Sighs of relief all round. Last week the Spanish construction company Sacyr Vallehermoso was let off an €8bn hook by a French court. The ruling overturned a decision by France’s securities regulator that would have forced Sacyr to launch
a cash bid for the whole of the French construction group Eiffage – a move it could ill afford to fund.

Sacyr then announced on Wednesday the sale of its 33.3 per cent stake to
a collection of French institutional investors. The €2bn raised means that the Spanish company has, at least, not lost any of the capital it put in at the beginning of this two-year saga. Meanwhile, the Eiffage board can finally concentrate on running the group’s toll road and construction businesses.