The chocolate war took a dramatic turn in Cadbury's favour this week as key Kraft shareholder and über-billionaire Warren Buffet suggested a hostile takeover was not in the US company's interests.

And that meant they had blinked first in this stand-off with the stubborn Brits, who have snorted with derision at the £10.2 billion on offer for their business, dismissing Kraft as a "low-growth conglomerate" while being very uppish about their own business prospects.

With Nestlé passing on any interest at all in the whole thing, that leaves just Hershey, from the States, and maybe Ferrero from Italy as any sort of players.
Cadbury has played a straight bat throughout this whole saga, which began last September, and it looks like that will be enough to see it through.

Outdoor clothing sales heat up

Would you buy a parka just because some reporter on the telly was wearing one? I wouldn't.

But Berghaus, who make loads of old weather clobber like down jackets, fleeces, hats and gloves are putting the rise in sales they've been enjoying during the ongoing Big Freeze – once upon a time simply called 'winter' – partly down to TV reporters being seen wearing their gear.

I'd put the sales rise down to sub-zero temperatures and the desire to keep warm. I can't believe even the dimmest among us are fascinated with a TV reporter's wardrobe and find it hard to understand why the BBC even bothers to ask its journos to mask out labels with black tape.

Are we that sad?

Virgin makes bank move

Virgin Money has acquired a banking licence and now it faces the problem of attracting customers when it has no branches... yet.

Experts say the only way they can grab any sort of market share is to launch products that are so competitive they will feature high on best buy tables and that means starting with eye-catching savings rates.

Should liven up things anyway!