High-street retailer Laura Ashley has said its main owner is in talks with Wells Fargo to unlock more of the £20 million loan arrangement it has with the US lender after the bank tightened its purse strings.

The fashion chain negotiated a £20 million loan from the bank last year.

However, restrictions on how much it can draw on this money have come into force as the business's stock and customer deposits have dropped.

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During the last six months of the year, sales fell almost 11% to £109.6 million, the firm said.

Its main shareholder, MUI Asia Limited, is not considering putting cash into the company to keep it afloat, Laura Ashley said.

Chairman Andrew Khoo said: "We acknowledge that recent trading conditions, in line with the overall UK retail market, have indeed been challenging.

"There is, however, a robust plan in place to turn the business around and the board of directors is confident and optimistic that the recent appointment of Katharine Poulter [as chief executive] will enable the business to execute this broad-based strategy.

"The major shareholders have indicated their continued confidence in the business and are fully supportive of the management team and execution of the transformation plan."

General Motors says it is pulling out of Australia, New Zealand and Thailand as part of a strategy to exit markets that do not produce adequate returns on investments.

The Detroit-based company said in a statement on Sunday it would wind down sales, engineering and design operations for its historic Holden brand in Australia and New Zealand in 2021.

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It also plans to sell its Rayong factory in Thailand to China's Great Wall Motors and withdraw the Chevrolet brand from Thailand by the end of this year.

GM has 828 employees in Australia and New Zealand and another 1,500 in Thailand, the company said.

CEO Mary Barra said in a statement the company wanted to focus on markets where it can drive strong returns.
She said GM would support its employees and customers in the transition.

The company said it would scale back operations in all three countries to selling niche speciality vehicles. It would make the same move in Japan, Russia and Europe, where "we don't have significant scale".

"We are pursuing a niche presence by selling profitable high-end imported vehicles supported by a lean GM structure," International Operations Senior Vice President Julian Blissett said in the statement.

The Detroit automaker expects to take $1.1 billion worth of cash and non-cash charges this year as it cuts operations in the three countries.

GM has a long history in Australia with the Holden brand, where cars were designed and sold in the US and other markets. The 2008 and 2009 Pontiac G8 muscle car, for instance, was designed as a Holden Commodore and built in Australia.

GM said Holden's market share, which was nearly 22% in 2002, fell to just over 4% last year.

GM has struggled in Asia in the past year. Its International Operations, which includes China, lost $200 million (£153 million) last year, including $100 million (76.5 million) in the fourth quarter.

The founder of hospital builder NMC Health has left the board.

BR Shetty, an Indian-born Emirati businessman, stepped down as non-executive chairman, and from the board altogether, on Sunday, the company said.

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It follows a two-month saga that has seen serious questions raised about the business, which builds hospitals in the United Arab Emirates.

Mr Shetty will be replaced as chairman by co-chair Mark Tompkins.

Two other directors - Abdulrahman Basaddiq and Hani Buttikhi - also stepped down on Monday.

Alongside the announcements of their departures, Mr Tompkins thanked them for their service and said the board appreciates the situation they have been put in.