May 22 2013 18:10 BST Best Buy: money munching machineA company, in a pure investment sense, is just a machine that produces money. So the true measure of profitability is not margins. What really matters is return on invested capital - how much money the machine spits out, relative to what the machine costs. (If you prefer a technical |
May 21 2013 23:07 BST US stocks close at fresh highHome Depot led US stocks to a new record high as the home improvement company said its most recent quarterly performance was lifted by the country's continuing housing recovery. Shares in Home Depot reached an all-time high and climbed 2.5 per cent to $78.71 as it said net profits inBy Arash Massoudi in New York |
May 21 2013 14:15 BST Best Buy reports US sales dropBest Buy disappointed investors by posting a decline in quarterly sales in its US home market but the electronics retailer, which is in the midst of a turnround, reported better than expected profits. The retailer, whose chief executive Hubert Joly was appointed last August to revive it, said on TuesdayBy Barney Jopson in New York |
May 15 2013 00:08 BST US earnings: irrational drearinessFirst-quarter reporting season is nearly past and, for US companies, it can be summed up thus: more of the same, only drearier. Sales growth for companies in the S&P 500 will come in a bit shy of 1.5 per cent, according to S&P Capital IQ - even lower than the |
May 14 2013 17:57 BST Apple builds relations beyond FoxconnCracks are appearing in the once unbreakable relationship between Apple and its main manufacturing partner Hon Hai Precision, as the Silicon Valley company switches more work to a rival contract manufacturer. Pegatron, which like Hon Hai is based in Taiwan, has been winning contracts for popular Apple products such asBy Sarah Mishkin in Taipei |
May 07 2013 19:21 BST Battle rages over US online taxA drive by Walmart and other retailers for the US Congress to end tax-free internet shopping is heading for a collision with Grover Norquist, the anti-tax activist, as both sides compete to sway Republicans over the proposal. The House of Representatives is taking up the Marketplace Fairness Act, which allowsBy Stephanie Kirchgaessner in Washington |
May 01 2013 19:36 BST US retailers losing appetite to hire amid economic jittersMichael Faulhaber, the veteran owner of the Ward-Brodt music store in Madison, Wisconsin, has plenty in common with Dave Battisti of the Pork Roll Store, 900 miles east in central New Jersey. Both operate small retail establishments, both are worried about the state of the US economy and consumer demand,By James Politi in Washington and Barney Jopson in New York |
Apr 30 2013 22:46 BST Lombard: Reconstructed WPP sets out possible post-Sorrell worldThe climate is changing at WPP - not just a bunch of board members. Though the prompt for the impending departure of Jeffrey Rosen as chair of the remuneration committee (he remains a non-executive director) was the shareholder revolt last year, the shake-up goes well beyond what the board mightBy Alison Smith |
Apr 30 2013 21:49 BST Wall Street closes at second consecutive highUS stocks closed at a record level for a second consecutive day, shaking off sluggishness from early trading after the pharmaceutical company Pfizer lowered its full-year profit outlook. The S&P 500 rose 0.3 per cent to 1,597.57 in New York, as stocks on the benchmark recovered from a slow startBy Arash Massoudi in New York |
Apr 30 2013 09:26 BST Best Buy sells stake in European venture to Carphone WarehouseBest Buy has pulled the plug on its foray into Europe after the US electrical retailer sold its half of its European joint venture back to Carphone Warehouse Group for £471m. The sale brings to a close a five-year relationship between the British mobile phone group and the US companyBy Mark Wembridge |
