Paper companies seemed keen to release updates on Friday, with Mondi in particular confirming that it is serious about partnering with Britain's DS Smith. In international news, Australia's car lobby group has reported that another car manufacturer has pulled out amid controversy over criticism of emissions regulations.
Mondi announced on Friday that it had reached an agreement to acquire British packaging group DS Smiths for £5.1bn. The (R122 billion) deal will create one of the world's largest packaging manufacturers. In principle, the deal includes an implied value of 373p per share. This premium is 33% compared to DS Smith's price on February 7, the day before the company announced it had received an initial approach from Mondi. In addition to cost reductions, the companies say this combination will also benefit from the increased scale that comes from consolidating the packaging industry. Mondi shareholders own 54%, DS Smith shareholders own the remainder, while Mondi chairman Philip Yeh, CEO Andrew King and CFO Mike Powell all own You will maintain your current position. The parties also sought regulatory approval to extend the submission of firm offers until April 4. Mondi closed around 1.7% lower on the Japan Stock Exchange, while DS Smith rose around 6% in the UK. -Bloomberg
Publishing printing company Caxton The company's profits fell by almost 31% to R280.2 million in the six months to the end of December, according to a statement on Friday. As expected, consumers are grappling with inflation, slow growth, and load shedding. The review period was characterized by a decline in overall revenue and a contraction in profit margins, which were offset by good cost management and an increase in financial net income. Although the Group incurred a loss of R45.2 million on the sale of all of its shares in Novus Holdings, it recorded a loss of R35.9 million (56.3 million Rand) in net financial income due to a significant increase in the Group's average cash balance. %) was mainly offset by an increase in “Trade conditions are not expected to improve over the remainder of the financial year and there is a risk of further deterioration,” the report said. “This trend is likely to continue until the economy shows some meaningful growth and interest rates fall, giving consumers some respite.The group will continue to closely manage costs and utilize cash reserves. Caxton closed 1.7% lower, but is still up about 0.5% over the past 12 months.
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