BUSINESSNEWS


PICTURE: Paul Broadrick


BUSINESS NEWS


Chief executive Peter Fankhauser


Cook shares plunge as debt swells to £1.2bn


Thomas Cook is in crisis following shock results. Ian Taylor reports


Tomas Cook insisted customers “can book with confidence” aſter a disastrous week in which it posted a £1.4 billion winter loss and a rise in group debt to £1.2 billion. Te group’s share price plunged,


investment bank Citigroup declared the shares “worthless” and analysts drew atention to a note by Tomas Cook’s auditor raising doubt about the company’s ability to continue trading.


Te share price fell to a new low on Monday just above 10p aſter


72 23 MAY 2019


a weekend report in the Financial Times that US hedge funds were buying up Cook shares “for a possible restructuring of the company’s debt that would wipe out shareholders”. A separate report suggested card


payment processors were “retaining millions” in customer payments. Tomas Cook confirmed on Monday that it is in talks with an unnamed card supplier, insisting it is confident of reaching “an acceptable solution”. Cook’s problems have been


deepening for months, with its share travelweekly.co.uk


price dropping throughout last year. Te group issued profit warnings last September and November without appearing to spook consumers. Tat changed on Thursday of last


week with media reports questioning Cook’s ability to survive and some customers querying the wisdom of booking with the company. Te meltdown was triggered by


Tomas Cook’s inclusion in its results Continued on page, page 70


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