Economy
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Aug- 2014 -14 August
UK gold demand increases by 21%, says World Gold Council
UK demand from gold rose by 21% in the second quarter of this year, compared with the same period the previous year according to the World Gold Council’s latest figures. On a global scale, Q2 represents more than half of total annual demand for gold. Highlights from WGC’s report: Jewellery: Second…
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13 August
July hallmarking rises 9.4%, gold carries poor performers
July 2014 showed a continued growth trajectory in gold hallmarking figures, with 9ct gold rising 28.1%, and 14ct and 18ct gold increasing 30% and 22.3%, compared with July 2013. But the figures, collated from the UK’s four major assay offices by the Birmingham Assay Office, showed a mixed picture for…
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Jul- 2014 -28 July
LVMH enjoys 3% rise in H1 jewellery and watch revenue
Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), recorded revenue of €14 billion in the first half of 2014, an increase of 3%, with its jewellery and watches category matching 3% growth. Organic revenue growth for the whole group was 5% compared with the same period in 2013, and in a statement LVMH described “resilience”…
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17 July
14ct gold surges 60% in June hallmarking figures
Rising hallmarking figures showed no signs of slowing in June with the four UK assay offices reporting a 60.1% rise in the number of 14ct articles hallmarked, and a 17.1% rise for gold overall, compared with June 2013. But whilst the total number of articles hallmarked across all categories rose…
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10 July
High street retailers struggle to keep up with online shopping
Bricks-and-mortar retail stores are struggling to keep up as footfall falls while online retail grows, according to a new report by ‘the voice of e-retail’, IMRG. The report, entitled ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ which used index data from various sources including ONS, IMRG and BRC, discovered that town and…
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9 July
Shop price inflation hits record low, says BRC
Shop price inflation fell for the 14th consecutive month in June, according to the latest figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC). The BRC-Nielsen Shop Price Index 2014 discovered that overall shop price deflation accelerated to 1.8% in June, the deepest level of deflation since the report began in December…
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Jun- 2014 -26 June
New Designers survey reveals 90% ‘employment confidence’
A survey conducted by the organisers of the New Designers exhibition has revealed that 90% of young designers are confident of finding employment in the creative sector within one year of graduating. The survey also found that 97% believe they are equipped with transferable skills for related sectors, 69% have…
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19 June
Retail sales fall 0.5% in May
British retail sales fell in May for the first time since January, despite strong sales of replica football shirts ahead of the World Cup, official data has shown. Figures by the Office of National Statistics have shown that retail sales in May dropped 0.5% compared with the previous month, retail…
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11 June
Historic Devon jeweller Ham & Huddy up for sale
An historic jewellery shop in Newton Abbot, Devon, has been put on the market by its owner after 10 years’ ownership. 250-year-old Ham & Huddy has become a “permanent feature” in the market town of Newton Abbot but Downey is looking to retire. The store’s collection includes custom made jewellery,…
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3 June
Economic growth reaches ‘record high’, says CBI
Economic growth reached a record high in May, posting the highest reading since data began in 2003, according to the latest CBI growth indicator. The survey of 726 respondents across the manufacturing, retail and service sectors registered record high growth in business activity, with a balance of +35%, up from…
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