Struggling baby products retailer Mothercare is set to appoint administrators to its loss-making British business, putting about 2,500 jobs at risk and dealing yet another blow to the country’s beleaguered retail sector, Reuters reported. Mothercare’s UK sales have been hammered by intense competition from supermarket groups and online retailers as well as by rising costs. The group also has a profitable international business, with over 1,000 stores in over 40 territories.

Stockpiling ahead of the now-postponed October 31 Brexit deadline limited the contraction in UK manufacturing activity at the start of the final quarter of the year, according to a business survey, the Financial Times reported. The IHS Markit purchasing managers’ index for manufacturing rose to 49.6 in October from 48.3 in September. Economists polled by Reuters had expected a marginal decline to 48.1.

China’s Fosun Tourism Group said on Friday it would acquire the Thomas Cook and related hotel brands for 11 million pounds ($14.25 million), in a bid to expand its presence in the tourism business, Reuters reported. The assets include trademarks, domain names, software applications and licenses of the British travel firm and related hotel brands, Hong Kong-listed Fosun said, adding that it did not plan to buy overseas assets or businesses related to Thomas Cook for the time being.

Britain's Carpetright is in talks with its largest shareholder Meditor over a possible takeover at a huge discount to its closing value on Wednesday, prompting a 50% crash in its shareprice, the International New York Times reported on a Reuters story. The floor coverings retailer, which trades from about 330 stores, has been struggling for years and fought off collapse last year by entering a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) restructuring that closed shops and reduced rents.

Chinese conglomerate Fosun is close to acquiring Thomas Cook’s brand and its intellectual property assets, which could allow the business to be revived again as an online travel agent just months after collapsing into administration, the Financial Times reported. The deal to acquire the Thomas Cook assets could be announced as soon as this week, said two people briefed on the situation, although they cautioned that the deal had not been finalised. A number of other groups have been bidding, including rival travel agency, Tui.

The number of people entering insolvency in England and Wales rose sharply in the three months to September compared with a year ago, according to official data that add to questions about the financial resilience of British consumers, Reuters reported. The government’s Insolvency Service said the number of people officially entering financial distress rose to 30,879 in seasonally adjusted terms, up 23% on a year ago though little changed from 30,690 in the second quarter.

On 11 July 2019, the UK government published draft legislation for the Finance Bill 2019 which contains important changes to insolvency law, Bdaily reported. From 6 April 2020, HMRC will have secondary preferential status for taxes collected by businesses on behalf of taxpayers (including VAT, PAYE income tax, employee National Insurance Contributions and Construction Industry Scheme deductions). This is in part, a return to the preferential status held by HMRC in 2003 but surrendered in the reforms brought in that year.

The Nordic business of collapsed travel firm Thomas Cook has reached a deal with a buyer, a company spokesman said on Tuesday, Reuters reported. The Nordic operations, also known as Thomas Cook Northern Europe, said last month that it was looking for new owners. It is a separate legal entity and aims to continue to operate as usual. Fredrik Henriksson, head of communications at Thomas Cook Northern Europe/Ving, said the firm would unveil the buyer on Wednesday, declining to give further details. The business said on Monday it had attracted several bids and interest from over 10 parties.

The Nordic business of Thomas Cook, the world’s oldest travel firm which collapsed five weeks ago, expects to have a buyer by Christmas after attracting several bids and interest from over 10 parties, a spokeswoman said on Monday. The Nordic business, also known as Thomas Cook Northern Europe, said in September it would continue to operate as usual as it is a separate legal entity and that it was looking for new owners, Reuters reported.

China’s Jingye Group has fuelled hopes of a rescue deal for British Steel with plans to send a delegation to the second-biggest UK steelmaker’s main plant in Scunthorpe, the Financial Times reported. Hebei-based Jingye, which also owns hotels and a medicines business alongside its main steelmaking operations, is due to visit the Lincolnshire steelworks next week.