Shopping centre giant Hammerson slumped to the bottom of the FTSE 100 leaderboard after City analysts warned that it could face shareholder mutiny at a vote next month over its swoop for Intu Properties.
The Birmingham Bullring owner’s £3.4bn deal for Intu’s “mixed bag of capital intensive in-town centres” raised eyebrows in December and Credit Suisse analysts warned in a downgrade of both companies that the UK sector is likely to come under increasing pressure.
The retail sector has suffered as shoppers have shunned the high street amid rising prices. Even with inflation set to cool, the accelerating shift from bricks to clicks as consumers shop online will ramp up the pressure on shopping centre owners.
