Business News

Sack Olympus board and I will return, says ex-boss

Nick Clark: Ousted British chief executive urges Japanese firm's investors to cut out the 'cancer' at the top.

Inside Business News

Argos turns to China to boost sales

Wednesday, 19 October 2011

With shoppers cutting back in the UK, Argos has turned to China as part of its drive to revive its flagging fortunes.

Broadcaster BSkyB profits increase by 32%

Wednesday, 19 October 2011

Increasing sales of telephone and broadband packages offset a slowdown in new TV subscriptions.

Argos scrapes half-year profit of �3.4 million

Wednesday, 19 October 2011

Catalogue chain Argos scraped a half-year profit of just �3.4 million today after consumers put off buying "big ticket" electronics items.

Premier sales in capital help profits rise at Whitbread

Wednesday, 19 October 2011

UK divide revealed by hotel chain figures while group's Costa coffee continues to impress

Bank Governor backs QE despite inflation surge

Wednesday, 19 October 2011

Sir Mervyn King says that the worst of price rises will be behind us by next year

I'll have a beer and a packet of shares, please

Wednesday, 19 October 2011

A Scotsman walks into a pub and buys a 41 per cent proof beer and £10,000 in shares. Serious investors may laugh, but Scotland's largest independent beer maker, BrewDog, plans to offer shares in itself to its customers at new bars in England by the end of the year.

China economic growth 'shrinks' to 9.1 per cent

Wednesday, 19 October 2011

The Chinese economy, increasingly seen as the saviour of global economic well-being, grew by a less-than-expected 9.1 per cent in the third quarter, prompting fears that the world's second-largest economy may badly affected by the effects of slowdown in the US and Europe's debt crisis. Gross domestic product grew by 9.1 per cent in the three months to 30 September from a year earlier, down from 9.5 per cent in the previous quarter.

Vickers calls for overhaul of retail banking boards

Wednesday, 19 October 2011

Sir John Vickers yesterday warned that ring-fenced retail banks' boards would require a complete overhaul to meet the demands of his banking reforms.

Energy costs push rate of inflation over 5 per cent

Wednesday, 19 October 2011

The Consumer Prices Index of inflation breached 5 per cent in September, putting a further dent in the living standards of families across Britain. The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics released yesterday showed that CPI rose from 4.5 per cent in August to 5.2 per cent last month, to reach its highest level since September 2008. The Retail Prices Index, which includes mortgage costs, rose from 5.2 per cent to 5.6 per cent.

Apple results fail to meet forecasts

Wednesday, 19 October 2011

Apple shocked investors with results that missed forecasts for the first time in years, blaming disappointing sales of old iPhones while consumers were waiting for the new iPhone 4S.

More business news: