What's going on?

Marks & Spencer, the UK clothing and food retailer, reported sales figures for the first 3 months of 2016 on Thursday. The news wasn�t great but that didn�t stop investors from sending the stock up 3% – they�re likely optimistic the new CEO can turn things around (and investors thought the news might be worse).

What does this mean?

For Marks and Sparks, it�s a story of its food business doing well (ready-made meals anyone?) and its clothing business lagging (sales were down 2.7% versus the previous quarter). Their stores aren�t exactly� inspiring, nor are their clothes as cheap as some competitors (like Primark). But its performance in clothing might be set to improve: the company has invested heavily in improving its supply chain which should, in theory, improve how they handle inventory (e.g. when something sells out, it�s quickly replaced). They also invested in e-commerce and an 8% increase in online sales is starting to reflect that.

Why should I care?

For the stock: The new CEO is, supposedly, The Man. He previously ran M&S�s food division, which racked up healthy sales growth under his stewardship. He was just given the top job and will detail the specifics of a turnaround plan in late May. Thursday�s stock jump might be investors trying to get ahead of the boost his plan (and successful execution) could give the stock.

For you personally: Deflation (falling prices) are hurting clothing and home sales. Remember, sales is the actual value of the goods sold (not the quantity of goods sold). So deflated prices hurt M&S�s sales, even if people buy the same amount in their stores. That�s good news for you (things are cheaper), but bad for retailers.