The FTSE 100 is up 0.6 per cent in afternoon trading. Among the companies with reports and trading updates today are Vodafone, JD Wetherspoon and LV=. Read the Friday 22 March Business Live blog below.

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Insurer LV= turns from loss into profit as it keeps costs under control

(PA) – Insurance giant LV= said it had managed to get back into the black as it kept costs steady last year.

The former friendly society said it had seen pre-tax profit hit £107million in the year to the end of December. The same figure had shown a pre-tax loss of £145million the year before.

It helped the business return £30million in bonuses to its members.

“Since 2011, we have shared member bonuses of £385million, reflecting our commitment to driving the success of LV= so that it can be shared with our members,” said chief executive David Hynam.

He said that the company’s outlook “remains positive” and that it has “strong” foundations.

The chief executive said fixed term annuities – which pay a regular income in retirement for a specific time – have seen “greater demand” as interest rates remain high. That is “giving members the certainty they want in retirement”, he said.

He said: “Thanks to our robust business model and focused strategy, LV= has been profitable despite 2023’s many external headwinds including high inflation, rising interest rates and low growth.

“At the same time, we have shown strong cost disciplines and kept operating costs largely flat despite an external environment of significant inflation.”

Wetherspoon boss expecting a ‘reasonable’ annual result

JD Wetherspoon chair Sir Tim Martin expects a ‘reasonable outcome’ for the financial year’ after the pub group’s profits soared in the first half.

The FTSE 250 pub giant’s pre-tax profits jumped to £36million in the 26 weeks ending 28 January, marking a near-eightfold increase on the equivalent period the previous year.

Retail revival stalls as hard-pressed Brits cut back on car travel

The revival in retail sales stalled last month as hard-pressed Brits cut back on fuel and miserable weather dampened footfall in high streets.

Volumes were flat in in February after a spike of 3.6 per cent the previous month that had clawed back ground from a lacklustre Christmas.

Supermarket loyalty cards: Which do shoppers like best?

From Nectar to Clubcard and Sparks to MyWaitrose, most supermarkets now give shoppers the option to sign up for a loyalty scheme.

You will usually get a physical or digital card which you can use to collect points or get discounts every time you shop – though many schemes have changed how they work in recent years, and in some cases have become less generous.

Nelson Peltz wins backing in Disney row ahead of a crunch vote

The power struggle at Disney intensified last night after Nelson Peltz won influential backing in his battle with the board.

Ahead of a crunch vote next month, Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) recommended investors elect the activist investor as a director to hold executives to account.

Phoenix Group shares soar as insurer lifts outlook

Phoenix Group shares have soared in early trading after the FTSE 100 insurer said it expected to increase profits by nearly a half and generate higher operating cash by 2026, as it looks to optimise costs and pay down debt aided by new business growth.

Phoenix – whose business model is to acquire old portfolios of life insurance policies, and then look to optimise the cost and capital requirements for running these portfolios – has benefited from the booming bulk annuities market, where insurance giants buy pension obligations from companies.

The UK bulk annuity market hit a record high above £50billion last year and is expected to top that this year.

Higher interest rates have made it cheaper for pensions schemes to buy the insurance, which removes pensions risks from company balance sheets.

UK defence giants BAE and Rolls-Royce to build Aussie nuclear subs

Britain’s defence sector received a major boost after two industrial giants were chosen to build Australia’s next-generation nuclear powered submarines.

BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce have been picked by the Australian government alongside domestic defence company ASC Pty and will deliver the SSN-AUKUS submarines in the early 2040s.

Rate hopes boost FTSE: ‘Things moving in right direction,’ says Bailey

Global stock markets soared yesterday amid hopes that the move towards interest rate cuts is gathering pace on both sides of the Atlantic.

The FTSE 100 rose nearly 2 per cent to an 11-month high of 7882.55 after Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey said ‘things are moving in the right direction’ for a cut as inflation falls.

December retail slowdown a ‘seasonal blip’

Daniel Mahoney, UK economist, Handelsbanken:

‘Retail sales figures for February are fairly unremarkable although they are notably better than market expectations. Sales volumes were estimated to be 0% m-o-m (market expectations: -0.4%), following an increase of 3.6% in January.

‘December saw a large fall in sales, which was subsequently corrected in January. At the time, there were some concerns that December’s print could indicate a worrying trend, but January and February’s prints suggest that it was merely a seasonal blip.

‘Retail sales volumes gradually declined from the middle of 2021 for around two years but have effectively plateaued from that point onwards.’

Spoon’s profits soar as costs ease

J D Wetherspoon profits soared in the first half of its financial year, supported by a gradual easing of costs and an increase in customers coming to grab drinks and food.

The group, which owns and operates pubs across the UK and Ireland, reported a profit before tax of £36million, compared with £4.6million a year ago.

Department stores and clothing sales drive retail strength

Retail sales stagnate in February

UK retail sales unexpectedly held steady last month after rising by a revised 3.6 per cent January, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed on Friday.

Flat performance for February compare to forecasts that sales would shrink by 0.3 per cent for the month.

‘There was growth in clothing, which rebounded after recent falls as people invested in the new season’s collections, as well as department stores,” ONS senior statistician Heather Bovill, said.

‘However, these were offset by falls in fuel sales, possibly affected by rising prices, and a reduction in food sales.’

Compared with a year ago, sales volumes were 0.4 per cent lower.

Mobile customers could face higher bills with Three and Vodafone merger, watchdog warns

Mobile customers could pay higher prices if the merger between Three and Vodafone is allowed to go ahead, the competition watchdog has warned.

But the Competition and Markets Authority is concerned that a shrinking market of providers could push up prices for all mobile phone customers – not just those of Vodafone and Three.

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