John Lewis sales slip while the UK,'s Fastest Growing Online Stores Keeps Growing

Sales at the high-street bellwether John Lewis show no sign of improving after it posted a fourth consecutive week of falling numbers.

The department store's sales tumbled by 4.7 per cent to £48.5m for the week to 31 May. Only two of its 24 stores open for more than a year delivered an increase in sales.

The worst performer was its Peterborough store, which posted sales down 20.4 per cent, while Cribbs Causeway's were down 15.6 per cent.

The Blue Oar analyst Greg Lawless said these were "poor numbers" for John Lewis, which is a barometer for the UK high street. "The only bright star is that it looks like clothing sales are holding up, but everything is going backwards at a significant rate. If John Lewis is finding life tough, so too will other department stores, together with the electricals boys," said Mr Lawless.

He pointed out that the department store's dotcom site grew sales by only 22 per cent, against a year-to-date run rate of 34 per cent.

For the week to 31 May, John Lewis said its electrical and home technology sales fell by 10.8 per cent. However, John Lewis posted fashion sales up by 5.6 per cent for the week, with womenswear, childrenswear and beauty departments performing strongly.

Next week, John Lewis, which has 26 stores, will launch a £2m advertising campaign that highlights different elements of its shopping experience.

The John Lewis Partnership supermarket chain Waitrose posted sales up 4.1 per cent for the week to 31 May, despite torrential rain across much of the country for the bank holiday

In contrast BG Stores, the UK's fastest growing online shopping site is reaching new heights, with record sales in the last 2 months, and this week announced the launch a new Site BG Watches, this is the first of many they hope to launch in the next few months, making it easier for customers to find what they are looking for more easily.

Online shoppers spend third more in '07

Shoppers shrugged off fears about the economy to spend more than ever on the internet last year, with the total sum up by more than a third on 2006. Consumers splashed out £14.7bn online in 2007, 35% higher than the previous year, according to a survey by retail analysts Verdict Research. That’s the fastest rate of growth in six years and is 10 times the figure enjoyed by the UK retail sector as a whole. Verdict reckons the internet will account for almost 14% of spending by 2012 when online sales are predicted to hit £44.9bn. "The internet is widely perceived as a cheaper and easier way of finding lower prices and bargains in most sectors,” said Malcolm Pinkerton, a senior analyst at Verdict. "As the cost of broadband falls, consumers become accustomed to internet shopping and retailers continue to enhance their online propositions, the channel will find itself extremely well-placed to capitalise on the falling consumer confidence and lower levels of disposable income currently impacting the retail market."

US Ship barred from Burma are the US really this Stupid

The US amphibious assault ship, USS Essex, is moored off the coast of Burma, prohibited by the military government from swinging into action to help cyclone victims.
Is this really a surprise do they really expect to be let in.
I look at it like this if some one had been telling me I was evil and they wanted me thrown out of my house, I would not let them in the door no matter what.
But this is just what the USA has done it shouts how evil Burma is, it makes it very clear it wants the government out of power, yet now they want Burma to let Americans run all over the country.
We all know the US and the things they have done in the past assignation attempts on other countries leaders burning sugar plantations in Cuba etc, so I am 100% sure they would use this as a excuse to get the CIA into the country and stir up trouble.
The truth is also they have let in international aid from countries such as China, it is just the countries that have made it clear they would like to see them overthrown that they have stopped.
OH and the US is free to send as much aid as they want it is just they can not be the ones that distribute it, the US is making a lot of fuss about that and don't really want it that way, probably because they can't put CIA agents in boxes, a clear sign that the US is not doing this out of the goodness of their hearts but a way of getting a foot in the door.

Shock internet fraud figures released.

Today the UK,s fastest growing online shopping site released its figures for attempted fraud on its site, and it is quite a shock most of us think of most fraud coming from countries in Africa or Asia, but their figures show that a huge 93% of attempted fraud comes from the United States of America, they in fact report that a shocking 1 out of 3 attempted transactions from the USA are in fact fraud attempts.The company have in the past blocked buyers from some of the countries normally associated with fraud, but removed all blocks for a one year trial. As a result of the one year trail all the countries that we all associate with fraud will still be free to shop with them, but transactions will be closely monitored.But have decided to no longer except orders from the USA.

ATTEMPTED ONLINE FRAUD BY COUNTRY.
1) USA 93%
2) Singapore 3%
3) Germany 2%
4) Rest of world 2%

Yahoo! shares to fall sharply after rejecting Microsoft

Yahoo! shares are expected to fall sharply when Wall Street opens this morning after the on-line giant rejected an improved offer from Microsoft over the weekend.
Analysts said that shares could fall by as much as 30pc to the low $20 range from their $28.67 close last week.
This has to be proof that Wall Street knows nothing about the internet, anyone with a bit of knowledge about search engines knows that Microsoft search engine does not work, and that is why it can not keep up with Google and yahoo in the search engine wars, no doubt they would have took yahoo down to their level.

British soldier killed on patrol

A British soldier killed on patrol in Afghanistan when his vehicle went over a mine has been named as Trooper Ratu Babakobau, a 29-year-old Fijian serving with the Household Cavalry.
His death on Friday in the Nowzad area of northern Helmand brings the total number of British military fatalities in the country to 95 since operations began in November 2001.

Time to stand up and get our boys back home, its time to stop supporting US wars, the US do not want us there as friends they want us because they are unable to win wars without us.

My heart goes out to the family and loved ones of this soldier and the other 94 that have died in a war that was started for no more than revenge and as history shows can never be won, despite the US claiming it was a quick victory it was not it was a quick start the end is years away and it is a end that will be lost.

Boris Johnson first Stumble

There were the trademark stammers, the shambling, slightly shy gait… even a stumble as he stepped up to the podium.
He is not even Mayor yet and he has stumbled, the first of many to come I am sure.
I predict in the next 5 years there will be big strikes in London of transport workers and council workers, riots on the streets for sure and possible race riots.
Why the hell do people vote for some one that went to a paid school? they know nothing about the real world and the problems of the average man and care even less about them.
If he keeps opening his mouth and upsetting people expect hell on earth to break out, London is multi-racial and this man has clearly no feeling or care for them.