Victoria Plc - comment

Fitch has caught up with the reality of Victoria's situation and downgraded the bonds to B+ from BB. This is a reaction to the deterioration of EBITDA as revenue continues to remain weak. Today’s UK growth numbers will not help Victoria either, with discretionary spending by the UK consumer, especially in pubs and restaurants, taking the main hit in October. This doesn’t tally with the comments made by the Company on its H1 call implying a small uptick in demand in the first four weeks of October.