The weaker pound has been a benefit to multinationals such as Astrazeneca mary turner for the TimesThe collective profits of British companies rose to a record high in the first quarter. Helped by the weak pound, earnings growth among businesses reached its highest level since the immediate aftermath of the recession. Profits at the 350 biggest companies increased by 158 per cent to £153.8 billion between January and the end of March, according to analysis by the Share Centre, a stockbroker. Although 70 per cent of companies had higher profits over the period, the biggest gains were among large multinationals, whose sales increased by more than 30 per cent as weak sterling boosted their export orders. Sales among FTSE 350 companies grew by 20.8 per cent to a three-year high of £1.33 trillion, the Share Centre said, adding that the prospects…

Source: The Times May 07, 2018 22:52 UTC