Hortex freezes plans to list on Warsaw Stock Exchange

"We do not plan to enter the Warsaw Stock Exchange (WSE) in the next two to three years," said fruit-and-vegetable concern Hortex Holding's president Wojciech Madalski. According to him this plan has been abandoned because of the company's unpopularity in Poland lately. Analysts say the real reason is the fact that the financial standing of the company is so bad that it cannot be listed on the exchange. Hortex recorded huge losses lately and is not considered an attractive investment for individuals. "Net losses were caused by the sell-off of a few plants for less than their balance-sheet values," said Madalski. He also said that huge reserves might be created for restructuring the company and that the next few years should be more profitable as Hortex is planning to sell some more factories, which will save the company zl. 70 million a year. Hortex's four main investors decided not to sell the whole company as it is unlikely they could find a prospective buyer active in the same sectors (juices, concentrates and frozen foods) willing to make a huge capital investment. (Prawo i Gospodarka, page 1, 2) M.M.