Image source, Matalan

Clothing retailer Matalan has defied the gloom on the high street by reporting rising revenues in the first quarter of its financial year.

For the 13 weeks to 26 May, revenues at the 227-strong store chain grew 5% to £265.9m.

The picture was much more positive online where sales ticked up 39%.

Matalan chief executive Jason Hargreaves said the firm's good performance was based on: "good stock management, flexibility in our operating model and agility in our customer contact strategy."

But he warned that there is unlikely to be much improvement in the UK's retail environment.

"Currency pressures on operating margins are ongoing," he said. "We are therefore cautious in our outlook but confident that our strategy is delivering for customers which positions us well."

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The global coffee chain Starbucks has promised to eliminate plastic straws from its 28,000 branches by 2020.

It said they will be replaced in stores with "new recyclable strawless lid and alternative-material straw options".

The new lid and "straw options" will be rolled out across the world, reaching the UK in in 2020, the company said.

“Plastic straws that end up in our oceans have a devastating effect on species,” said Erin Simon, director of sustainability research & development and material science at World Wildlife Fund, US.

The stock market appears to have welcomed that Stobart news. Its shares have soared almost 5% this morning.

More on that fight for the leadership of Southend and Carlisle Airports owner Stobart.

Andrew Tinkler, the ousted chief executive who was voted back onto the board by shareholder last week, has been speaking out about the board's blocking of the motion.

“This shows an arrogance bordering on contempt for shareholders and employees," he said, adding: "It appears that the AGM vote has been gerrymandered.”

Image source, Danone

French food giant Danone is investigating reports that its Aptamil baby milk formula is making some infants ill.

Aptamil recently changed the recipe of three of its baby milk formulas.

Hundreds of parents in the UK have complained on social media that the revised formula is making their babies sick.

Danone said it had carried out extensive safety checks, but added that it was "taking all feedback very seriously".

BBC World Service
Newsday

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Why did China smartphone firm Xiaomi have such a disappointing debut on the Hong Kong stock echange?

David Kuo, chief executive of the Motley Fool Singapore told the Newsday programme on the BBC's World Service: "I think it was quite expensive and I think a lot of the investors can't quite understand what this company is all about."

Mr Kuo said the company, which dominates the Chinese smartphone market, had suggested it wanted to branch out and not just manufacture phones, but become more of an internet services provider like Apple, and that may have concerned investors.

"To tell people that it wants to be an internet services company scares people a little because we all know that internet services in China can be a little suspect sometimes. So if it just wants to make phones that's fine, but if it wants to do something other than that, then I think it will raise suspicions among not only regulators but certain governments and also consumers outside China."

Want to know what the new Brexit Secretary thinks about the UK's departure from the European Union? The BBC's Today and Political Thinking presenter Nick Robinson happened to have a chat with Dominic Raab just last week...

BBC Breakfast

Tim Martin, the founder and chairman of pub chain JD Wetherspoons told BBC Breakfast's Sean Farrington the Brexit Secretary's resignation doesn't affect business certainty. He said Theresa May should focus on taking action on the elements of trade she can control before negotiating with the EU.

Image source, AFP

Rebecca O’Keeffe, head of Investment at interactive investor has been looking at market reaction to the Davis resignation. She said:

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What does David Davis' resignation mean for business confidence - will they continue to invest?

CBI director general Carolyn Fairbairn says: "Investment is the biggest concern we all have at the moment - it is the flywheel of the future economy and jobs."

She add: "I think that businesses are holding their breath, they are hoping that this will be the beginning of momentum but they are taking decisions now which is why it is so urgent and which is why we are calling not on politicians to build on momentum and help us get decisions."

With sterling trading higher this morning, Bart Hordijk, market analyst at Monex Europe, says: "Much of sterling’s direction this week will depend on the final contents of the Brexit White Paper, which will be published later this week, and how its contents will be received by markets.

"Nevertheless, this taken in conjunction with the recent upbeat tone of the Bank of England that sent the implied probabilities of a rate increase in August to 80% and sterling carries the potential to be one of the strongest performing currencies this week."

