Steinhoff says some real estate assets may be worth less than thought

Struggling furniture retail conglomerate Steinhoff International has warned investors that some of its real estate assets in Europe may be worth €1.1bn less than previously thought. At issue are 140 stores, warehouses, offices and production sites across Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Switzerland, the UK and eastern Europe. In February, Steinhoff said that these properties – all part of the so called “Hemisphere portfolio” -were valued at €2.2bn. An independent valuation of CBRE Limited, a real estate services company, now concluded that the real estate assets are worth just half of that amount, based on the IFRS 13 accounting standards, which disregards internal leases to Steinhoff-related entities. Click here for the full FT article