The British online clothing sales group Asos shot up more than 12% on the London Stock Market this Monday after a press report that evoked a possible takeover bid of 1,000 million pounds (1,159 million euros) for part of a Turkish subsidiary of China’s Alibaba.
Asos, which fell into the red in the first half, “was approached by the Turkish Trendyol”, a subsidiary of the Chinese internet giant, for an offer “of 1,000 million pounds”, he assured The times this weekend, citing “City Fountains”, the financial center of London.
The Asos action is sold from 12.36% to 393.70 pence Monday from 08:00 GMT to the London Bourse, but there is a drop of more than 20% after the debut of the announcement and more than 90% after two years.
The company was recently expelled from the FTSE 250, the second index of the London Stock Exchange, a decision that will take effect on June 19, but it remains listed on the London Stock Exchange.
“Difficult” business context
Contacted by AFP, Asos declined to comment. Trendyol, specialist in online clothing sales, operates from Turkey and Germany and ships to 27 European countries. The group claims around 30 million customers and 240,000 vendors.
Asos announced a group net loss of £214.5m in the first half in early May, compared with a profit of £12.1m a year earlier, citing the effect of a restructuring, which is weighing on its sales and earnings. accounts, and a “difficult” commercial context.
The group, which had benefited greatly from the lockdowns during the pandemic, now suffers from consumers who largely return to stores and move away from online shopping a bit, although the latter are still higher than before the crisis sanitary.
Inflation, which is around 10% in the UK in particular, and the cost of living crisis are also weighing on sales.
Source: BFM TV
