IKEA in tals to return virus aid

Ikea is in talks about returning aid granted by nine countries to subsidize furloughs triggered by the coronavirus pandemic because its business is recovering faster than expected, Report says, citing Financial Times.

The global furniture retailer is negotiating with Belgium, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Ireland, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Spain and the U.S., retail operations manager Tolga Oncu at Ingka Group, which controls Ikea, told the paper.

At the start of the crisis, Ikea had expected sales to drop off between 70% and 80% as it faced store closures, he told the paper. Now all but 23 of its stores have reopened and sales are being buoyed by pent-up demand, he said.

The company wasn’t sure how much money was involved nor exactly how many workers were affected across the nine countries, he said.