Nestle (SWX:NESN) confirmed its annual guidance on Thursday following a good momentum in its US and China markets. The food group posted an organic growth of 3.2% excluding businesses under strategic review. This growth acceleration was largely supported by its fourth largest market, Brazil. Moreover, the US and China, two of the company’s leading markets, maintain a good momentum. Nestle, whose total reported sales increased by 4.3%, is a Swiss food and drink business headquartered in Vevey, Vaud. The company said that pricing improved to 1.2%, primarily reflecting increases in Brazil and the US. “We are pleased with Nestlé’s solid organic sales growth in the first quarter, building on our full-year 2018 momentum. Our increased speed, innovation for a changing world and execution focus are clearly paying off. We confirm our outlook for the year,” Mark Schneider, CEO of Nestle, commented. Nestle said that whilst all product categories saw positive growth, the largest contributions to this growth came from Purina pet care, dairy and infant nutrition. “In the quarter, we announced the launch of a new range of 24 premium coffee products under the Starbucks brand. The Nestlé and Starbucks teams did an outstanding job and developed these products in just 6 months,” the CEO continued. Last year, Nestle announced that it would pay Starbucks $7.1 billion to sell the company’s signature coffee products. As a result of the deal, Nestle now has the rights to market the signature coffee blend in retail outlets outside of Starbucks chains. Nestle said that its net acquisitions increased sales in the first-quarter by 6%, largely driven by its acquisition of the Starbucks licence. During the first-quarter, Nestle said that its success of its KitKat chocolate meant it did not need to add any new business to its portfolio. It sold its U.S confectionary business to Itay’s Ferrero last year in a $2.8 billion deal, made to push Nestle closer towards healthier products. But, as a result of its strong KitKat brand, Nestle emphasised that it did not need to fill the confectionary-shaped gap left after the sale. In the company’s ‘Zone Europe, Middle-East and North Africa’, the KitKat brand saw double digit growth, in addition to a strong demand for the recently launched Yes! snack back. At 09:09 CEST Thursday, shares in Nestle SA (SWX:NESN) were trading at +1.08%.

L’Oreal (EPA:OR) posted its first-quarter results Tuesday evening, revealing an 11.4% growth in sales across the business. Sales across the group came in at €7.55 billion and had increased by 7.7% on a like-for-like basis. Founded over 100 years ago, L’Oreal is now the world’s largest cosmetics business. “In the first quarter of 2019, L’Oreal maintains the rhythm set in the last quarter of 2018, with strong sales growth at +7.7% on a like-for-like basis, and +11.4% based on reported figures. As anticipated, the powerful underlying growth drivers remain the same as in 2018: Luxe and Active Cosmetics, skincare, Asia, e-commerce and Travel Retail” Chairman and CEO of L’Oreal, Jean-Paul Agon, commented on the results. Its division L’Oreal Luxe posted a rise of 14.2% on a like-for-like basis and 19% on reported figures, maintaining double-digit growth. Its Western Europe zone posted an increase of 1.1% like-for-like and 2.1% based on reported figures. North America grew 1.2% like-for-like and 9.2% based on reported figures. “At a regional level, the highlight is Asia Pacific, which has become the first Zone of the Group, powering ahead not only in China but also in India, Indonesia and Malaysia, which have all posted double-digit growth. In contrast, the first quarter saw modest growth in North America and Western Europe,” the Chariman and CEO continued. L’Oreal emphasised that, despite a volatile and uncertain economic environment, its start to the year gives the company confidence in its ability to outperform the market this year. It expects to see another year of growth in sales and profits. Indeed, particularly in its UK market, the UK’s departure from the EU and its subsequent six-month extension is creating particular economic uncertainty. High street retailers find themselves facing tough trading conditions amid a gloomy environment. The company posted strong third-quarter results for 2018 at the end of the year, largely as a result of the strong demand of products within its luxury division. At 09:39 CEST Wednesday, shares in L’Oreal SA (EPA:OR) were trading at -0.042%.

Tom Tom (AMS:TOM2) revealed a 14% rise in its first-quarter revenue on Wednesday in its first-quarter results. The digital navigation company said that its group revenue for the quarter was €170 million, a 14% increase compared to the €149 million figure from the same period a year prior. Its first-quarter revenue comes in above the €157 million predicted by analysts, according to Reuters. Tom Tom, who posted a 29% increase in its Location Technology revenue, is a Dutch company which employed 4,600 people across the globe as of 2015, and has 56 offices in 37 countries. The company said that it expects a full year group revenue of €675 million. €430 million of which is down to Location Technology. “We had a good start of the year, winning the first two available HD map deals, which gives us an early position in this growth market. Additionally, a number of driver navigation deals were announced. Revenue in our core activities was up 29% year on year,” Chief Executive Officer of Tom Tom, Harold Goddijn, commented on the results. “We will continue to invest in further improving the efficiency of our map-making platform and launch innovative products to enable driver navigation, automated driving and Maps APIs,” he continued. The company produces traffic, navigation and mapping products, in addition to other location-based products, and competes against rivals such as Google Maps. Elsewhere in digital technology, Alphabet’s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) drone delivery firm Wing was recently granted approval to operate in the skies over Australia. Provided that operation of the drones meets certain conditions, they have received the go ahead to deliver across Australia. Apple (NASDAQ:APPL) started the year by slashing production of its iPhone by 10% over the next three months following a cut to its revenue forecast. At 09:06 CEST Wednesday, shares in Tom Tom NV (AMS:TOM2) were trading at +1.74%.

