The Daily Mail City Editor on the hidden attractions at a revitalised Boots

By This Is Money
Updated: 00:00 BST, 17 January 2001

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The 変形 of B oots from general retailer to a 焦点（を合わせる）d health and beauty 製品s group remains 大部分は unrecognised by the 株式市場.

There is 非，不，無 of the sales growth excitement of Tesco but in a 競争の激しい High Street, where other stalwarts like 示すs & Spencer struggle, Boots is building 核心 sales and 利ざやs. It also has the cash flow which 原因（となる）s てこ入れ／借入資本d buyout 専門家s to salivate.

In 業績／成果 条件, 長，指導者 (n)役員／(a)執行力のある Steve Russell is 配達するing on 約束s - slowly. In the last 13 weeks of 2000, health and beauty sales rose 2.1% on a like-for-like basis, though 全体にわたる sales were 負かす／撃墜する 1.5%. This is 大部分は explained by the group's 決定／判定勝ち（する） to jettison its old leisure and kitchen lines and give over more space to the 団体／死体 beautiful.

Boots is discovering the 力／強力にする of its brand and recognising that while its own branding is 罰金, the discerning beauty 顧客 deserves more. Hence the 増殖 in the 蓄える／店s of a 一連の new 範囲s 範囲ing from Hard Candy to Botanics.

If there are 失望s in the 最新の sales 人物／姿／数字s, they come from the 失敗 of winter 病気s to give sales a 上げる, the flatness of Halfords' bike market and 失望 in Far East 蓄える／店s.

Like much of the 小売 部門, Boots has 苦しむd from 株式市場 disillusion. This was partly 予定 to the perceived 脅しs of price cutting at Asda/Wal-市場 and the internet, neither of which have 証明するd 特に potent.

The drift 負かす／撃墜する of the 株 from a 頂点（に達する） of 1070p in late 1998 to around 550p, and the modest price-収入s 割合 (half that of Tesco) will not have endeared it to 投資家s. But at its own 安定した pace, Boots is 長，率いるing in an 利益／興味ing direction. Sales are 急に上がるing in the embryonic dental care and chiropody 商売／仕事s. Its 開発 of the health and beauty experience, 申し込む／申し出ing everything from nail 妨げる／法廷，弁護士業s to 支援する care, is in the spirit of the times.

The only real question is whether Boots has the 運動 to 追求する these new lines vigorously. One of the few 在庫／株 market 部門s to have 強化するd in 最近の difficult times is 生命科学s. As a retailer of 生命科学 製品s and services, Boots deserves more 尊敬（する）・点.

インフレーション 警告を与える
There is no 疑問 that December's インフレーション numbers are excellent. For a nation which spent two １０年間s fighting the price bogey, an underlying インフレーション 率 負かす／撃墜する from 2.2% to 2% over the month 示唆するs that the Bank of England is more likely to undershoot the 政府's 2.5% インフレーション 的 than to 越える it. There are some unusual 面s to the data. 石油 prices fell as is likely again in January. But with 天然のまま oil prices rising again, that may be a short-称する，呼ぶ／期間／用語 利益.

However, as Bank 知事 Sir Eddie George 公式文書，認めるd in Yorkshire last night, there is a 広大な／多数の／重要な 取引，協定 of 不確定. The Bank is worried that 私的な 部門 growth has remained stronger than 推定する／予想するd にもかかわらず the 6% base 率. This has been 罰金 until now, because the 政府 is not yet spending as much as 約束d.

But the combination of strong 消費 and big public spending could 潜在的に 原因（となる） overheating. The 続けざまに猛撃する's 弱めるing against the euro will help 製造業者s and 輸出業者s. However, it will encourage the Bank's 強硬派s to be 用心深い on any 削減（する） in 利益／興味 率s.

Banking 危険s
The safety of the 全世界の banking system is of 最高位の importance. The 現在の 経済的な and 財政上の 脅す in the US is as much 予定 to 恐れるs for the 質 of bank 貸付金s, after a frenzy of lending to the telecoms and tech 部門s, as about 不足（高）s in 生産（高）.

Everyone recognises the 可能性 that a Californian 力／強力にする 産業 default or implosion in Turkey could wreak havoc on the 財政上の system.

The goal of bank 監督者s based in Basle, Switzerland, is to 確実にする that the 危険s from shocks are minimised. To do this they have come up with new 公式化s which dis-card the straitjacket of the old 資本／首都 割合s, which 需要・要求するd that all banks 持続する 類似の levels of 資本／首都, for a more fl exible approach. This 捜し出すs to match 危険s against 資本／首都 using コンビナート／複合体 models which the banks have to 手渡す.

This will not be foolproof as we know from the 最近の past. At Barclays, under the stewardship of ツバメ Taylor, miscalculations of the 危険s associated with lending to Russia resulted in serious 令状-offs. The new Basle model needs to be 支援するd up by tighter 内部の 支配（する）／統制するs and greater 公表，暴露 if it is to 奮起させる real 信用／信任 in the 財政上の system.