Boohoo buys Dorothy Perkins, Wallis and Burton brands
Online fashion retailer Boohoo has bought Dorothy Perkins, Wallis and Burton for £25m, completing the break up of Sir Philip Green’s Arcadia Group.
The deal to buy the three remaining brands out of administration does not include any of their 214 UK stores, putting around 2,450 jobs at risk.
Boohoo said on Monday that it had agreed to buy “the e-commerce and digital assets and associated intellectual property rights, including customer data, related business information and inventory of the Burton, Dorothy Perkins and Wallis brands.” Only 260 head office roles – involved in design, buying, merchandising and digital operations – will be transferred to Boohoo under the deal.
Oil prices hit $60 per barrel for first time since February 2020
Good morning, and welcome to our live coverage of business, economics and financial markets.
Demand for oil slumped at the start of the coronavirus outbreak, but it appears to be back, as prices broke through the $60 mark for the first time since the extent of the pandemic became clear.
The price of Brent crude oil futures, a global benchmark, rose to $60.06 per barrel on Monday, edging beyond the mark set on 20 February 2020, shortly before markets went into a tailspin.
Monday’s price increase came as investors look ahead to a truly enormous US stimulus proposal – worth $1.9 trillion (£1.4 trillion) – from President Joe Biden’s administration. That could help economies around the world to recover, stimulating demand for oil.
Stock market also gained on Monday from the stimulus hopes. Japan’s Nikkei gained more than 2%, Australia’s ASX 200 gained 0.6%, and Chinese shares in Shenzhen and Shanghai gained 1.5%. Futures indicated the FTSE 100 was expected to rise in London on Monday morning.
Oil prices have gained more than 16% since the start of the year.
Javier Blas
(@JavierBlas)CHART OF THE DAY: Brent crude has rallied nearly $8 year-to-date — it’s the best start of the year (in absolute terms) since the Brent futures was launched more than 30 years.
In % terms, Brent is up ~16%, the best start of the year since 2001 | #OOTT Chart via @TheTerminal pic.twitter.com/WKvLe04KjA
West Texas Intermediate, the North American benchmark, also gained on Monday to hit $57.56 per barrel – a far cry from April when prices briefly plunged deep into negative territory as traders tried desperately to offload barrels.
The agenda
- 3:30pm GMT: Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey questioned by Treasury select committee
- 4:15pm GMT: European Central Bank president Christine Lagarde in debate at European parliament
Updated