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Is a "softer" Brexit deal looking more likely now that David Davis has resigned?

The pound is trading up 0.41% on the dollar at $1.3341.

Connor Campbell, financial analyst at Spreadex, says: "On the one hand it is odd the pound is in a decent mood, given that the ‘soft’ Brexit plan agreed at Chequers is arguably in doubt following Davis’ disappearing act.

"Yet his resignation does potentially make it easier to implement said ‘soft’ Brexit, dependent on how the next couple of hours and days pan out for Prime Minister Theresa May."

Image source, Getty Images

Shares in Nissan tumbled by 4.5% to 1,003.5 yen after it admitted that some emissions data from tests conducted on its vehicles in Japan had been falsified.

Image source, Co-op Bank

Andrew Bester has been appointed new boss at the troubled Co-op Bank.

The accountant, who was formerly group director and chief executive of the commercial banking division of Lloyds Banking Group, takes over as chief executive today.

Bob Dench, chairman of the Co-op Bank said: "Five years ago, the Bank faced very significant problems and over that time we have made progress towards successfully tackling those issues. In Andrew we have found the right person to take us on to the next stage as we focus on achieving a sustainable profitable bank."

Image source, Getty Images

Nissan this morning admitted it has discovered misconduct related to exhaust emissions and fuel economy measurements in final vehicle inspections at most of its factories in Japan.

The Japanese car maker said in a statement it had found that the testing environments for emissions and fuel economy were not in line with requirements, and that inspection reports were based on altered measurements.

The company said it would take appropriate action to prevent future occurrence.

Image source, Getty Images

Asian markets rallied on Monday, cementing gains at the end of last week after another strong US jobs report.

That boosted confidence in the world's largest economy and helped provide a distraction from the trade war between the US and China.

The Shanghai Composite led the winners this Monday, surging 2.5%.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng climbed 1.7% despite the lack lustre trading debut of Chinese tech giant, Xiaomi which closed at HK$16.80 - just short of its listing price.

Tokyo's Nikkei finished 1.2% higher.

Seoul's Kospi made more modest gains of 0.6%, whilst Australia's ASX200 ended the day up 0.2%.

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

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David Davis reckons that Prime Minister Theresa May will survive. "I like Theresa May, I think she's a good prime minister. We have a difference over this strategy."

He says that he will not "thrown his hat into the ring" to challenge Mrs May's leadership and won't be encouraging his colleagues to do the same, "It is the wrong thing to do," he says.

"If I'd want to bring down Theresa May, now is not the time. It would have been after the election when we were weakened and so on. But what did I do instead? I flew down from Yorkshire in the middle of the night to be with her at six in the morning to say to keep going and 'I will support you'."

BBC Breakfast

Carolyn Fairbairn, Director-General of the CBI, the UK's biggest business lobby group told BBC Breakfast's Sean Farrington that the midnight resignation of Brexit Secretary David Davis was "undoubtedly a blow" to any certainty businesses felt in progress made in getting a cabinet agreement on the shape of trade relations with the EU after Brexit. She said that negotiations were now in a "race against time".

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

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Looking ahead, David Davis says the government must not give any more concessions to the EU over Brexit.

He tells Today: "Hopefully, we will resist very strongly to get any further concessions from us on this because I think this is further than we should have gone already.

"Hopefully, one side effect of my departure will be to put a little pressure on the government not to make any other concessions and I will keep arguing that there are better way to do it than this."

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

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So what should the policy for relations between the UK and the EU after Brexit look like?

David Davis tells BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "One of the central issues which is problematic in this is this idea of a common rule book. That means the European Union writes the rules for us in effect and we have to harmonise with them, we have to have the same rules for all intents and purposes.

He says: "We had said before 'we will try to be substantially similar so we can share the same market place but they will be our rules - we''ll decide them and we'll judge them'.

"As it stands now, we're basically identical or we're not."

He says that decisions related to those rules are likely to end up in the European Court "because that's where the arbitration systems will end up", adding "it will be very, very difficult for the United Kingdom to not agree".