Shares in Advanced Oncotherapy (LON:AVO) rose on Tuesday after the company announced the appointment of a new chief operating officer and President for its US division. The company, which specialises in developing proton therapy for cancer patients, said that Moataz Karmalawy is to assume the role as Chief Commercial Officer and President of its US division. In the announcement, Advanced Oncotherapy noted that Mr Karmalawy was General Manager of the Worldwide Particle Therapy Business for Varian Medical Systems, the world’s largest manufacturer of radiotherapy equipment, for 12 years. Commenting, Moataz Karmalawy, said: “Advanced Oncotherapy stands out as an incredibly exciting opportunity within the proton therapy market. The global capacity to treat patients with proton therapy has been disappointingly low due to the high cost of traditional proton therapy technologies. He added: “Having spent the last 12 years developing the market dominance of the largest supplier of proton therapy products, I have first-hand experience of the considerable clinical demand for a more readily available and affordable technology. It is therefore easy to see how the huge potential for the LIGHT system can address that demand. I look forward to realising that potential in my new role at an exciting time for the Company now that the technology has been validated.” Nicolas Sérandour, CEO, also commented on the appointment: “Bringing someone of Mr Karmalawy’s calibre and experience on board is a testament to the advantages of our next-generation proton beam technology and to the opportunity that presents itself as we move towards commercialisation of the LIGHT system. ” Shares in Advanced Oncotherapy are currently trading +8.86% as of 14:51PM (GMT) on the back of the announcement.  

UK employment hit a record high in February with 457,000 additional people in employment. The latest figures collated by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed that UK employment rate hit 76.1%. Meanwhile, unemployment remains at its lowest rate since records began in the 1970s at 3.9%. This was attributed to more women finding employment, increasing by 142,000 during the period. Nevertheless, the ONS said that wages still remained below 2008/9 levels, as inflation pushed down earnings.

While employment has reached a new record high, earnings of employees are still lower than before the 2008–2009 recession, after taking inflation into account https://t.co/Yy24g2Ng9o pic.twitter.com/0EPQVcS4rq

— ONS (@ONS) 16 April 2019

https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.jsMatt Hughes, ONS deputy head of labour market statistics, said: “Earnings have now been growing ahead of inflation for over a year but, in real terms, wage levels have not yet returned to their pre-downturn peak.” Employment minister Alok Sharma welcomed the figures, he commented: “The UK jobs market continues to go from strength to strength, proving the underlying resilience of the British economy.” “We must not take this for granted. We need to work urgently to get behind a Brexit deal that protects this jobs record and gives employers the certainty to continue to invest in their workforce and boost wages.”  

Galliford Try shares plunged on Tuesday after the company issued a profit warning for the full-year. The construction company also announced it was conducting a ‘strategic review’ into its business to remedy falling profits. As part of the review, the company said it will seek to reduce the size of its construction business. Instead it said it will focus upon ‘key strengths in markets and sectors with sustainable prospects for profitability and growth’. Galliford Try said that it now expects profits to be £30-£40 million lower than previously expected. Galliford Try is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index on the London Stock Exchange. Some of its biggest projects have included the restoration of the London St.Pancras Renaissance hotel, the centre court of Wimbledon, as well as the recently completed Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route. The completion of the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route was delayed due to weather issues and the collapse of Carillion. Both Galliford Try and Balfour Beatty, who were joint-venture partners in the project, had to pick up the additional costs incurred after Carillion’s collapse into insolvency. Shares in the group (LON:GFRD) fell considerably on the back of the profit warning announcement. Shares are currently trading down 17.57% as of 12:14AM (GMT).

