Company news in brief

Nigeria bourse suspends trading in Skye BankNigeria's Stock Exchange suspended trading in the shares of Skye Bank on Monday after the central bank withdrew the lender's operating license and created a bridge bank to take over its assets.In the last trade recorded on Friday, shares in Skye were worth 0.77 naira – 96% down from their peak in 2008, when the bank was valued at 202 billion naira (US$660 million).The suspension and the central bank's actions on Friday, marked the end of years of efforts to save Skye, once seen as one of the country's main banks, formed through a merger of four smaller rivals in 2006.The central bank shored it up in 2016 with a 100 billion naira capital injection after sacking its top management for failing to meet minimum capital requirements.Skye is yet to publish 2016 accounts after it reported a 37.65 billion naira loss for 2015, its last published accounts. – Nampa/ReutersMichael Kors snaps up Italy's VersaceUS fashion group Michael Kors Holdings Ltd has agreed to take control of Italy's Versace in a deal that could value the company at US$2 billion, sources familiar with the matter said on Monday.The deal comes as budding luxury conglomerates, including Michael Kors' US rival Tapestry, owner of Coach and Kate Spade, are trying to make in-roads into an industry still dominated by major European players, including Louis Vuitton owner LVMH.Michael Kors, whose namesake label is best known for its leather handbags, has made no secret of its ambition to grow its portfolio of high-end brands after swooping on British stiletto-heel maker Jimmy Choo for US$1.2 billion last year.Versace is one of a clutch of family-owned, independent Italian brands that have regularly been cited as attractive targets at a time when the luxury industry is riding high on strong demand from Chinese consumers.The deal gives Michael Kors a mega-brand and red carpet favourite that is among the most recognisable and followed fashion labels in the world. – Nampa/ReutersVolvo halts Iran truck assemblySwedish truckmaker AB Volvo has stopped assembling trucks in Iran because US sanctions are preventing it from being paid, a spokesman for the company said on Monday.The sanctions against Iran, reimposed on Aug. 6 by US President Donald Trump after his decision to pull out of a nuclear deal with Tehran, have forced companies across Europe to reconsider their investments there.Volvo spokesman Fredrik Ivarsson said the trucks group could no longer get paid for any parts it shipped and had therefore decided not to operate in Iran in another blow to the country's car industry, which unlike the energy and banking sectors, had managed to sign contracts with top European firms.Before the sanctions were reimposed, Volvo had expressed an ambition for Iran to become its main export hub for the Gulf region and North Africa markets.The European Union has implemented a law to shield its companies, but the sanctions have deterred banks from doing business with Iranian firms as Washington can cut any that facilitate such transactions off from the US financial system. – Nampa/ReutersThomas Cook suffers as heatwave keeps customers at homeBritish holiday company Thomas Cook cut its 2018 profit forecast, blaming a heatwave in northern Europe for hitting demand in the most profitable part of the summer season and hurting winter trading, sending its shares plunging.The stock lost almost 20% of its value by 1020 GMT on Monday after the company said profit would be 13 percent lower than expected.In a separate statement, Thomas Cook also said it would replace its chief financial officer after less than a year in the job. The change was described by Morgan Stanley analysts as a surprise.Thomas Cook makes all its profit in the summer when its customers in northern Europe, including Britain, Germany and Scandinavia go on holiday, mainly to warmer destinations in southern Europe such as Spain, Turkey and Greece.The company, which had warned in July that profit would be at the lower end of its forecast range, said that "unprecedented months of hot weather" reduced demand for late bookings, leading to more discounting and tougher competition. – Nampa/ReutersSingapore fines Grab, Uber over mergerSingapore on Monday fined ride-hailing firms Grab and Uber US$9.5 million for breaking competition rules when they merged, saying the deal had increased fares and thrown up roadblocks for competitors.Singapore-headquartered Grab agreed to buy US firm Uber's ride-hailing and food business in Southeast Asia in March, ending a bruising battle between the companies. In return, Uber received a 27.5% stake in Grab.However the deal came under scrutiny across the region, and the Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore was among watchdogs in several countries that launched probes.In the conclusion to its investigation, the commission said it had found the merger had substantially reduced "competition in the ride-hailing platform market in Singapore".Grab fares rose between 10 and 15% after the deal as the company reduced the number of points earned by riders and made it harder for them to redeem them, it said. – Nampa/AFP

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