Barratt Developments reports £592.4 million loss
Barratt Developments has today announced a £592.4 million loss for 2008 compared with a profit of approaching £200 million for the previous year. While the massive loss includes a £494 million write-down on the company's land bank it is within the scope of analyst forecasts and while initially the figures look disappointing they may not be as bad as first thought.
The company has also announced further job losses, which will cut the company cost substantially, but more crucially there appears to have been an increase in interest from potential buyers and visitors to the company's sales rooms. It may well be too soon to call the end of the property market down turn but there would appear to be at least a little bit of light at the end of the very very dark tunnel. However, while the sector may well have witnessed a small increase in activity during the early part of 2009 it is worth remembering that many of these operations are saddled with substantial debts.
Barratt Developments took over former rival Wilson Bowden in 2007 and is still struggling with the £2.2 million debt pile which the company was forced to take on. At this moment in time the group is trading within its banking covenants and has confirmed there are no plans for any fundraising programmes at this point in time.
Share this..
Related stories
Unions promise disruption over budget cuts
The UK population is set to be split between the attractions of UK public-sector budget cuts in the short to medium term against the necessity to reduce the UK debt in the longer term. As a consequence, the unions in the UK are fully expecting a large number of the UK public to support the proposed strike action which will drop into place in the weeks and months ahead. So what will this mean for t...
Read MoreWhy is it so expensive to live in the UK?
Despite the fact that the UK has readily accessible supplies of oil, a well-developed energy network and expertise in the field of renewable energy it seems that the cost of living in the UK, especially energy bills, continues to rise. Since the privatisation of electricity, gas and water companies we have seen a conflict of interest emerge between consumers and businesses and shareholders.
...
UK manufacturing slows in November
The Purchasing Managers Index (PMI), a prominent indicator of the manufacturing industry, fell from 53.4 in October to 51.8 in November amid signs of a slowdown in the UK manufacturing sector. When you add this together with the slowdown in the services sector, expected slowdown in the property sector and a lack of overall liquidity in the money markets the signs are there for a further slowdown i...
Read MoreFixed-rate mortgages at record high
A record share of homebuyers opted for fixed-rate mortgages in June, according to figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders.The survey showed that 90 per cent of first-time buyers took out fixed-rate loans, up from 83 per cent last year, while among those moving house, 76 per cent went for fixed rate deals, up from 63 per cent.High interest rates and tight budgets are thought to be behind the p...
Read MoreGlobespan airline investigation goes to court
The investigation into the collapse of Scottish airline Globespan has taken a significant turn over the last 24 hours with news that the High Court in London has informed online transaction processing company E-Clear to clarify it has access to an alleged £35 million which it is said to have withheld from Globespan. PricewaterhouseCoopers has suggested that the withholding of the £35 million in...
Read More