Card Factory (LON:CARD) reported its preliminary results for the year to January-end. The high street card retailer said that like-for-like sales fell 0.1%, compared to growth of 2.9% the year before. This was attributed to a drop in footfall across the period. Meanwhile, underlying profits totalled £84.9 million, down from £94 million reported the previous year. Card Factory also announced a total ordinary dividend per share, of 9.3p, as well as a special dividend of 5p per share which was paid back in December. In addition, Card Factory also said it was continuing with the opening of new stores, with 51 opening across the period, bring its total estate to 972. Karen Hubbard, Chief Executive Officer, commented: “We delivered a robust performance for the year, maintaining flat like-for-like sales despite a tough consumer environment. Our focus has been on continual improvements to our customer offer, producing better, more innovative ranges of everyday and seasonal cards and maintaining our quality and value positioning, while also being more efficient and driving savings across the business. EBITDA for the year however, was impacted by lower footfall and Getting Personal’s disappointing performance. “We continue to look to leverage our unique, vertically integrated model to improve our competitive advantage and drive margins. We have further initiatives planned for the current year which will bring further production back to the UK, whilst also implementing additional plans that will allow an improved focus on customer service in store.” The first Card Factory location was opened in 1997. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of FTSE 250 Index. Shares in Card Factory are currently +3.9% as of 10:41AM (GMT).

Lufthansa (ETR:LHA) posted a €336 million operating loss for the first three months of 2019, blaming rising fuel costs for weighing down the figure. For the same period a year earlier, Germany’s biggest airline recorded a €52 million operating profit. Its earnings over the period were reduced by a €202 million rise in fuel costs. Moreover, it continued to add that market-wide overcapacities in Europe “put strong downward pressure on fares”. Lufthansa has said that the drop in its earnings is emphasized by the particularly strong first-quarter earnings from 2018. The airline said that it expects unit revenues at constant currency to increase year-on-year in the second quarter. “For 2019 as a whole, the Lufthansa Group still expects to report an Adjusted EBIT margin between 6.5 and 8.0 percent,” the company concluded in a statement. When combined with its subsidiaries, Lufthansa is the largest airline in Europe when measured by number of passengers carried. Last month, Lufthansa issued a wary revenue and profit guidance for the year as a result of reduced fares and higher fuel costs weighing on its 2018 earnings. Elsewhere in aviation, the Icelandic low-cost airline WOW Air grounded its flights leaving thousands of passengers stranded. Ryanair (LON:RYA) also made known its struggles recently among rising costs and overcapacity that were weakening its margins. Tui (ETR:TUI1) warned on the impacts the grounding of the Boeing 737 max fleet will have on its profits. The travel company said the grounding could cost as much as €300 million, after safety concerns over the aircraft emerged. Shares in Deutsche Lufthansa AG (ETR:LHA) were trading at -2.72% as of 09:24 CEST Tuesday. Ryanair (LON:RYA) shares began the day trading slightly higher, whilst Tui (ETR:TUI1) shares were last trading at -0.35% as of 09:25 CEST.

JD Sports (LON:JD) posted an increase in its annual pre-tax profit on Tuesday, beating the UK retail gloom and remaining confident as Brexit uncertainty prevails. Profit before tax jumped 15.4% to £339.9 million. This compares to the £294.5 million figure from a year prior. “This new record result for our Group has been achieved with a relentless focus on ensuring that, at all times, we provide a compelling differentiated proposition to the consumer with an attention-grabbing theatre both in stores and online,” said Peter Cowgill, Executive Chairman of JD Sports. “JD is not immune to the widely reported challenges to physical retail in the UK with lower footfall on many high streets, malls and retail parks combined with cost challenges from increasing minimum wage rates and rises in business rates. Therefore, it is very pleasing that the core UK and Ireland Sports Fashion fascias, the most mature part of our Group, have delivered a further increase in sales and profitability,” the Executive Chairman continued. JD Sports, who purchased its smaller UK rival Footasylum (LON:FOOT) in a £90 million deal earlier this year, said that its acquisition of Finish Line in the US significantly extends its global reach. Its trial of the JD fascia has delivered “encouraging” early results. “We firmly believe that the elevated and dynamic multibrand multichannel proposition of the core JD fascia, which enjoys the ongoing support of the key international brands, has the necessary agility to continue to exceed consumer expectations and prosper in an increasing number of international markets,” the Executive Chairman continued. Looking forward, JD Sports has underscored the uncertainty “surrounding the nature and timing” of Brexit. The company said it is aware of the potential disruptions a chaotic departure may have on supply chains, tariffs, exchange rates and consumer demand. “Notwithstanding this uncertainty, the Board remains confident in the international potential of the JD proposition,” JD Sports said. JD Sports stocks sports fashion retailers such as Nike, Adidas and Puma and is Britain’s biggest sportswear retailer. Across the UK, retailers have been suffering from high street gloom amid months of profit warnings and cautious trading updates. The sports fashion retailer appears to be pushing through the touch retail environment that UK businesses find themselves struggling within. At 08:09 BST, shares in JD Sports Fashion plc (LON:JD) were trading at +1.92%.