Food suppliers squeezed as supermarkets play hardball in Brexit price talks January 10, 2017 Food suppliers are being squeezed as supermarkets play hardball in talks over which side should shoulder the burden for the devaluation of the pound, new figures suggest. Research from insolvency firm Begbies Traynor shows 6,000 food suppliers were showing signs of financial distress in the final quarter of 2016, an increase of 13 per cent [...]
Trinidad and Tobago-focused oil firm Trinity Exploration dodges insolvency with restructuring and will rejoin Aim tomorrow January 10, 2017 A formerly debt-riddled Caribbean-focused oil and gas group will be rejoining London's Alternative Investment Market (Aim) tomorrow after a major restructuring and fundraising effort. Trinity Exploration, which works exclusively in Trinidad and Tobago, is rejoining the junior market after gaining approval from its creditors. It will be re-trading under former ticker "TRIN". The firm's restructuring talks [...]
UK’s pension lifeboat gets lower in the water as deficits soar in December January 10, 2017 Pension shortfalls grew at a rate of nearly £1bn a day during December, figures released by the UK's pension lifeboat have revealed. The Pension Protection Fund (PPF), into which defined benefit pension schemes fall upon corporate insolvency, calculated an aggregate deficit for the 5,794 schemes covered of £224bn at the end of December. The shortfall grew [...]
Ferrexpo’s share price pops on record iron ore pellet sales and cash turnaround update January 9, 2017 Shares in FTSE 250-listed miner Ferrexpo lifted more than four per cent in afternoon trading after the Ukraine-based group reported record sales and a bolstered balance sheet. Last year, Ferrexpo sold 11.7m tonnes (mt) of iron ore pellets, which are used in steelmaking, up from 11.3mt in 2015, the group said in a trading update today. [...]
Turkey business Bernard Matthews faces pension probe January 9, 2017 The pensions lifeboat is looking into the retirement plans of a turkey company that went into administration last year. Bernard Matthews was acquired from private equity firm Rutland Partners by 2 Sisters in September. 2 Sisters, whose chief executive Ranjit Boparan is known as the “chicken king”, agreed the deal under a pre-pack administration, meaning it bought [...]
New year, new IPO: Canadian firm Eco (Atlantic) Oil and Gas looks to pump up London’s junior market with January listing January 9, 2017 Canadian oil group Eco (Atlantic) Oil and Gas will be one of the first firms to pump up the London Stock Exchange’s junior market in 2017 when it floats later this month. The Toronto Stock Exchange-listed firm, which holds Atlantic licences offshore Guyana and Namibia, will early this week announce its intention to float on the Alternative [...]
Already thinking about summer? These will be the most popular tourist destinations of 2017 January 6, 2017 If being back at work is already getting you down, why not give yourself something to look forward to by planning your summer holiday right now? Staycations are set to be a big trend in 2017 due to the fall in the value of the pound, but Gatwick airport is confident that weary workers will [...]
Easyjet passenger numbers are on the up despite tough year January 6, 2017 EasyJet had a rough ride in 2016, but has kicked off the new year with a bit of good news, reporting this morning that passenger numbers were up in December. The budget airline transported 5,579,978 passengers around the globe in December, up 15 per cent on the year before. That brought the company's passenger number [...]
Insolvencies are on the rise for the travel industry as the weak pound and terrorism fears hit businesses January 5, 2017 The travel industry is braced for thousands of insolvencies as the sector comes under increasing pressure from terrorism fears and rising costs. According to data from insolvency firm Begbies Traynor, 2,679 businesses in the travel industry currently have "red flags" over them which indicates that they are experiencing significant levels of distress. This is a [...]
After Brexit fears, Stonegate Pub Company toasts to sales growth over festive season January 5, 2017 Stonegate Pub Company today announced strong performance over the festive period despite fears of a tougher market after Brexit. The UK's leading privately owned managed pub company said total like-for-like sales grew 5.7 per cent in the four-week period from 5 December to 1 January following strong performance last year. Stonegate operates 691 drinks-led pubs and bars, including high [...]