Thaindian News

Mumbai, Feb 8 (IANS) Global travel business major Thomas Cook Wednesday said it was in the process of selling its 77.1 percent stake in its Indian subsidiary and had received several proposals. The news sent the Indian arm’s stock soaring.

The London-based parent company has been facing a downturn in business with the debt crisis in Europe and political turmoil across the middle east hampering the global travel industry.

Thomas Cook India (TCIL) has been doing business in the country for 130 years since 1881 and has given fairly strong performance in recent times compared to the group’s businesses elsewhere.

“Following a number of unsolicited informal expressions of interest, we have decided to seek formal offers for our stake in Thomas Cook India,” said Sam Weihagen, chief executive of Thomas Cook.

“If the offers are attractive then we will consider selling our stake and using the proceeds to continue to strengthen the group’s balance sheet.”

The announcement sent the Indian subsidiary’s stock soaring on the Bombay Stock Exchange. It shot up 19.91 percent, and touch the upper circuit level at Rs.53.90.

For the quarter ending September, TCIL reported more than doubling in its net profit to Rs.245.2 million, while revenue increased 20 percent to Rs.895 million. The figures for the Oct-Dec quarter were not yet released.

However, the parent company has reported a pre-tax loss of approximately $241 million in the quarter ending December.

“TCIL is a strong business operating in an attractive market. Both the business and the market are growing and Thomas Cook will only sell its stake if a compelling offer is made,” said Weihagen.