Construction firms agree merger

26-Mar-2007

In news which may be of interest to would-be first time buyers, two construction firms have agreed a merger deal worth approximately £5 billion.

The merger of George Wimpy and Taylor Woodrow to form Taylor Wimpey will create the UK's largest homebuilding firm and create a UK house completion rate of 22,000 properties every year, some of which may be within the price range of prospective first time buyers.

Job loses - as a result of the merger - are expected to be in the "hundreds".

"I am a fan of this deal, it's a good strategic fit,'' said Colette Ord, an analyst at Numis Securities in London.

"I think it's the best route to extracting value," she added.

Indeed, the merged company will be responsible for around 14,000 employees and will be large enough to warrant a listing on the UK's FTSE 100 index, according to the BBC.

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