Thomas Cook is talks with Chinese conglomerate Fosun over the potential sale of its tour operator business.
The struggling British travel agent confirmed negotiations were taking place after speculation mounted over the weekend paving the way for a break-up of the company. Shares in Thomas Cook surged 14 per cent on Monday after the news.
Fosun is already Thomas Cook's largest shareholder and also owns the Club Med brand, along with Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club.
Thomas Cook posted a £1.5bn half-year loss last month and said there was "little doubt" that Brexit had prompted customers to put off their holiday plans.
The company's share price has fallen precipitously over the past year, prompting chief executive Peter Funkhauser to tell The Independent last month that customers' holidays were safe.
“I fully understand if a customer is worried about his holiday with us, given all the noise that we have seen around us,” he said.
“But I can really reassure our customers that their holidays are safe.
“We have ample resources to operate our business through this difficult time.”
Thomas Cook's board will "consider any potential offer" for the tour operator arm but any sale to Fosun would not include Thomas Cook's airline arm, due to EU rules.
The travel company has issued three profit warnings in a year and has been looking to offload it airline division since the start of 2019.
Private equity outfit Triton Partners has put in a bid for Thomas Cook's Scandinavian arm.
Thomas Cook is slashing costs in the second half of its financial year, closing 21 stores and cutting 320 retail jobs along with a further 150 roles at its Peterborough head office.
