Powerscreen denies discounting at Benford

24 April 1998

Powerscreen denies discounting at Benford

POWERSCREEN International, the owner of specialist tractor maker Matbro, denied that another subsidiary, Benford, had conducted a fire sale by selling equipment at auction last month.

The company said Benford had been forced to sell 29 pieces of construction equipment to Richie Brothers, the auction firm, at a break-even price of $1 million after the collapse of a Far East contract.

It denied selling machines at a discount, defending allegations that the subsidiary had been engaged in price-cutting practices to boost its turnover. This follows the discovery of unauthorised discounting at Matbro which led to the write-down of £47m earlier this year.

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  The Daily Telegraph 24/04/98 page 35