NFC thinks small on future buyouts by Karen Miles •
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NFC has ruled itself out of any large-scale acquisitions by promising to hand back more than £300m of spare cash to its shareholders. The move, which will benefit up to 15,000 employee-shareholders, means that the company will not be bidding for Ryder UK—which has been put up for sale by its US parent—nor any other large operators in the near future.
But the company is looking for smaller purchases: last week it spent £3.4m on 80-vehicle Spanish operator Monros Logistica, which specialises in distribution to car makers.
The declaration of strategy came as NFC announced its results for the half-year ending on 31 March.
The UK proved to be NFC's toughest market; company secretary Jeremy Letchford describes conditions as "the most difficult.. .of anywhere".
Despite continuing losses of £1.8m on the Continent and losses inflicted in the UK by Exel Logistics' media business, total operating profit for the UK, Ireland and the Continent rose by 17% over the same period last year.
First-half group turnover fell by 5% to £1.1bn, but profit before tax and exceptional items rose by 4% to £51.9m.