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In the intricate web of multinational ownership, the renowned retail giant Selfridges lands in a precarious situation. This iconic department store, situated on London’s bustling Oxford Street, is now seeking additional financial support from its parent company, Central Group, BNNBreaking.com reported. This pressing need emerges as one of its major stakeholders, Signa, flounders in the murky waters of insolvency. The owner of Selfridges, Cambridge Properties Holding Limited, is currently in active discussions with the Thai-based Central Group.
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The new findings warn that almost 30,000 businesses will go bankrupt in 2024, with the vast majority being small companies, BusinessNews.com reported. PwC experts claim there will be a 'significant' increase in businesses collapsing, with companies in the hotels and catering, manufacturing, and transport and storage sectors likely to suffer the most. The findings said that the impact of high energy prices, sluggish economic growth and high interest rates is likely to hit again this year.
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Electric scooter rental giant, Bird, amidst bankruptcy proceedings in the United States, has conveyed that its Canadian operations will remain unscathed, BNNBreaking.com reported. The assurance comes from Bird Canada’s COO, Alex Petre, who confirmed to CBC News that the Canadian branch operates independently of the U.S. filing. Alex Petre emphasized the significance of the Canadian market for the company and reassured that the availability of scooters in cities like Windsor would endure unimpeded. Bird Global, the parent company, is currently navigating a restructuring phase.
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Oxurion NV, a biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Leuven, announced on Dec. 28 that it has avoided bankruptcy by entering into a binding letter of intent (LOI) with Atlas Special Opportunities LLC (Atlas) and an addendum to the existing subscription agreement for convertible bonds with Atlas, AfternoonHeadlines.com reported.
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China’s factory activity shrank in December to the lowest level in six months, fueling expectations the government may have to act soon to add impetus to the economy, Bloomberg News reported. The official manufacturing purchasing managers index declined to 49, the National Bureau of Statistics said in a statement on Sunday. That was weaker than the median forecast of 49.6 by economists in a Bloomberg survey, and matched the reading seen in June.
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China's "reunification" with Taiwan is inevitable, President Xi Jinping said in his New Year's address on Sunday, striking a stronger tone than he did last year with less than two weeks to go before the Chinese-claimed island elects a new leader, Reuters reported. The Jan. 13 presidential and parliamentary elections are happening at a time of fraught relations between Beijing and Taipei. China has been ramping up military pressure to assert its sovereignty claims over democratically governed Taiwan.
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Another real estate company belonging to Austrian investor René Benko's ailing Signa Group has filed for insolvency. According to the Vienna Commercial Court, a corresponding application was submitted today by Signa Development Selection AG, IndoNewYork.com reported. The company, which specializes in project developments, is therefore aiming for self-administration restructuring proceedings, as announced by Signa on Thursday. The company should be continued and creditors should be offered a quota of 30 percent payable within two years, it said.
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Colombia President Gustavo Petro has proposed lowering the country’s corporate tax rate and increasing income taxes for its highest earners, Bloomberg News reported. The move, which he has not yet detailed, would allow companies to grow and make the tax system more just, he said in a post on X on Saturday. Petro also spoke in broad terms about the tax reform proposal in remarks broadcast Friday after he announced that the government will increase the minimum wage by 12% next year.
Nottingham Council has been slapped down by the head of a new local government watchdog, which said that councils are going bankrupt because of poor financial management, not a lack of money, GB News reported. Nottingham Council, which declared effective bankruptcy earlier this year, cited the impact of inflation as a cause. It also blamed increased demand for children's and adults' social care and rising homelessness.
In an alarming development, German hospitals are grappling with an unprecedented wave of insolvencies, threatening the stability and efficacy of the nation’s health care system, BNN reported. According to recent reports from the German Hospital Association, there has been a significant uptick in bankruptcies, with almost 40 hospitals going insolvent in 2023 alone. If projections hold, this figure could see a two-fold increase in 2024, heralding a potential health care crisis. Surveys paint a somber picture for the future of Germany’s health care system.