Langton Capital – 2023-03-14 – Labour market, Virgin Wines, Grubhub, JDW, PPHE, Playtech & other:
Labour market, Virgin Wines, Grubhub, JDW, PPHE, Playtech & other:A DAY IN THE LIFE: Whilst I doubt that I’ll be picking up a Nobel Prize any time soon, I think I can prove that the speed of light has slowed down. Because, when we try to use the Firestick on the telly in the kitchen, it takes an absolute age to respond and I was sure that light was a bit nippier than that. Or maybe the pipes are a bit clogged or it could be our telly – or our house for that matter – because we’ve always been able to get Yorkshire TV at the back of the property and Tyne Tees at the front. Meaning the border between the North of England and the Very North of England may run though our property and that could be slowing light down. So there you are Physicist, boom, job done. Drop the mike, give us the gong and let’s move on to 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 THE JOBS MARKET: Labour market issues: The ONS has today updated on employment and average earnings statistics. It reports that ‘growth in average total pay (including bonuses) was 5.7% and growth in regular pay (excluding bonuses) was 6.5% among employees in November 2022 to January 2023….’ • 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. Employment was 75.7% in the 3mths to January, up… • 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. Looking at job vacancies & commenting on the tightness of the labour market, the ONS says ‘the number of vacancies in December 2022 to February 2023 was 1,124,000, a decrease of 51,000 from September to November 2022….’ • 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. PUBS & RESTAURANTS: The Consumer: The CEBR reports that the decision not to increase income tax bands with inflation will cost taxpayers billions of pounds more than initially expected…. Pre-tax wages also to lag. City analysts predict the ONS will confirm that wages will trail behind inflation for the 15th month in a row, with regular pay growth expected to be +6.6% for the three months to February…. Utility costs: Trade calls for moves to prevent energy companies from taking predatory action via large deposits, bonds and the like. Alex Reilley, chairman of Loungers, tweets ‘the stories I’m beginning to hear about the behaviour of energy firms with regards to hospitality energy contracts reminds me of when businesses were forced into interest rate swaps and then the banks colluded to rig LIBOR. This cannot be allowed & the govt has to take action.’ Rugby: The Oxford Partnership reports that ‘despite disappointing results for both England and Scotland fans over the weekend, our latest on trade report shows the Guinness Six Nations championship continues to deliver great extra cheer…’ Other news: Trading: Springboard reports that UK retail parks saw footfall fall by 1% YoY for the week ended 11 March, as severe weather impacted movement… Labour issues. Ministers have asked the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) for advice on whether the hospitality, construction and retail industries should be on the list of sectors where there is a shortage of workers…. The Institute of Brewing & Distilling is to launch a new course, the Essentials in Distilling. This is the first short, on-demand and self-assessed course that the IBD has created to educate professionals in supporting roles in the spirits industry, hospitality sector or spirits lovers. COMPANY NEWS: Virgin Wines has reported H1 numbers saying that revenues slipped to £33.6m from £40.6m with underling EBITDA down to £1.4m from £3.9m in the prior year. PBT was £0.1m against £3.2m last year with EPS of 0.1p against 4.6p… • 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. Parent company Just Eat Takeaway has reported that Adam DeWitt is stepping down from Grubhub’s CEO post from 1 May. DeWitt has worked at Grubhub for 11 years, during which time the company grew revenue from $20 million to over $2 billion. Caffè Nero CEO Will Stratton-Morris claims strategic partnerships such as its recent link-up with Waitrose will be an important avenue for growth… JD Wetherspoon is set to open its new pub at The O2 on Tuesday March 21, with the creation of 85 jobs. JDW reports that it ‘has spent £2.9 million developing the outlet at The O2 music, leisure and entertainment venue, Peninsula Square, in Greenwich…’ Commenting on its six-month performance to the end of calendar 2022 yesterday, Nightcap said that LfL sales were up by 10.1% in Q2 against the same period in FY2019. The company said ‘we estimate that the rail strikes had an impact of approximately £1.2 million on the business at the EBITDA level during the Half Year….’ • 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. Asahi’s Peroni Nastro Azzurro is to introduce a ‘brand-new, refreshingly light lager, Peroni Nastro Azzurro Stile Capri.’ It reports the drink ‘features a subtle spritz of Italian lemon and lower bitterness to deliver exceptional quality and taste credentials for summer 2023.’ GBH, the owners of Spiribam, has acquired UK spirits distributor, Mangrove Global. Be At One has launched its ‘Best In Glass’ 2023 competition. It says ‘the competition has evolved, setting the bar even higher with bigger awards, including cash prizes and a fast track to Diageo’s World Class GB semi-final competition.’ Boxcar Brewery, which is based in Bethnal Green, has entered administration. HOLIDAYS & LEISURE TRAVEL: PPHE has confirmed Clal Insurance as a cornerstone investor for its European Hospitality Real Estate Fund… • 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. Travel disruption could be worsened as the latest Border Force strike on Budget day will coincide with strikes in France. Heathrow yesterday reported that it handled 5.2m passengers last month, a number some 81% higher than that handled in February last year. It says that 26 February was the busiest day in Terminal 5 since Christmas 2019… Global Ports Holding, which manages 23 ports and which handled 6.8m passengers in the 9mths to end-December 2022, says that growth is set to continue during this calendar year… KPMG chief economist Yael Selfin has told the Abta Travel Finance Conference that the economy will remain challenging during the rest of this calendar year… • 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. TUI River Cruises, which admittedly has an interest in the outcome, has said that the river cruise market is expected to be the fastest growth area across all sectors of travel in the next five years. OTHER LEISURE: Playtech has announced a ‘landmark strategic partnership with Hard Rock Digital, the exclusive, global vehicle for interactive gaming and sports betting for Hard Rock International and Seminole Gaming… • 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. Vinyl record sales are reported to have exceeded those of CDs in the US for the first time since 1987… APX Group, a fund that has been buying media assets in the US and in Europe, has taken a 50% stake in Twickenham Studios… FINANCE & MARKETS: China’s BYD, which is the largest seller of electric and hybrid cars in the world, has said it will not consider building its first European car factory in the UK because of Brexit. The company is believed to have shortlisted locations in Germany, France, Spain, Poland and Hungary… Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in 2019 that the decision to leave the EU made it too risky to build a gigafactory in the UK. It has built its first European plant in Germany. Bank of America reports that mortgage costs in the UK are likely to rise further because the Bank of England “messed up” on inflation and has not moved interest rates rapidly enough to compensate for earlier errors. The CBI says the rise in corporation tax due to kick in shortly will be a blow to business. It says it ‘is calling on the Government to use the Spring Budget to introduce a permanent investment deduction that allows businesses to deduct the full cost of investments from their profits, as soon as they spend the money.’ Sterling up at $1.2145 and €1.1350. Oil lower at $79.85. UK 10yr gilt yield down on recession and bank contagion fears at 3.39% (down 24bps). World markets lower yesterday and London set to open down around 21pts. 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. |
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