Orange juice futures have hit a record high after hurricanes and disease devastated citrus crops in Florida, raising the prospect of rising soft drink prices (The Times £). Orange juice futures have surged to fresh all time-highs as a series of hurricanes and the spread of an incurable disease have devastated thousands of acres of citrus crops in the US (The Financial Times £)
The troubled budget retailer Wilko has stopped offering home deliveries for orders on its website as it holds last-ditch talks on a potential rescue deal. (The Guardian)
Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company has boosted its annual guidance following a bumper performance during the first half of the year. (The Daily Mail)
MPs, retailers and charities have written to the government urging it to axe the 20% VAT on period pants, the absorbent underwear designed to be worn as an alternative to tampons and sanitary towels (The Guardian). Major retailers of period pants, including M&S, are calling for them to be VAT-free in line with other sanitary products (The BBC).
Nomad Foods, the owner of Birds Eye, Findus and Goodfella’s pizzas, has seen a sharp rise in sales after it increased prices by 18%, amid political scrutiny over food pricing. (The Guardian)
The pace of prices growth in China reversed last month, prompting fears that the world’s second largest economy is at risk of slipping into a prolonged period of deflation (The Times £). Amid signs of a stuttering recovery and low consumer confidence, there are fears the country could now be entering an era of much slower economic growth, causing prices and wages to stagnate (Sky News).
The future of vaping looks a lot like cigarettes, writes the FT. “In some ways, the future of vaping is a near-perfect product: cheap, instant, leaving you always wanting another. A lot like a cigarette. As teens take up vaping disposables in record numbers and landfills fill with electronic waste, that perfected product is in danger of taking the rest of the industry down with it.” (The Financial Times £)
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