Yahoo Finance What to watch: Robert Walters booming, Barclays war of words continues, and Debenhams CEO 'set to go'
Here are the top business, market and economic stories you should be watching today in the UK, Europe and abroad:
Robert Walters booming
Recruitment firm Robert Walters has reported a 10% increase in net fee income for the first quarter “despite” Brexit.
In the UK, net fee income was up 10%, although 72% of the group’s net fee income is now derived from outside the UK.
Chief executive Robert Walters said: “The group delivered a solid set of first quarter numbers, increasing net fee income by 10% year-on-year.
“All the group’s regions delivered growth in net fee income despite economic and political uncertainty in a number of markets, particularly the UK and France. Current trading is in line with market expectations for the full year.”
Barclays war of words continues
Edward Bramson, the activist investor targeting Barclays, has written a new letter to shareholders calling for a seat on the bank’s board.
“In our firm’s professional opinion, the stubbornly low valuation that the market accords to the shares of Barclays will continue until the board finally adopts a strategy that is more realistic and shareholder orientated,” Bramson’s firm Sherborne Investors wrote.
“An alternative voice on the board would seem to be healthy for the company and its shareholders.”
Bramson was responding to a letter from Barclays’ board last week urging investors to ignore the calls for change. Bramson wants Barclays to cut back on its investment banking activities, which he believes are holding the bank back.
Debenhams CEO ‘set to go’
Debenhams CEO Sergio Bucher is said to be on his way out at the struggling retailer, according to media reports.
Last week Debenhams was taken over by a consortium of its lenders in a pre-pack administration that wiped out shareholders. The Sunday Times reported yesterday that Debenhams’ new owners want to replace Bucher as CEO and bring in someone with more turnaround experience.
Bucher joined Debenhams as CEO from Amazon in October 2016 but struggled to turnaround the ailing department store, which issued three profit warnings in 2018 alone.
UK dividends booming
UK dividends jumped 15.7% to a first-quarter record of £19.7bn ($25.8bn) between the beginning of January and the end of March, according to the latest UK Dividend Monitor by Link Asset Services.
The dramatic increase in dividends — the money paid by a company to its shareholders out of profits — was mainly influenced by very large special dividends. Underlying growth was actually slightly slower than expected, the report shows.
The biggest impact came from BHP. The global mining group paid a huge £1.7bn special dividend from the proceeds of the disposal of its US shale oil interests, on top of a healthy increase in its final dividend. This made BHP the second-largest dividend payer in the first quarter of the year.
Brexit weighs on UK spending
The number of people entering a shop or shopping mall, known as footfall, was up 1.4% year-on-year in March, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Springboard survey.
However, Brexit’s damaging effect on the pound, as well as the continued threat of online shopping and higher business rates, has meant that “the higher footfall has not translated into higher spending,” said Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC.
European markets
European stock markets were quiet, with no major corporate announcements or data points due today to move the dial.
Britain's FTSE 100 (^FTSE) was down by 0.1%, Germany's DAX (^GDAXI) was flat, France's CAC 40 (^FCHI) was flat, and the Euronext 100 (^N100) was up by 0.1%.
Asian markets were mixed overnight. Japan's Nikkei 225 (^N225) closed up by 1.3%, Hong Kong's Hang Seng index (^HSI) was down by 0.2%, and China's benchmark Shanghai Composite (000001.SS) was down by 0.3%.
What to expect in the US
US stock futures were pointing to a quiet open later today. S&P 500 futures (ES=F) were flat, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) were flat, and Nasdaq futures (NQ=F) were down by 0.1%.
Companies reporting later today in the US include:
