Thomas Cook soars on new banking deal
Shares in Thomas Cook soared yesterday after the announcement of a new £200m bank facility to help secure the troubled tour operator’s survival.
The travel firm’s banking syndicate – led by Barclays, HSBC, RBS and UniCredit – has agreed to replace the £100m short-term facility announced last Monday with this new provision, available until 30 April 2013.
Thomas Cook will pay five per cent interest on the loan, rising 0.5 per cent each quarter.
Last week’s announcement resulted in the firm’s shares plummeting by 75 per cent, closing at 10p on Tuesday. Yesterday they jumped as high as 28.5p before closing up 20 per cent at 21.73p
The group has postponed its full-year results to the week commencing 12 December.
This new deal will also relax the terms of the existing agreement, allowing the company more flexibility when faced with unexpected events arising from economic uncertainty.