Japan Tobacco International (JTI) and Imperial Brands are in talks to pump liquidity into struggling wholesaler Palmer & Harvey (P&H) in return for an equity stake, Sky News reported.

P&H owes substantial amounts of money to the two cigarette manufacturers, Sky News said in a report on its website citing unnamed sources. An equity stake in P&H is one of several options under discussion in what Sky News described as a potential rescue deal. Cash-and-carry group P&H has an annual revenue in excess of GBP 4 billion (EUR 4.6 billion). The company rates itself as the UK’s number one delivered wholesaler.