THE DAILY BRIEFING
■ AMERICAN HOMES Estate agent Purplebricks is pushing ahead with a division in Florida. It started working in the US in September and sells homes in San Diego and Las Vegas.
■ SALES BOOST Tools hire firm Speedy Hire expects its international business to boost revenue and profit growth in the first half of its financial year.
Revenue for the six months to the end of September is expected to come in 6.5pc ahead of the same period a year earlier. Profits for the full-year are expected to be ahead of 2017. ■ WEEKLY FALL Sales across the John Lewis Partnership, which also owns Waitrose, fell 0.2pc in the week to September 22 on a year earlier. ■ REVENUE JOY Media and entertainment group Time Out’s sales rose 20pc to £22.4m for the six months to June, helping its pre-tax loss shrink to £12.1m from £16.3m. ■ TRADE THREAT A growing trade war between the US and China could destabilise the global economy, the head of the World Trade Organisation Roberto Azevedo has warned. ■ HUNDRED UP Shares in cream cake company Cake Box edged up 1.2pc, or 2p, to 169.5p as it opened its 100th store in Milton Keynes. ■ WEALTH BENEFITS So- called Family offices, which invest the money of the world’s richest bloodlines, made bumper returns for their clients as their average investment performance more than doubled last year, according to UBS. ■ RISING ROOMS Hostel operator Safestay posted a 60pc rise in revenues to £6.5m after strong demand for low-cost rooms. Losses widened slightly to £0.8m in the six months to June 30 from £0.4m a year earlier. ■ BOSS SUSPENDED Scandal-hit Swiss investment firm GAM said complaints from a whistleblower forced it to suspend top fund manager Tim Haywood on leave in July after another staff member warned he was breaking the rules – and shares have since crashed 44pc. ■ SITES SOLD Garden centre chain Wyevale has sold four more sites to individual buyers. ■ BANKING FEARS European banks’ profits will take a 40pc hit by 2022 due to Brussels red tape, bad loans and ultra-low interest rates, German financial services consultant Zeb has warned. Zeb added that post-Brexit disruption will also have an impact.