brits. Overall consumer confidence rose 0.3 percentage points in the first three months of 2025, with sentiment towards the UK economy at its lowest level in over a year, according to Deloitte. “The consumer recovery [...]
FTSE 100: JD Sports back in fashion after share buyback and tariff U-turn April 10, 2025 JD Sports’ share price shot up more than 10 per cent this morning after the company announced a share buyback programme and US President Donald Trump announced a pause on tariffs. The FTSE-100 firm was set to be one of the UK retailers most exposed to the tariffs, as its suppliers source the majority of [...]
Bond Street dethrones Milan with Europe’s most expensive retail rent April 10, 2025 London’s Bond Street has been crowned Europe’s most expensive street to rent, stealing the top spot from Milan. In 2024, Bond Street reported a 20 per cent uplift in prime headline rents, taking its benchmark prime rent to €15,333 (£13,162) per sqm. It has overtaken Milan’s Via Monte Napoleone (£12,872 per sq m), which held [...]
Tesco, M&S and Sainsbury’s shares drop amid wider FTSE 100 rally April 10, 2025 The UK’s major listed supermarkets missed out on a post-crisis FTSE 100 bump this morning after Tesco’s full-year results stoked fears of ‘trolley wars’ in the sector. The FTSE 100 index rose by more than six per cent as investors breathed a sigh of relief after Trump’s ‘reciprocal’ tariffs were paused last night. However, Tesco, [...]
