Unquote

Hold your breath

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Normally, as a journalist, I am the one asking the questions. However, in Stockholm last week, everyone was keen to know how the situation was in London. Was it really a doomsday feel in the streets of the City? Have the lights gone off in the posh night clubs? And can you really get a table in a top restaurant without booking? As the largest financial centre in Europe, the crisis has indeed hit London hard. With thousands of jobs in the sector axed, job security is a thing of the past, as are bonus celebrations and sign-on fees. Some Scandinavians are looking to make the move home; however, as our recruitment feature shows, the promise of a guaranteed job and a cushioned existence is no longer there (page 12)

Last weekend at Selfridges, an exclusive London department store, the doorman was handing out discount vouchers. India Knight, the shopping guru of The Sunday Times who has even written a book on the subject, now advocates prudence, saving and homemade Christmas presents. Something has changed.

For private equity, a continued cooling of the economy combined with more expensive debt is likely to create troubles for portfolio companies. Many are already struggling. Thule, the Swedish producer of trailers, snow chains and car roof boxes, which Nordic Capital acquired from Candover last Summer, and Danish phone company TDC, the largest buyout deal in the Nordic region to date, have reportedly fired a number of staff. This, even though most buyout houses I have spoken to remain optimistic and prefer to focus on the bargains the current market will produce. Another winner is secondary direct players, who spoke of robust dealflow. Niclas Ekestubbe of Cubera claimed they had more to do than ever. Another secondary direct player, Verdane Capital, is waiting for prices to fall further as vendors catch up with reality and accept lower valuations. So despite the differences of opinion, the general agreement seems to be that this is a waiting game, and prices are likely to continue to drop.

As for India Knight's saving advice, it seems the best thing to do for the economy is to hunt down the bargains and keep spending, for both the average consumer and the private equity professionals. As my friend, a fashion PR executive put it, "the sale this year is going to be the best one ever, as nobody is spending at the moment."

Yours sincerely,

Rikke Lilla Eckhoff, Nordic Editor, unquote"

Tel: +44 20 7484 9824

rikke.lilla-eckhoff@incisivemedia.com.

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