Faced with the choice of accepting rent cuts or hunting for new retailers to fill hundreds of stores, U.K. mall owners are swallowing their medicine, Bloomberg News reported. Some of Britain’s biggest commercial landlords including Hammerson Plc and British Land Co., voted in favor of a rescue plan for billionaire Philip Green’s Arcadia Group that meant having to accept dozens of store closures and rent cuts of at least 25% at almost 200 sites.

Boris Johnson, the leading candidate to become the U.K.’s next prime minister, laid out his plan to take the country out of the European Union by Oct. 31, if necessary without a divorce deal to smooth Britain’s exit, The Wall Street Journal reported. During a speech Wednesday launching his campaign, the former foreign secretary said he would seek to renegotiate Britain’s exit deal with the EU. At the same time, he would launch preparations across the country to weather a “no-deal” exit that many businesses and economists say would severely damage the economy.

Glencore has hoisted the “for sale” sign over the Chad-focused oil business it acquired five years ago as the miner and commodity trader looks to bolster a share buyback programme by selling non-core assets, The Irish Times reported. The London-listed group, run by Ivan Glasenberg, bought Caracal Energy for $1.6 billion (€1.4 billion) in 2014 as part of a plan to grow its African oil business and secure barrels for its muscular trading arm. However, the deal was completed just before oil prices peaked and Glencore was subsequently forced to take a series of impairment charges.

Italy aims to convince the EU to delay until the autumn a decision on whether to open a disciplinary procedure over its finances, which is expected to look healthier after tax revenue data in July, four coalition sources said, The Irish Times reported. The European Commission, whose term ends on October 31st, will also look more like a lame duck after the summer and Rome will have more time to argue its case for a reform of EU fiscal rules, two of the sources said.

Philip Green’s Arcadia fashion group has secured backing for a controversial restructuring plan after a meeting of creditors voted to approve it, The Irish Times reported. The owner of brands such as Topshop and Wallis needed three-quarters of its unsecured creditors to back the plan, known as a company voluntary arrangement. At a meeting in London, Arcadia received that – although the company did not immediately divulge by what margin. The move clears the way for 23 of its 566 stores across Ireland and UK to close outright, with rents reduced by up to 70 per cent on 194 more.

Iceland is returning to global bond markets for the first time in more than 18 months, marking another step in its recovery after the 2008 crisis that bankrupted its biggest banks and depressed the economy, the Financial TImes reported. The Nordic island is aiming to raise €500m in a five-year euro-denominated bond, according to people familiar with its plans, similar to a bond sale of December 2017. Proceeds will be used to buy back €352m of outstanding bonds. Running a budget surplus, Iceland has no immediate need for the remaining money raised.

The last time Labour politicians governed Britain, they took a swathe of the banking industry into public ownership to avoid its collapse. More than a decade later, banks are growing worried about the party’s latest promise to nationalize utility firms -- a policy that could trigger a fresh set of multibillion pound losses, Bloomberg News reported. Lloyds Banking Group Plc, one of the country’s largest business lenders, has multiple exposures to the utility sector through swaps, derivatives and revolving credit facilities, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

Leisure Cargo (LC) is to enter insolvency following the loss of contracts with TUI and another carrier. A spokesperson for the GSSA confirmed to The Loadstar it had begun insolvency proceedings at a court in Dusseldorf, with White & Case appointed trustees, The Loadstar reported. Reorganisation manager Tillmann Peeters, of Falkensteg Restrukturierung, said: “We want to stabilise business operations quickly and continue as smoothly as possible.

Intu Properties Plc, Philip Green-owned Arcadia’s second biggest landlord, is set to oppose the fashion group’s latest sweetened rescue plan, Sky News reported on Tuesday. Reuters reported. Arcadia last week offered better terms for landlords in a restructuring plan for the struggling British fashion retailer, seeking the support of creditors to prevent the group from collapsing into administration.

British retailer Debenhams has received a challenge from shareholder Sports Direct over a restructuring plan that wiped out investors but kept the company operating, Reuters reported. Debenhams is restructuring the chain using so-called company voluntary arrangements (CVAs), which allow retailers to avoid insolvency by offloading unwanted stores and secure lower rents on others and reach a compromise with creditors. The plan gave creditors control of the company in May, at the expense of investors.