Langton Capital – 2023-04-28 – Gambling review, labour, inflation, Costa, RTN, Oakman & other:
Gambling review, labour, inflation, Costa, RTN, Oakman & other:A DAY IN THE LIFE: Schrodinger’s Cat is an interesting concept but, as I could never get my head around the idea of a cat being both dead and alive, I’ve got another one. If someone tells you ‘you’ve got a letter’, is that a good, bad or a neutral event? Well, Schrodinger may say that, until you know what’s in the letter it’s all of the above but, as a bean-counting accountant, I can’t help being more at home with an odds-based statement. Hence, if three letters in ten comprise demands for money, one in fifty is money coming in – for us that’s just the paltry wayleave that the electricity people give us for stringing lines across our land or maybe the odd tiny refund for something or other – and 17 in every 25 letters are junk then you should, to one or two decimal places, be miserable when the post arrives as it saves you the bother of opening the letter. It’s Friday, it’s a long weekend and it’s the news: LANGTON EMAIL: The Free Email is now written in short form. Extended versions of many stories (after the ellipses) are in the Premium Email. Reply to this email if you would like to upgrade. Prices for the Premium are £395 for one subscription, £695 for multiple, £995 for very large subscribers, all plus VAT. Or sign up for easy in, easy out monthly option per subscriber HERE https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=87YUG2Z5W7PSN PUBS & RESTAURANTS: Trading: Ahead of next week’s local elections, UKHospitality is urging councils to take a pro-growth approach to licensing applications, enable a more streamlined approach to planning applications and actively promote hospitality jobs and skills through local authority channels… Hospitality footfall: Lumina Intelligence data shows that weekly eating and drinking out occasions have declined 6.7% YoY in the four weeks to 19 March, with spend growth remaining significantly behind inflation at +2.6%. Labour market: Freelance services marketplace Fiverr has suggested that some 47% of white collar workers sampled who had lost their jobs had ‘lost faith in salaried work. It adds its ‘findings show that 57% of individuals who were made redundant this year are now planning to explore alternatives to full-time work in their future careers…’ • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. Inflation: The Office for National Statistics has said that falls in global food prices have not yet been passed through to customers by supermarkets. The BBC spoke to Unilever, which says it is not “profiteering in any form” from rising prices, and Sainsbury, which pointed out that falls at the wholesale level take time to feed through to the price of products on the shelf. CEO of Sainsbury Simon Roberts yesterday suggested that it would be some time before it was clear whether or not grocery price inflation has peaked… Rightmove has reported that average rents for properties across Britain have hit a new record with £2,500 per month now the average in London. This will impact some demographics more than others. Train strikes: Aslef has announced further train strikes for 12 and 31 May and for 3 June. The union recently turned down a fresh offer from 16 train firms, including a 4% pay rise for each of two years… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. Other news: In Scotland, pubs, bars and restaurants that sell alcohol for consumption off the premises will no longer be expected to operate as ‘return points’ under changes to the Deposit Return Scheme. Circular economy minister Lorna Slater said these venues will no longer have to accept returns from members of the public and pay out 20p for each container… COMPANY NEWS: Coca-Cola’s figures earlier in the week contained reports of a strong Q1 performance by Costa Coffee, driven by increased sales in the UK and China… Restaurant Group AGM. New York-based investor Irenic Capital Management has announced its intention to vote against The Restaurant Group’s remuneration policy…. Following a strategic review, Fuller’s is moving 23 pubs from its Managed division to Tenanted division… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. Speaking to Oakman’s Peter Borg-Neal, the MCA reports that the CEO has formulated and begun to implement an action plan to improve the group’s financial position following a decline in profits… Pernod Ricard has reported 9mth numbers reporting a 2.2% dip in like-for-like sales in its Q3. The company reports sales up 8% to €9,507m for the first nine months of 2023 and €2.391 billion in the three months to 31 March. CEO Alexandre Ricard comments ‘our very strong €9m performance was broad-based and confirms the strength of our business, with resilient volumes, strong pricing and continued dynamism in all our regions and spirits categories…’ The McManus Pub Group, which operates a predominately freehold pub estate of 21 pubs across Northern Home Counties and Essex, has reported audited results for the 52 weeks ended 30 July 2022 saying that ‘sales have returned to pre pandemic levels and the Group has a refurbished estate from which to move forward with a secure financial base and experienced management team’. The company reports sales up 66% to £14.6m with LfL sales up 17.1% on pre-pandemic levels… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. The MCA reports that Tortilla CEO Richard Morris wants to expand its presence in travel hubs by further building its relationship with Compass Group and SSP. Morris said future target markets include France, Germany, and Spain. The O2 has announced the launch of ‘The Residence’, an exclusive VIP members club with a 300-person capacity. The Residence will be located on Level 3 directly opposite the arena stage and will feature a first-of-its-kind retractable viewing platform named ‘The Walkway’. Tata Starbucks ended its fiscal year ended March 2023 generating $132.7m revenue across 333 stores in 41 cities in India, adding 71 net new stores over the period. Parent company Tata Consumer Products said Tata Starbucks was now ‘looking to rapidly expand its presence in the coming years’. EBay Inc Q1 revenue beat expectations, sending the company’s shares up 5% in after-hours trading. The company said sales had been driven by a selective push on items like collectibles and refurbished products as well as focusing on product categories including sneakers and watches. HOLIDAYS & LEISURE TRAVEL: Research by the World Travel & Tourism Council in collaboration with Oxford Economics shows that the global travel and tourism sector is forecast to fully rebound from the impact of Covid-19 by 2024…. The WTTC said that the ongoing war in Ukraine and prolonged travel restrictions imposed by a number of countries such as China had a ‘significant impact’ on the global recovery but that the reopening of China’s borders from January ‘will propel the sector and see it recover to pre-pandemic levels next year’. CLIA has reported that more British holidaymakers are open to taking a cruise holiday “then ever before.” Lifestyle aparthotel company Locke is to open its sixth Locke in London in July 2023. Research by Cirium suggests that the number of flights from UK airports over this weekend’s Bank Holiday will be around 86% of pre-pandemic levels. GAMBLING ACT REVIEW: White Paper: The government yesterday produced its White Paper on its proposed Gambling Act Review. The proposed review could lead to the biggest shake up in regulation in a generation… • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. FINANCE & MARKETS: Trade & investment post Brexit. The Daily Telegraph writes that ‘the English Channel has “never seemed wider”, with the EU a more attractive business destination than Britain, Microsoft has said after its £55bn gaming mega-merger was struck down.’ Microsoft says ‘there’s a clear message here – the European Union is a more attractive place to start a business than the United Kingdom.’ Lloyds Bank suggests that business confidence has hit its highest level since May. Overall economic optimism rose by five points to 28 per cent. The US Commerce Department reports that the US economy slowed in Q1 as investment by business was reduced. The economy grew 1.1% on an annualised basis. Sterling higher at $1.2481 and €1.1332. Oil up at $78.98. UK 10yr gilt yield up 6bps at 3.80%. World markets moving better yesterday and London set to open up around 30pts as at 6.30am. RETAIL WITH NICK BUBB: • See premium. Reply for sample or to upgrade. Single £395, multiple £695. Limited time offer: PayPal alternative monthly £25 + VAT per sub. Easy in, easy out. |
|
