Whitbread, Hippodrome, Pernod, confidence, interest rates & other:

A DAY IN THE LIFE:

I was thinking about names the other day and how they age you.

For example, in the same way that Gertie, Fred, Hilda and Albert were names that belonged to our grandparents, being named Mark (or Paul, Andrew, Steve, Dave etc – or Mandy, Susan, Karen or Tracey for that matter) firmly labels you a 1960s child, as do a host of other names such as Geoffrey, Nigel, Gary and the like.

Indeed, the name Gary looks to be dying out and, when looking at the leaders of our political parties, it’s interesting to note that, whilst Keir was always something of an acquired taste, Nigel peaked in the late 1950s and early 60s.

Furthermore, the ONS tells us that there have been only 28 babies named Nigel since 2015 – and, no reflection on policies here, but you have to wonder why there were any – and none at all in 2020.

I blame the parents, of course and, as a parent, I have to take my share of the blame because at least four of the five names we’ve chosen either have been, or still are, in the top ten for their gender having been – we thought – rather classy when we chose them.

Anyway, it’s warm and getting warmer. Have a great weekend and let’s move on to the news:

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PUBS & RESTAURANTS:

Interest rates:

As had been widely expected, the Bank of England left interest rates on hold yesterday…

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Consumer confidence:

GfK has released its reading for June consumer confidence in the UK saying that there is some ‘brighter sentiment on the British economy for the coming year.’ It says that its long-running Consumer Confidence Index increased by two points to minus 18 in June….

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Trading:

S4 Labour reports that trade on Mothers Day this year exceeded that on Fathers’ Day…

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Price of a pint:

The MA Pint Price Survey reports that the price of certain craft beers has risen materially over the last year…

Gen Z confidence has firmed up recently reports the BRC…

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UBS’s annual Wealth Report suggests that average wealth in Britain fell by more than any other major global economy except Turkey in 2024…

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Other news:

Loyalty schemes: The FT comments on loyalty schemes being launched by a number of pub chains saying that Greene King is among several major UK pub groups to launch or such a programme ‘in an attempt to lure back customers, as the industry contends with declining alcohol consumption and intense cost pressure….’

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COMPANY NEWS:

Pernod Ricard has announced that it is to streamline its business. It will group its brands into two main divisions, reports Reuters…

Spanish brewer Damm has reported revenues over €2 billion for 2024 with profits up by 35%…

ASDA is to invest some £10m in refreshing its cafes and in expanding its food menu….

WHITBREAD – Q1 CONFERENCE CALL:

Following the release of its Q1 trading statement this morning, Whitbread hosted a conference call for analysts and our comments thereon are set out below.

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HOLIDAYS & LEISURE TRAVEL:

Whitbread shares finished just around 1% lower yesterday on the group’s announcement that trading during Q1 had been ‘challenging’. The shares had been down as much as 3% in earlier trading.

Analysis by the Dutch environmental consultancy CE Delft has suggested that adding a levy to airline tickets could raise more than €100bn a year to pay for further works to counter the impact of climate change.

OTHER LEISURE:

The Hippodrome Casino has reported results for the year to end-December 2024 to Companies’ House. During the year under review, the company’s turnover slipped by 2.8% to £114.6m. GP% rose to 56.7% from 55.5% in the prior year. Admin expenses were up by 4.5% at £56.7m and operating profit fell from £11.1m to £8.2m. Interest receivable rose materially on higher rates and ‘other gains and losses’ a gain in both years, more than doubled to £8.9m. In both years, this was due to the ‘re-measurement of financial liabilities’. PBT rose from £12.2m to £14.8m….

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FINANCE & MARKETS:

For interest rate comment see Pubs & Restaurants above.

Sterling higher at $1.3491 and €1.1712. Oil also higher at $77.24. UK 10 year gilt yield up 4 basis points at 4.54%. World markets lower but stabilising overnight and London set to open around 31 points higher as at 6.30am.

RETAIL WITH NICK BUBB:

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