LVMH buys £2.5bn Belmond

LOUIS Vuitton owner LVMH is to buy luxury hotel and travel company Belmond for $3.2billion (£2.54billion), concluding a sales process that attracted interest from a range of high-profile bidders.

Belmond said it had received “broad and deep interest” from several potential buyers after it announced a strategic review in August.

The group runs a global portfolio of hotels, cruises, safaris and trains.

In the UK this includes Raymond Blanc’s Oxfordshire hotel and restaurant Le Manoir and luxury train services British Pullman and Royal Scotsman.