Economy
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Feb- 2015 -5 February
Polished diamond prices continue decline in January
Demand for polished diamonds improved in January but prices continued to drop, according to the RapNet Diamond Index (RAPI). The price of 1-carat laboratory graded diamonds fell 0.4% in January, the price of 0.30-carat diamonds dropped by 0.9%, price for 0.50-carat diamonds declined 1%, while price for 3-carat diamonds was…
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Jan- 2015 -30 January
Consumer confidence reaches five-month high in January
Consumer confidence has reached a five-month high in January this year, according to figures released today. The consumer confidence index from polling company GfK reached a score of 1, matching the highs hit in mid-2014 and up from December’s nine-month low of -4. All five measures used to calculate the…
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29 January
Balance of 39% of retailers report sales growth in January
The proportion of retail sectors reporting sales growth in January was a balance of +39%, according to the latest data from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). The CBI’s Distributive Trades Survey, which polled 127 UK retailers, found that volumes grew faster than expected, partly driven by the strongest rise…
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23 January
Jewellery Focus introduces metal prices to Daily Briefing
As of today, Jewellery Focus has begun publishing daily metal prices as part of the Daily Briefing newsletter offering. Subscribers to the Briefing can now read the top stories of the day, the week, the editor’s blog and check out what the price of gold is doing – all before midday. Prices…
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23 January
Retail employment grows marginally in December
December showed the strongest month-on-month growth in retail employment since February 2014, up 0.9% year-on-year, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). The BRC-Bond Dickinson Retail Employment Monitor which found that growth in December was supported entirely by the non-food sector while the grocery sector continued to to cut back…
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16 January
December footfall rises but still down on 2013
Retail footfall in December showed the best performance since January 2014, but was still down on the same month in 2013, according to the latest BRC/Springboard Footfall Monitor. Total retail footfall in the UK was up 2.4% on the fall in November, but down 0.7% year-for-year and below the three-month…
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14 January
9ct gold jumps by a million items in full year hallmarking figures
The year 2014 marked an overall upward trajectory of the UK’s hallmarking figures, with the number of items marked rising 13.7% overall, to just under 10.4 million items – 1.2 million more than previous year. The standout performer was 9ct gold, which rose a staggering 25.1% to just over 3.6 million items…
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13 January
‘Cyberweek’ and clearance sales drive online retail in December
‘Cyberweek’ and clearance sales helped to drive online retail sales in December with non-food products growing 7% compared to the same time last year. This is according to the BRC-KPMG Online Retail Sales Monitor which found that in December online sales represented 17% of total non-food sales, compared to 16%…
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12 January
‘Promising’ year ahead for shop vacancy rates
Britain’s shop vacancy rate dropped to 13.2% in December while the overall retail and leisure vacancy rate remained at 11.8%, according to the latest figures. Analysis of vacancy rates by occupation type by the Local Data Company showed that leisure vacancy in December was 7.8%, and all (Retail and Leisure)…
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9 January
Signet ‘s UK division sees 9.7% Christmas growth
Signet’s UK division, which owns high street chains H Samuel and Ernest Jones, has seen a 9.7 increase in like-for-like sales for the eight weeks ending December 27 – the group’s best performance for 12 years. In a statement, the Signet said Ernest Jones was the strongest performer with an…
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