WE'VE gone gambling mad in Britain. A pleasant pastime for a few is turning into a global obsession fuelled, according to broker Merrill Lynch, by the internet.

Merrill says that six years ago, there were just 650 online gaming sites around the world. That has soared to more than 30,000and counting. It calculates that in 1999 the internet accounted for less than 1% of the UK betting and gaming market. That has grown to 10%, with the global gross win for internet gaming companies ranging from Pounds 3 billion to Pounds 8 billion.

Internet betting comes in all forms, from a straightforward bet on the horses to being the bookie on betting exchanges and even playing poker. The latter is proving particularly popular, as witnessed by the proposed stock market float of PartyPoker, which could value the business at Pounds 3.5 billion.

That has not been lost on the rest of the industry. Merrill says investors who want to take advantage of the boom could play it safe and invest in the quoted gaming companies such as William Hill, Stanley Leisure, Paddy Power or Ladbrokes owner Hilton.

But it points out the internet accounts for a relatively small part of their profits, ranging from 15% at Paddy Power and William Hill to less than 5% at Stanley Leisure.

Those risking some of the pure play gaming stocks must contend with illiquid markets in their shares, leading to volatility.

There is also the confusion surrounding cross-border betting in Europe and the legality of internet betting in the US. The high performance operators include Sportingbet, Betonsports, and betinternet, among which consolidation can be expected at some point.

A successful bidder for stores group Woolworths may have to pay at least 60p a share. So says broker Seymour Pierce, which has lifted its recommendation from hold to outperform. Only last week, it emerged Woolies had received a bid approach from venture capitalist Apax Partners.

But the broker reckons other venture capitalists may be waiting in the wings which would drive up the price. Seymour is confident a bid for the retailer will succeed despite borrowings and the need to step up capital spending to improve returns.

Woolies disappointed the City last month by reporting flat Christmas and New Year sales and profits. Brokers are becoming concerned about Kingfisher, from which Woolies was spun off. The latest British Retail Consortium survey indicates increased competition for the group.

Tony Shiret at Credit Suisse First Boston points to rising promotional spending at Kingfisher's DIY subsidiary BQ and the impact on gross margins. Rival broker Numis says it is also becoming " increasingly nervous" about Kingfisher but continues to rate it a hold.

Elsewhere on the High Street, Laura Ashley denied it had been put up for sale while members of the founding Cecil Gee family sold shares in Moss Bros.

Non-executive directors Rowland and Michael Gee have sold 500,000 shares each, leaving them with 2.96 million shares, or 3.2%, and 3.25 million shares respectively.

Overnight on Wall Street, the Dow turned in a subdued performance, closing 8.87 points lower at 10,724.63.

It was a similar story in the Far East today. In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 fell 17.08 to 11,473.35 but Hong Kong was closed for Chinese New Year celebrations to welcome the Year of the Rooster

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