Business news in brief
Owner of Royal Mail puts cost of strikes at £200m
Royal Mail has revealed the cost of strike action in a bitter dispute over pay and conditions has reached around £200m, helping push the business to a hefty operating loss. Owner International Distribution Services said Royal Mail was still set to meet guidance for annual operating losses of between £350m and £450m due to cost savings and strike contingency measures. It said up to around 12,500 union members had worked on strike days.
The group has recently resumed talks with the CWU but it has been a lengthy dispute and the union this week launched its third ballot for industrial action.
Earnings down 15% at Morrisons
Morrisons has revealed lower earnings as bosses pledged to push prices down in a bid to win back customers. The supermarket, which was bought by private equity giant Clayton, Dubilier and Rice in 2021, said adjusted earnings fell by 15 per cent to £828m over the year to 30 October, which it said was at the “top end” of guidance and included improved profitability in the final quarter.
“Inflation is by no means over but there are signs of steadying more recently,” said Joanna Goff, chief finance officer. Morrisons saw a 4.2 per cent decline in group like-for-like revenues, excluding fuel. Last year, the retailer was overtaken by discount rival Aldi as the UK’s fourth largest supermarket.
Profits lift predicted by Jet2
Jet2 has increased its profits outlook after revealing that bookings for next winter are ahead of where they were before the pandemic. The business now expects significantly improved pre-tax profits of between £370m and £385m. It said average load factors – how full planes are – are slightly higher for next winter than last, even with 24 per cent more seats.
AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould said: “People are still prizing their week in the sun above almost anything else it seems. Where Jet2 deserves credit is in the way it has treated customers over the last 12 months – not cutting flights at the last minute, doing its best to look after travellers, and taking on board extra costs itself.” PA
Hundreds of jobs at risk in Asda shake-up
Asda says a shake-up of store operations will put close to 300 roles at risk and reduce pay for more than 4,000 night workers. It has proposed moving some overnight restocking shifts at 184 stores to the daytime, putting 211 night shift manager roles at risk. It also revealed a 25 per cent cut to the opening hours of 23 in-store Post Office shops and will shut seven in-store pharmacies, which employ 14 pharmacists and 48 other workers.
Meanwhile, discount retailer Poundland plans to open and relocate at least 50 new stores over the next nine months in a move set to create up to 800 jobs. Plans will also see the biggest Poundland opened in Scotland – a “supersized” 18,380 square feet store in Glasgow’s Crown Street. PA
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