The company, which Goldman Sachs took a 10% stake in the company in November 2007, remains predominantly owned by its founder and executive chairman Peter Cruddas.
As a private company, CMC is able to control the news flow about it to a far greater extent than those which are listed, particularly when it comes to anything that could potentially portray it in a bad light.
So while it was happy to release a stellar set of figures for the yearto the end of March 31, 2008, it appears reluctant to comment on the rumours that it has just embarked on a global redundancy programme, which will include the departure of a senior director in its London office
In its last financial year, CMC reported that its revenue rose 64% to £181.4 million, while its profit after tax leapt by 209% to £39.8 million. There is no doubt that the company is one of the big boys in its sector, and so it is inevitable that any scaling back of its operations generates interest. The rumour mill says that the company will cut back its presence in Australia, Japan and China and that the axe has also just been wielded in London.