Headlines

Dutch retailer Blokker was granted a moratorium on payment on Monday morning, reports Ynse Stapert, CEO of parent company Mirage Retail Group, Retail Detail reported. Though some 400 shops remain open for now, the webshop is closed. In a press release, Blokker confirms the report of business magazine Quote, which said last Friday that the chain had applied for a moratorium. Possibly this means the end for the household chain; after all, such a procedure often leads to bankruptcy. An administrator will work with Blokker’s management to investigate whether the company can restart.

Trustees of Corporate Commercial Bank, currently in bankruptcy, announced the commencement of payments to creditors starting at 09:00 on November 5, 2024, novinite.com reported. This will involve amounts from the sixth partial account for distributing accepted receivables, totaling 30 million leva, as reported in a letter to BTA. The disbursement will take place through the branch network of Investbank AD. Creditors receiving funds will be responsible for any applicable fees and commissions, which will follow Investbank’s standard tariff for such operations.

TGI Fridays Malaysia has assured customers that the local franchise restaurants will continue operating as usual and remains unaffected by the recent chapter 11 filing by TGI Fridays Inc. in the U.S., Business Today reported. Craveat International Sdn Bhd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Techna-X Berhad, the Master franchisee and developer for TGI Fridays Malaysia, operates under a franchise agreement with TGI Fridays Franchisor, LLC, which it said is separate from TGI Fridays Inc. and is not impacted by this restructuring in the U.S., it said in a statement today.

The office of Official Receiver is 140 years old this year, marking a history that has evolved from administering personal bankruptcies to overseeing major company liquidations and securing bankruptcy restrictions against people who pose a threat to the public through financial wrongdoing, according to a U.K. government release. The Insolvency Service has 16 Official Receivers based across 16 locations in England and Wales, who act as trustees in people’s bankruptcies and liquidate companies that have been wound up, with the backing of hundreds of support staff.

German air-taxi maker Lilium said on Monday it would file for insolvency "soon," after efforts to solve its cash-crisis failed to yield results, Reuters reported. The move highlights the difficulties faced by startup aviation firms in an industry that is capital intensive and has high entry barriers. It also comes as air-taxi makers navigate challenges in developing batteries powerful enough for their aircraft and convincing the public of their safety, even as they deal with an evolving regulatory environment.

The British government announced plans to raise the cost of university tuition fees for domestic students in England on Monday for the first time in eight years, in an attempt to improve the finances of many crisis-hit institutions, Reuters reported. Nearly half of British universities are expected to record a loss this year because of a long freeze in the price of fees and a decline in lucrative overseas postgraduate students following an immigration crackdown by the last government.

Brazil’s Finance Minister Fernando Haddad said on Monday that fiscal measures to support the country’s fiscal framework could be announced this week, adding that the government is in the final stages of preparation for the announcement, Reuters reported. Speaking to reporters, he said President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is expected to call him later on Monday for a meeting on the matter. "After the meeting with him, I'll speak with you," he said.

China has moved forward with a complaint at the World Trade Organization that alleges the European Union has improperly set anti-subsidy tariffs on new Chinese-made electric vehicles, the Associated Press reported. The Chinese diplomatic mission to the WTO said Monday it “strongly opposes” the measures and insisted its move was designed to protect the EV industry and support a global transition toward greener technologies.

Prices of new homes in China rose at a faster pace in October, traditionally a peak season for house hunting, a private survey showed on Friday, suggesting that recent support measures could be having some early impact in a crisis-hit market, Reuters reported. The average price across 100 cities edged up 0.29%, compared with the previous month's 0.14%, according to data released by property researcher China Index Academy. On a year-on-year basis, the average price rose 2.08% versus 1.85% growth in September.

The Bank of England may extinguish hopes of a shift to quicker interest-rate cuts this week after the budget reignited inflation concerns and triggered a selloff in U.K. bonds that evoked memories of the 2022 market meltdown, Bloomberg reported. Economists and traders expect the Monetary Policy Committee to push ahead with only the second rate cut this year on Thursday, lowering the benchmark rate by a quarter point to 4.75%.